selin's Reviews > Divine Rivals

inhale love. exhale words.

some words touch your soul more than hands ever could, and here i am, owning hundreds of books, yet captivated by one that holds my heart and shapes pages into my home.

think of that crescent moon that you couldn’t take your eyes from at night, a cat jumping to your lap when you were sitting on a bench, that soundtrack from your favorite movie, your mom buying you a sweater because she knows that you love that color, autumn leaves falling onto you while you were snuggling to your jacket or your best friend’s laugh when she sees you in a bright summer day. the feeling that you get, that love, cannot be described by words; however this is the part where i am proven wrong, because divine rivals exist.

whichever genre’s reader you are, or whatever age you are, if i were to have one single book name to give entire world as a recommendation, i would let it be this one. don’t think about the plot, don’t think about the genre, don’t think about reviews or rating, just pick it up, because the way love was shown in this book will never be compared to anything i have ever seen, read or watched in my life.

if you feel like you don’t know how to love or don’t know what it feels to be loved, i promise you that divine rivals will show it to you, there are tens of love letters inside of this book between the main characters, but the way it presented was so ethereal that you get to feel that the book itself IS a love letter for you. the descriptions, the words, the characters, the events; they are all prepared in a bowl where you add realism, honesty, sincerity, trust and most importantly, love, and not just romantic love, friendship, parent and sibling love too, and presented to you in a most magnificent way that you never could’ve been imagine that could’ve been shown.

from the first page the writing holds you captive, the way how city lights flicker or how the stars shined was described so passionately that you have no choice but to immediately fall in love with the book. i don’t usually evaluate books by the literature values because i am not qualified enough for that, but i just have to take your attention to this because the way it’s written was the most beautiful thing i have ever read in my entire life. just look at how a beautiful description this is;

”Gods and goddesses dancing among the clouds, dressed in long gilded robes with stars gleaming in their hair, their gazes sweeping around.”

i have to admit that i was planning to give four stars to this book because it’s classified as a fantasy novel, however the world-building and the backstory of the gods’ war was missing some information. it was exactly like a quote from the book itself; ‘it was as if someone wanted to steal the knowledge of the past.’ it took me 150 pages to understand that this book wasn’t about a war between gods, instead, it was about how people act in a war, the fear, the passion and the love behind all of this tragedy. and once i realised that the main issue that’s presented in this book was romance rather than fantasy, i started to enjoy it a lot more. because romaniris’ love cannot be compared to anything else.

thank you for reading my review, however after this part there are spoilers, so please do not read the rest if you haven't picked this beauty up yet! 💗

”And I’m not afraid to be alone, but I’m tired of being the one left behind. I’m tired of having to rearrange my life after the people within it depart, as if I’m a puzzle and I’m now missing pieces and I will never feel that pure sense of completion again.”

iris: incredible protagonist. the way she thinks, acts and speaks is so amazing, and her love for people she cares about is so so beautiful. also she is incredibly mature, the way she takes care of her drunk mother and works to keep them alive is so heartbreaking. she wears an armor everyday, hiding her family’s poverty, never asking for reassurance even though she feels alone in the world and trying to stand up on her own feet by working her ass of for a job she wants so passionately is so admirable. her seeking the truth at all costs, staying strong while her mom’s showing reckless actions, putting her family above her, not needing anyone and defending herself by her own, knowing her value, wanting to be beautiful just for herself, telling herself she doesn’t needs her mother’s reassurance but gets bolstered when gets it, not crying in front of people, hating when her boss made her resignation sounds like she is giving up, remembering small details about her friends, afraid to love people because she always lose them.. if i see someone saying she is unlikable, watch under your bed bc i’m hiding there.. with a knife 🔪

”But if I’ve learned anything from those fools, it is that to be vulnerable is a strength that most of us fear. It takes courage to let down your armor, to welcome people to see you as you are. Sometimes I feel the same as you: I can’t risk having people behold me as I truly am. But there’s also a small voice in the back of my mind, a voice that tells me, ‘You will miss so much by being so guarded.”

her mind is spectacular, she talks about how much she was hungry, not just for food but for sober conversations with her mother. and the way she uses words; she ‘bled’ herself in her articles and letters, not having motivation and describing the blank page as ‘nothing more than stars and smoke and word pressed on a page’, her writing to roman but also writing for herself, her understanding how close she can be to people, yet how far away and lonely she can fell.. she is so mature and i get chills every time we get a scope of her articles and letters.

