Review of The Dark Divine by Bree Despain

I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Review of The Dark Divine by Bree DespainThe Dark Divine by Bree Despain
Series: Dark Divine #1
Also in this series: The Lost Saint: A Dark Divine Novel
Also by this author: The Lost Saint: A Dark Divine Novel
Published by Egmont USA on 2009-12
Genres: Love & Romance, Paranormal, Young Adult
Pages: 372
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher
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four-stars

Grace Divine, daughter of the local pastor, always knew something terrible happened the night Daniel Kalbi disappeared--the night she found her brother Jude collapsed on the porch, covered in his own blood--but she has no idea what a truly monstrous secret that night held. The memories her family has tried to bury resurface when Daniel returns, three years later, and enrolls in Grace and Jude's high school. Despite promising Jude she'll stay away, Grace cannot deny her attraction to Daniel's shocking artistic abilities, his way of getting her to look at the world from new angles, and the strange, hungry glint in his eyes. The closer Grace gets to Daniel, the more she jeopardizes her life, as her actions stir resentment in Jude and drive him to embrace the ancient evil Daniel unleashed that horrific night. Grace must discover the truth behind the boy's dark secret...and the cure that can save the ones she loves. But she may have to lay down the ultimate sacrifice to do it--her soul.

I didn’t like The Dark Divine by Bree Despain at first. I know, what a way to start off a book review right? To be honest, in the beginning it felt like a Christian fiction novel which is a genre I tend to avoid. I also did not like the love interest, Daniel, at first either. To me, he seemed like such an asshole and I immediately associated the word abusive with him.

Eventually, however, the Dark Divine won me over. I think when the book moved away from Grace, the main character’s religious background and into the real meat of the story, I began to become engrossed. Especially engaging was the backstory of Daniel’s family and the Urbat.

I thought the end of The Dark Divine by Bree Despain was perfect and left a decent wrap-up point with no real need for a sequel. I won’t spoil, and I know some will disagree with me, but I think the book ended on a great note, and I don’t really need to read about Grace’s new experiences.

Overall, Bree Despain’s writing is enchanting, and the Dark Divine is a piece of paranormal fun. It was a quick read, as in, I kept turning pages quickly. I liked her family, despite their myriad of problems. I feel like I would have enjoyed this book so much more if there was less of a religious aspect.

Although, reading the Dark Divine by Bree Despain makes me want to read Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater, just to see how they compare. The main characters of both books have the same name, Grace, and I feel like they share the same paranormal creatures. This is not to insinuate anything, I mean Grace is a lovely name, but I just want to see how they stack up compared to each other.

I would recommend The Dark Divine and a pumpkin spice latte. This is the second book I’ve recommended with a pumpkin spice latte, but it felt like such a fall type of a book, I just had to!

four-stars
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April is in her 30s and created Good Books And Good Wine. She works for a non-profit. April always has a book on hand. In her free time she can be found binge watching The Office with her husband and toddler, spending way too much time on Pinterest or exploring her neighborhood.
About April (Books&Wine)

April is in her 30s and created Good Books And Good Wine. She works for a non-profit. April always has a book on hand. In her free time she can be found binge watching The Office with her husband and toddler, spending way too much time on Pinterest or exploring her neighborhood.

Comments

  1. Book Crazy Jenn says

    HMM great review – I loved your candor, I cant WAIT TO read this one…it cant come out soon enough for me..

  2. Juju at Tales of Whimsy.com says

    Oooo sounds good to me. And I like Christian fiction so I'm sure I'll appreciate that part too. Thanks for the review.

    PS I LOVE pumpkin spice lattes.

  3. At the moment I'm unsure about this one, but enjoyed your review and how it won you over more as you read.

    Thanks
    Seahn

  4. Lisa and Laura says

    The cover of this book is just gorgeous.

  5. justicejenniferreads says

    Yum, I love pumpkin spice lattes and everything about the fall and winter seasons. They just beg you to jump into comfortable clothes and snuggle up with books and blankets. That being said I am intrigued by the Dark Divine. I liked your review – I feel like you were fair and I feel like when and if I get around to reading it,I will have similar reactions. I don't like books that idealize religion too much and I hate abusive love interests. Still, every book deserves a chance and sometimes you need to look past your beginning qualms to find the true heart of the story.

  6. Great review. I have this on my wishlist and hope I get the chance before its out too long and spoilers abound.

  7. Shooting Stars Mag says

    i haven't read this yet but i really do want too. i don't like when religion is a big aspect of a book but sounds like it gets better as you go. And Shiver is great, or so I think, so definitely read it!

    -Lauren

  8. I recently read another review of this book. It's great to read reviews as it helps with my selections when buying books.

  9. It is best if a book can grab your interest right away. I know a lot of people who give a book 25 to 50 pages and it they are totally into it by then, they won't finish it. I'm one who will read to the end, hoping it will get better. Am glad you stuck with it.
    You are reviewing a book, never hesitate to give your honest opinion.

  10. Great review..I so want to read this one šŸ™‚

  11. ~The Book Pixie says

    Since the Christian part will definitely not bother me, I got a feeling I will love this book and I'm glad it got better for you. BTW, I just love how you recommend books with different drinks. So cool and original! šŸ˜€

    ~Briana

Trackbacks

  1. […] of you who are living in the 21st century and have ereaders better get to buying The Dark Divine by Bree Despain, as The Lost Saint is out in December, and right NOW Egmont is pricing The Dark Divine ebook at […]

  2. […] Lost Saint by Bree Despain is the sequel to The Dark Divine. Grace is flexing her new werewolf powers, but also growing slightly apart from boyfriend, Daniel. […]