Aurelia Schwartz has a secret. She is a witch but her magic is fading. Aurelia must work together with her academic rival to save their magic from the power hungry witch that threatens to steal their power.
Modern Divination is a dark academia, fantasy romance that will appeal to readers of Divine Rivals.

Modern Divination by Isabel Agajanian centers on Aurelia Schwartz, a witch who has kept her magical identity a secret for twenty-three years, carefully balancing her life between the normal and the supernatural. Her hidden life is thrown into turmoil after a fellow witch is murdered at a campus event, and Aurelia unexpectedly becomes involved in the investigation alongside her academic rival, Theodore “Teddy” Ingram. Teddy, who has always looked down on Aurelia, reveals that he too has magic and insists that they team up to solve the murder. As they retreat to his family’s magical home, their rivalry slowly gives way to a deeper connection.

The novel delves into themes of isolation, loss, and the walls people build to avoid emotional connection. As Aurelia and Teddy work together, their relationship shifts from hostile competition to a slow-burn romance, forcing them to confront their pasts and their vulnerabilities. The revised edition of the book has been praised for enhancing the emotional tension between the two leads and intensifying the atmosphere, especially in the romantic dynamic. It blends an academic rivalry with magical intrigue, illustrating how love and vulnerability can transform people, even when they try to resist.

At its core, Modern Divination is a compelling mix of mystery, magic, and an evolving romance, driven by the push and pull between two characters who must confront their flaws and fears. The emotional payoff of their journey makes the story all the more addictive, leaving readers eagerly anticipating the next book in the series.

I hate to DNF any book... I'd rather leave it for a bit and try again from a different headspace. Unfortunately, I just don't think this book will be one I return too. These are purely my opinions, no hate to the author, they just may not be for me. 🙃
I found that the writing often felt over written with a lot of circular conversations and confusing/repetitive dialogue (because of the editing/formatting or maybe just my inability to comprehend it)? I felt like it was trying to be poetic but it often felt jarring or staccato.

The story wasn't really the "dark academia" it was described as... really only the first 15 ish % qualified for that description.
I also thought the main characters felt a bit flat. Their interactions were primarily about their intense dislike for one another. I never really understood what the big bad was or why they felt the need to flee the school setting and there was never a sense of urgency about it anyways. And the fact that the FMC was so blase about being left in the dark by the MMC... I just got tired of it.

Again... just my opinions (I read to 35%)... 🤷🏻‍♀️. I hope others have a wonderful time with this story. 🙂

Thank you to Net Galley and Pan Macmillan for the ARC.

Isabel Agajanian, you have a fan for life. Teddy Ingram might be one of THE most pathetic and devoted book boyfriends to ever book boyfriend, and Aurelia Schwartz deserves it all.

Modern Divination follows Aurelia Schwartz, a witch with a green thumb completing a PhD in medieval history at Cambridge University. She spends her days warring for the favour of her professor with a tall, dark-haired boy named Theodore Ingram - her rival, her nemesis, the centre of her resentment. When she's not working on her research, exchanging biting remarks with Teddy, or hanging with her roommate and best friend Ryan, Aurelia is using her magic to grow plants and make tea, and she's safe - as long as no one else finds out about her powers. When one of Aurelia's colleagues - and unbeknownst to her, a fellow witch - is murdered at a faculty event, Aurelia and Teddy are thrown together, and forced to fight for their families and their lives.

Modern Divination was one of my most anticipated new releases this year. I read the indie published edition years ago, and fell in love with the atmosphere, the yearning, and Isabel Agajanian's beautiful prose. There were so many lines that truly took my breath away without ever feeling forced or purple-prose-y. If I were rating this book on vibes, on romance, and on writing alone - immediate 5 stars.