“I don’t think you realize how strong you are, because sometimes strength isn’t swords and steel and fire, as we are so often made to believe. Sometimes it’s found in quiet, gentle places. The way you hold someone’s hand as they grieve. The way you listen to others. The way you show up, day after day, even when you are weary or afraid or simply uncertain. That is strength, and I see it in you.”

roman: how to put this man’s selflessness, maturity, smartness and passion to words… he is the most well behaved, smart, dedicated and well spoken man i have ever read. you know miscommunication? reverse it and make it a character and you have roman fucking kitt. his maturity level is reachless, he apologized to iris the second the understood his words came out offensive (unintentionally), asked her if she wants to talk when she looks bothered, said to her that she’ll never be alone, asked for a final assignment since he believes that he had a unfair advantage; you literally can see he cares, not only hear by his words. he doesn’t just sees her, he sees through her.

honestly i believe that i can make you love him by listing his actions and not even adding my thoughts about him; he quitted his dream job, broke his engagement, stood against his father’s expectations to travel hundreds of kilometers on a train that broke down and walked his way through the war just to be with the girl he loves. this is not enough? okay, he was the only one to check her when she didn’t show up at work, waited behind her door until he was sure that she locked it, gets so worried about her being wounded that he couldn’t bear to sit and wondered through till 3am, rereads all the letters that iris has sent to him every night before bed, crawled to her while he was bleeding and dying, trying to reach her in his last breath. HE PRACTICALLY DIED FOR HER.

“I pray that my days will be long at your side. Let me fill and satisfy every longing in your soul. May your hand be in mine, by sun and by night. Let our breaths twine and our blood become one, until our bones return to dust. Even then, may I find your soul still sworn to mine.”

romaniris: they are fated mates. i don’t care if they are not faes or magical creatures, they are destined to be with each other. god, those letters made me cry like twenty times, the pure love among them cannot be reached by any other couple that exists. roman admiring iris’ writing and taking courage from it, his soul getting a peaceful silence while reading her letters, him being proud when iris acts brave and stands up for her words, devotes himself to her; iris not being afraid to be seen by him at her worst, her sensing the second roman arrives in a room, falling for him twice, being ready to die with him.. they both stated that there was no way for them to live if another dies. they showed each other they both deserve to be loved and be happy, and best way for them to have it was.. being by each other’s side.

”But I think there is a magical link between you and me. A bond that not even distance can break.”

i want to add some thoughts on women friendships too, because they were incredibly sincere and beautiful. marisol taking iris and attie under her wings right away, they all helping each other with chores and acting as a whole, preparing garden for arrival of keegan, attie calling iris her favourite flower, they all encouraging each other, iris calling marisol and attie her family that she is bonded by something deeper than blood, this small details got my eyes watery by showing how much of a special thing to have friends that you can call your home.

i wrote so much yet so little, because there is no words to describe how beautiful this book was in the history of languages. this is the part where my reviews ends, however, it encouraged me to write a love letter for two precious humans, so here it is;
💌
dear shei and bru,
i have been always a defender of the fact that distance makes everything fade away, but i believe our friendship is the biggest exception of my belief. we have continents between us, however you two become my home in the last few days. the book was indeed most beautiful literature piece i have ever laid my hands on, but the reason i will carry it in my heart is because of you two, thank you for being iris and attie to my marisol. so sheila luminous de guereñu docampo and bruna transcendent silva barbosa, below the sky i’m walking through, and the depth in my heart, you two are my little constellations.
yours,
-s.

oct 7: i want ‘cause of death: ending of this book’ written in my tombstone. rtc when i can function again.

oct 3: br with my precious girls bruna and shei 💗