Divine Rivals | Rebecca Ross
"do you ever feel as if you wear armor, day after day? that when people look at you, they see only the shine of steel that you've so carefully encased yourself in? they see what they want to see in you-"
One of my favorite books so far this year, that tells the story of Iris and Roman, rival reporters at the Oath Gazette, the biggest newspaper in Cambria's capital Oath. The atmosphere is amazing, as well as the chemistry between these two. The worldbuilding isn't the most elaborate but I didn't feel like it needed to be - we are simply thrust into the lives of these characters and given enough information to be able to follow as they go along. I really didn't mind it.
A war between gods is raging, and young men and women are coscripted into the opposing armies, dying at the whims of divines. Enva Skyward is hiding in Oath and soldiers with her song. On the other side of the country, Dacre Underling is wreaking chaos with his armies and his dark creatures. Iris' brother Forest is conscripted to Enva's army and as he goes off to the front, Iris is left with her alcoholic mother at home, and her insufferable, posh rival at work. But when her mother dies and the columnist position is given to Roma she quits and seeks employment in a rival paper as a war correspondent.
Another thing Iris has is her grandma's magic typewriter that she uses to correspond with a mysterious friend Carver. But when Roman shows up at the B&B she's staying at and reveals that he is in fact Carver, feelings that were bubbling deep underneath come to the surface and the two realize that they're meant for each other. Their love is crowned with a wedding in the garden and a night in the dark, but the war is coming closer and Iris is left scrabbling when it gives her Forest back but takes Roman away from her.
I really loved this story, the writing is so beautiful and Iris and Roman's story had me hooked. I had to get to the sequel right away.
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