The premise is captivating—rival journalists Iris and Roman accidentally forge a magical connection through letters, a trope that cleverly combines enemies-to-lovers tension with the intimacy of written words. The enchanted typewriters and the larger-than-life war between gods provide a fresh take on a fantasy landscape.

Iris’s character is relatable, her struggles to keep her fractured family together grounding her amid the epic scale of the plot. Roman, her rival, brings a delicious mix of arrogance and vulnerability, making their dynamic both fiery and heartfelt. Their chemistry crackles, and their bond—though magical—is built on layered emotional growth.

While the romance and concept shine, the pacing falters in places. The mystical war and its worldbuilding, though intriguing, sometimes feel underexplored. Readers who crave deep dives into fantasy lore may find themselves wanting more clarity and detail. Similarly, the resolution to certain conflicts feels rushed, leaving some threads dangling.

Additionally, while the book is marketed as “filled with hope and heartbreak,” it occasionally leans too heavily on melodrama. Some emotional beats don’t land as poignantly as they could, leaving a faint sense of missed opportunity.

Despite its imperfections, this book is a solid read for fans of enemies-to-lovers romances with a touch of magic. The magical typewriters, the forbidden connection, and the backdrop of warring gods create a unique story that’s both entertaining and heartfelt. While it doesn’t quite achieve the epic heights it aims for, it’s a worthwhile journey, filled with moments of both heartbreak and hope.

I live that this blew up for Rebecca Ross, because I've read several of her previous novels and really enjoyed the writing style. Rebecca never seems to shy away from writing every kind of fantasy - whether it's steeped in some kind of mythology, or about dreams, all of her books are just that little bit special. Divine Rivals is no different, as it explores the relationship of two young adults who write letters via a magical typewriter, set against the backdrop of a historical war among God's. I will say the fantasy elements are a lot quieter in this than the synopsis implies. It's a gentle kind of magic that enhances the world around our characters rather than overpower it, and it'd the romance itself that plays a central role.

Roman and Iris are an interesting couple who seem to have an instant spark. Iris is jealous of Roman's apparent endless opportunities at a job Iris is desperate for, and Roman is ultimately spellbound by Iris's abilities and presence. The two share a lot of wonderful words, building up a relationship that feels supportive and realistic. The backdrop and world could have done with some expansion in my opinion, as we only really hear about this war via other characters briefly, but I feel this will be expanded on in the next book.

Overall a really great YA fantasy that explores young love and all it's sacrifices.

A sign of a really good book for me is when I can not write a review because I just ramble so much that it's not a review anymore; its just me vomiting at you.

I was scared to read this book, mainly because of the hype around it. I have read and loved Rebecca Ross's books before, but for some reason I just could not pick them up, and boy do I regret that so much. i see and understand the hype now, god damn it. Divine Rivals is a masterpiece.

I fell in love with this book so fast, Divine Rivals is a beautifully written story that I did not want to put down as soon as I got hooked on it and it most certainly pulled all of my feelings out of me. It felt so much bigger than I expected it to be. i went in expecting just a world war-esk story with cutesy, heart-breaking love letters, but it was not just a war romance; it's humans fighting a world war against the gods, one that does not seem like it will have an ending. But in that world, you have Iris and Roman, these two beautiful people that seem almost separated from it all, just wanting to get the top spot in their journaling job until they are not so separated but in the eye of it all. War, romance, a typewriter and a touch of magic.

From the world-building to the characters themselves and their development from start to finish to Rebecca's beautiful writing, i have come away from this book with so many highlighted quotes. This is just one of those books that you read, and if you enjoy it, its one you will never forget.

This book left me heartbroken but I loved every second and would recommend it to anyone and everyone.

I did delete a lot of this review; I rambled a lot.

Thank you, Netgalley & Publishers, for the e-arc

Many thanks to Netgalley, HarperCollins UK and the author for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

To start with Rebecca Ross is an auto-read for me!! no thoughts just pick it up and full immersion! And the books never disappoint!! never ever disappoint! The atmosphere, the under lying pain, the yearning between characters, the familial relations etc, all just adds to the way the narrative leads you into this atmospheric story-scape with magic and mythology and all knowing greedy all-mighty powers.

Divine Rivals story takes place in Oath, where the ongoing war between 2 Gods is slowly spreading havoc. Iris and Roman are 2 junior journalists competing for a columnist position at Oath Gazette. With her brother gone to fight the war, Iris finds herself alone with her grief ridden alcoholic mother and this prospect of promotion being her only leading light. Iris with no one to talk to and let her burdens down begins to write letters to her brother that seems to disappear under the wardrobe. When somebody starts to write back, Iris finally has somebody to talk to. Somebody who seems to understand her, and becomes her confidante as she decides to become a war correspondent.