Unfrotunately, I think this needed a few more rounds of developmental editing before it was ready for traditional publication. I read it because I know these characters and love them, and I was looking forward to seeing what changes (if any) were made, but like....nothing really happens that would convince any of my fantasy reader friends to keep going after the first few chapters. It is so, so, so slow, and pretty uneventful. The plot is pretty basic, and is only partially resolved, and that partial resolution happens quietly, only 70-80% of the way in. There were so many really interesting threads introduced - Teddy's parents, the bookshop, the crows - that just sort of fizzled away into the background. Meanwhile, we spend scene after scene after scene watching Rory and Teddy have the same circular arguments about their hatred of one another. It was fun at first, but got tired very quickly. I love them - I'd listen to them sing terribly in the shower or discuss their grocery lists - but even i was getting bored of them after a while.

Still, despite my issues, I still think Modern Divination is a solid book, and I'm looking forward to picking up a physical copy to shelve next to my indie edition. Isabel Agajanian has so much talent, and I'm really looking forward to reading the sequel, and any future projects.

2.5 stars

Modern Divination turned out to be quite different from what I expected, both in good and not-so-good ways unfortunately.

The story follows Aurelia Schwartz, a witch and student struggling to balance her magical and human life. However, everything shifts when her magic begins to fade, and a series of witch murders threatens her community. With the help of a classmate, she retreats to a small town, where they uncover hidden secrets, and where their lingering rivalry takes an intriguing turn.

I saw so many people raving about this book, and the solid reviews had me really excited to finally read it. I never got around to it when the self-published version was out, but luckily, I received an ARC and couldn’t wait to dive into this story filled with witches, dark academia vibes, and an enemies-to-lovers dynamic that everyone was talking about. While the beginning was a bit slow, the author immediately transported us to Cambridge with vivid descriptions, making the atmosphere feel rich and immersive. Then, as the setting shifted to a small cottage town, the colder, darker vibes really set in. I loved the prose, but with all the different themes the book promised along with some elements that didn’t quite work for me it started to feel a bit unfocused, which made it drag at times.

There were moments when I really enjoyed the characters and their interactions, but just as often, they frustrated me. The FMC, for one, seemed unable to let go of a childish grudge, and when she finally did, the dialogue felt awkward only for another unnecessary, mean-spirited grudge to take place. On the other hand, the MMC didn’t have much of a standout personality, which made their chemistry and relationship feel forced rather than natural, and me not connecting with them. On top of that, the worldbuilding lacked development, which was disappointing because it had so much potential. The plot and its twists started off strong, but as the story progressed, the sense of urgency and solid explanations were missing. The book also felt overly long, so many pages and chapters didn’t feel necessary for the plot, worldbuilding, or character relationships, making it drag when it could’ve been much tighter.

Overall, the book had a lot of promise, the themes, the atmosphere, and the “what could have been” of the plot and romance were intriguing, but the execution didn’t fully land for me. Nothing stood out enough to leave a lasting impression, and I’m not sure I’m invested enough to continue with the sequel. It’s disappointing because I really wanted to love the book that so many people raved about, but in the end, it just wasn’t for me.

Academic rivals, witchy magic, and romance. What isn’t there to love? I originally read the indie version of this, before it was picked up by the traditional publisher. I loved it then, and I still enjoy it now just as much if not more! I loved the characters and the world the author created. 4.5 stars due to the slow pacing at the start of the story

3.5⭐️

This book had all the witchy, moody, rain and tea drenched vibes. I liked reading about Teddy, Aurelia, and the additional cast, oh and especially the yearning these to had.
I wanted to enjoy this book more thoroughly as it took me awhile to get into and sometimes I wasn’t sure what was really happening. That’s on my end since I really enjoyed the atmosphere of this book, and I plan on revisiting this story when the sequel releases!

This was a surprisingly cozy read. I really enjoyed the atmosphere the author created, combined with the academic rivals trope. The writing style reminded me a lot of Divine Rivals, which I loved. Definitely recommend this to those who enjoyed reading that duology and love a nice slow burn. The story is definitely more character-driven and not as high-stakes as I thought, but I have a feeling that we will get much more action in the next book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Slow moving, going to pause at 15% and will try again with the audiobook as I was highly anticipating this one. Though I didn't know this was marketed as a "cozy fantasy" before going in... I have not enjoyed that genre previously.
I'm hoping for Aurelia and Theodore to give NicoLibby vibes from The Atlas Six, so far they are a little bit and the story is giving a similiar vibe to Rachel Griffin's The Nature of Witches.

DNF @ 16% (four chapters, approx. 80 pages)

Thank you Netgalley for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book has been on my radar since it's self-published days. When I saw this new Tor edition available on Netgalley I was happy to get my hands on the arc.

Unfortunately, I highly doubt this book received any vigorous editing between its self-published version and this one. The document I received from Netgalley didn't have any disclaimer about it being an unedited proof, so I have to believe oversights like forgetting to start and end paragraphs for new dialogue, not making any indication or formatting difference (like italics) for internal first person thought instead of the third person POV, and just the generally very bloated prose, are all going to make it into the copy of this book that will hit the shelves.

I have little to say about the story or characters themselves, because I could not deal with the prose. In an attempt at flowery, lush writing, the prose in this book is bloated, overwritten, confusing, and to put it more plainly- feels like a thesaurus threw up. There is little variation in sentence length, they are all inordinately long, and there were multiple passages that were so nonsensical and disorienting I found myself saying "what?!" out loud, at least four times. So, about once per chapter that I managed to read.

What i will say about the characters is that the rivalry seems rooted in the MC sniping at the MMC because he is sort of rude and has a very pompous air about him. We don't actually see him do anything egregious. She just thinks he is the worrsssttt, and is antagonistic in response. Every time they interact; she is mean first. In chapter three they have a spat, in which MMC points out that she is just taking out all of her bitterness and obvious insecurity on him, which we clearly see happen on page. While her fury with him just seems rooted in the fact that he exists, and said something kind of rude behind her back once. If anything, he should hate her. This type of "rivalry" which is rooted in the MC being aggravated by the MMC's mere existence and vibe, resulting in her being mean to him, does nothing for me. Baseless. Nonsense. Boring.

Back to what I was saying, I can't stress enough how difficult i found the prose. It's not that the style isn't for me. I think it's objectively poorly crafted. Also, here is an example of a passage that i have a very petty grievance with. The prose here is not actually the problem.

"It was always ingram to her, and rarely Theodore, because nicknames were reserved for the people she liked, and he was assuredly not one of them."

So, MC is talking about how she only refers to MMC as his surname, and not first name. So what the hell are nicknames being brought up for? What nickname? There was no mention anywhere of a nickname. Theodore is not a nickname. That's his god given first name. If anything, calling someone by their surname is a nickname in modern society (which is where this takes place, it's urban fantasy btw).

Between the bloated prose, passages that don't make sense, and a rivalry that clearly only exists in the MC's head due to her own personal crap. No. This is not for me.

" She craved it. Not like a leap towards danger, but a slow tantalizing seduction towards some other monster she wasn't ready to face."
-------
Modern Divination follows two academic rivals who find themselves in the center of a mysterious murder and must band together in a reluctant alliance to save themselves from becoming the next victims...

This story gave me all the soft, cozy, witchy winter vibes I was craving with the most satisfying of slow burns I've read in a while.

It was everything I hoped and wanted. Moody winter vibes, complex and interesting characters, beautiful writing, an interesting magic system. I couldn't get enough of. I loved it and am looking forward to book 2.

I recommend this one for anyone who likes...
✨️Academic Rivals
✨️Tea sharing
✨️SLOW burn
✨️Secret Witches
✨️A little mystery

Thank you to Pan Macmillan | Tor and Netgalley for sending me an eARC. All opinions are my own.

Excellent story idea in theory but the execution was lacking for me.

We have to very childish characters that seem to loathe one another for absolutely adolescent reasons and yet can’t reconcile it with even after several conversations, grow up, your Cambridge students I’d expect a higher level of maturity.

There is also far too much telling and very little showing, half way through this book I had no sense is what it was even about it was all just explained via dialogue and didn’t enrich the reading experience.

The villain was unoriginal and felt like a caricature.

The writing is lovely but it all needed a heavy edit.

Thank you for the review copy all opinions are my own.

I've seen so much hype for this release, and it sounded exactly like my kind of thing, so I was very excited to dive in. But unfortunately, this book did not live up to its potential for me.

I thought the first few chapters were strong, and they set up such an interesting premisse, but then everything quickly fizzled out for me. I found myself bored and craving more: more world building, more character depth, more emotional connection to the story. I just didn't feel pulled in as much as I wanted, which was a shame especially because the book is quite long, so all the opportunity was there.

I originally added this book to my TBR because of the absolutely gorgeous cover, however, I can officially say that this book was everything it needed to be. I was obsessed with the autumnal vibes of this book; small town, coffee and bookshops, warm cottages, I felt like i was there in the moment as a spectator with Teddy and Aurelia. Speaking of, they were both great protagonists, and I especially loved Aurelia’s spicy attitude! Although I would say the book dragged in a few parts, I would 100% recommend this to other readers who live cozy fall/magic vibes.

This is a beautifully well-written book. The characters have depth, and you connect with them; the slow burn is well-written. However, the pacing was off, which made me enjoy it less than I would have if it had a better flow. It felt rushed at some points, and other parts dragged so much that I skimmed or skipped multiple pages and missed nothing. It could have gone through another round of editing, but overall, it is a decent book if you like dark academia-type books.

The first time I picked up this book, it was because the boy on the cover reminded me of Kaz Brekker and I was instantly intrigued, but I was never able to get through the first chapter. So when I heard that it was getting republished, I decided I wanted to give it another try since I knew so many who loved this book and I am super glad that I did.

The vibes alone of this book are immaculate, I mean rivalling bi witches at Cambridge university, be still my dark academia heart. Especially when our mmc was not-so-secretly in love with Rory the whole time. (I've read books recently that have attempted to have that level of misunderstood feelings and it has not worked so I was very glad to see a successful attempt here)

Parts of the book were still hard to get through and took a lot more mental capacity to stay focused on than I would like personally, and parts of the relationship near the end I didn't love BUT overall the aesthetic of the book and the ambience of it all were super cozy for winter and were very much up my alley.

The new cover fits the book a lot better, despite how much I will miss the art of the old edition.
dark, moody, and tea; what more could you ask for?

thanks to tor and netgalley for the arc!

Modern Divination is a slow-burn, character-driven academic rivals-to-lovers story set in our world, but with a rich layer of magic woven throughout. While the book centres around students, the academic rivalry is only a small part of the narrative. Instead of delving deeply into their studies or the origins of their competition, the story focuses more on the evolving relationship between the two protagonists. I did find myself wanting more backstory to help establish a stronger connection with the characters, as they sometimes felt a bit underdeveloped.

The magic system was one of the most intriguing aspects of the story, especially its connection to different senses. However, due to the secretive nature of the witches in this world, I found it took a while to fully grasp the nuances of the magic, and the book doesn’t reveal much about it early on, which left me feeling somewhat lost at times. This added a layer of mystery, but also some frustration, as I struggled to visualise and understand the mechanics of the magic.

In terms of pacing, the book maintains a steady rhythm throughout, with a strong emphasis on character exploration rather than action. For the most part, this worked for me, but by the end, I found myself wishing for a bit more momentum. I suspect this was because I wasn’t as emotionally invested in the characters as I would have liked to be, which made the slower pace feel longer than anticipated.

While the main plot didn’t quite captivate me as much as I’d hoped, I did appreciate the overall atmosphere and was particularly intrigued by some of the side characters. I’m hopeful that these characters will play a larger role in future instalments, as they added depth and intrigue to the story. Ultimately, the lack of clarity around the world-building and magic system prevented me from fully connecting with the book, but I do think it has potential. Now that I have a better sense of the world, I’d be open to exploring more books in this setting and learning more about the magic system.

Thank you to Pan Macmillan and Netgalley for this eARC to review.

Thank you to the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

I actually previously read the self-published version and got 16% into it before promptly dnf'ing it. I decided to give Modern Divination another chance with this new polished-up version when I picked up the self-published version again and to my surprise kind of got sucked into it for a brief moment. Unfortunately, I did not quite enjoy this, like at all.

Modern Divination has everything I theoretically would enjoy, academic rivals to lovers, a small-town setting, a very sad MMC, and magical abilities. Yet, I found almost all of these aspects of the book the most insufferable elements of my reading experience. The small town lacks any kind of charm or intrigue, the stigma around magical abilities is weakly explained, the rivals aspect feels overblown, and the MMC is just one big eye roll.

While the relationship between the two characters is expertly crafted, and you can clearly see the love the author has for their love, it felt way too at the forefront of the plot at the expense of the murder magic mystery which is pitched as being the heart of Modern Divination. This is compounded by some poetic writing that veers on overly flowery at times with just how much it bogs down the page count. At one point, the writing feels like it smugly succumbs to self-indulgence as it seemingly feels more concerned with demonstrating its own literary prose rather than advancing the plot. By page 300, I feel stuck in the trenches of prose-y prose. The story is also dominated by heavy internal introspection with the characters using one another as a character study, circling one another for some 500 pages and consequently what little stakes are established are brushed aside.

In light of this, the pacing felt a bit too uneven throughout the story, with the narrative dragging in certain parts yet speedrunning through others where the reader would otherwise expect a bit more lingering. For instance, the main villain of this story was dealt with at the 75% mark yet we spend the last quarter meandering around the feelings of the two characters, much to my surprise and frustration.

Other than that, I don't think I will be picking up the sequel.

4.5 (rounded up)

Modern Divination is a character-focused and atmospheric adult fantasy with slow-burn academic rivals full of yearning, and a found family that hits you right in the heart.

Aurelia and Theodore are two witches and long-standing academic rivals at Cambridge, but they suddenly find themselves needing to team up after another power-hungry witch begins threatening their magic and lives. I devoured this one in the span of a night and just need to say that the vibes were immaculate. While I absolutely adored the character-driven nature of the narrative, I do think that it is not without its faults as the plot was not as well-developed as it could be in terms of the antagonist (honestly I wasn’t mad about it because I loved seeing the two characters relationship develop and did I mention the yearning? But if you are someone who likes a plot-centric book, this one is probably not for you).

All in all, I am so excited for the second book and I can’t wait to meet Aurelia and Teddy again!

Thank you to Netgalley and Pan Macmillan for providing this eArc in exchange for an honest review. All opinions in this review are my own.

This is for the fans of the slow-burn, the Howl’s Moving Castle tortured-yet-loveable man, and most importantly the yearners. I enjoyed my time spent with Aurelia and Teddy, the academic atmosphere, and the development of their rivals-to-lovers relationship.

Unfortunately, this was the only thing that kept me pulling through the 500 pages. I found that the plot began to drag from the midpoint on, and I was a fair bit confused at the progression of events. If not for my desire to find out if Teddy and Aurelia end up together I fear I would not have been able to pull through. I was left with many questions on the magic and the world building, which felt as if they fell wayside to the development of our characters budding relationship. I did not feel the “life or death” of the story at all, it felt rather secondary and forgettable to the couple (which for me as a yearner, was not enough to put it down). I found myself thinking while they were in Townsend that I wished it was a “cozy” story, that it could just be the pair of academics solving a puzzle of sorts and less an action driven witch hunt.

I enjoyed my time reading Modern Divination and would recommend it to fans of Divine Rivals in particular, for a pair of flawed yet compelling characters. I will be reading the second instalment to see where we go from here! The authors writing is very easy to read and the prose was excellent. I can’t wait to see what they do next.

Thank you NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review!