This book felt so massive beyond comprehension!! the war is against gods fought by humans. How and when will this ever be over. How can we guarantee safety? of anybody? but then we are currently seeing something very similar happen across the world but this one by humans in the name of God.

The character growth of both Iris and Roman was incredible and I genuinely cannot wait for book 2. Also the mythology and the intrigue surrounding it is brilliant and adds more mystery to the plot.

Tw: War, violence, blood, bombings.

I can definitely see what all the hype was around this book but for me it just fell slightly off a five star read. I feel that I just wanted a little more, maybe more about the gods at the beginning of the book.

I did love the characters they were loveable and they need protecting at all costs. The style of writing was also really easy to get into and I was able to get into the story pretty quickly. I am now excited to read book two to see what happens.

Iris and Roman are each other's competition as they both compete to become a columnist at their local paper. But with war looming beyond the city between gods Enva and Dacre, Iris finds herself alone when her brother goes to fight and begins to write letters to him - that mysteriously disappear. When someone begins to write back, Iris forges a deep connection with this mysterious stranger and this follows her as she leaves home - and Roman - behind to become a war correspondent.

This was a really enjoyable, and romantic read. We follow two people who are the outside are very different but their souls are the same as they both face family struggles, loss, grief and the terrifying realities of war and what this means. I thought the world was great being so similar to ours but just that bit different with the inclusion of gods and a war between them that drags in innocent humans on either side. I did wonder how this works out for the humans who are actually doing the fighting. How can you win against a God? It did feel all a little bit hopeless at times.

I loved the relationship between Roman and Iris and how it developed, as well as that between Iris and Carver. There was a soft romance on the verge of great between them, and you can't help but completely fall for it. I do think they moved from 'oh I like you' to love and marriage very, very quickly but at the same time I do kind of get it as they are literally only a town away from war and enemy forces. I think I would have liked a bit more time with them as they got to know each other in different ways before everything went to hell.

I think the mystery between Enva and Dacre is a really big intriguing part of this story and it's just lightly touched on and will hopefully be explored more in the next novel. I'm looking forward to reading it very soon!

4.5⭐️ This was a really beautiful YA fantasy book- the world building was really enjoyable and gave me 1940’s vibes but with some magic and divinity thrown in. It had that sense of familiarity and nostalgia and despite the war at the centre of the narrative there was something about this that felt cosy, like being enveloped in a hug.

I think I would have liked to see a bit more development/information around magic and the idea of sentient magical buildings and objects and I’d have loved to have seen more of Roman’s grandmother and heard her history or had Roman consult with her about myths and typewriters but I still thoroughly enjoyed the book!

Roman C Kitt has my heart and I loved the rivals to lovers relationship between him and
Iris. I also found the whole premise so romantic and whimsical and yes I know it’s nothing new and has been done before but this felt unique and put a great spin on the ‘you’ve got mail’ premise meaning I was engaged and compelled to read!

An intriguing and incredibly romantic story set around a world war-esque fantasy setting. The world building was interesting and done in a refreshing way and the dual POV kept me hooked throughout.

This book

This absolute masterpiece of writing

I could not put it down for 2 days. 2 days I binged myself on Iris and Roman.

I am in love. And completely heartbroken. There was so many beautiful quotes in this story and so many moving moments. This is my first book by Rebecca and it definitely won’t be my last as she becomes one of my auto buy authors

I see the hype, I see the love and if I could give more than 5 stars I would

Divine Rivals is a book that I have been dying to get my hands on from the moment I first heard about it. Last year in 2022, I read my first Rebecca Ross series, The Elements of Cadence, and I fell head over heels in love with her world building, her characters and her absolutely stunning writing style. So when I heard all the ARC readers raving over Divine Rivals, I couldn’t wait. And then I heard them saying how heartbreaking it was, so I put it off. Fast forward a number of months, when the sequel is just about to come out and I decided it was finally time to pick this one up. I am so glad I finally did as this book is just absolutely stunning.

Divine Rivals was everything I could have possibly wanted and more. Rebecca Ross has proven herself yet again as a phenomenal fantasy writer. I honestly cannot praise her writing style enough. It is so beautiful and lyrical and I find it so easy to fall into. Due to my demanding job it usually takes me around a week or two to finish reading a book, if I’m reading it physically. I devoured Divine Rivals in two days. I was supposed to be buddy reading it with my good friend Asis (who has been recommending Rebecca Ross’ books to me for years) and I just left her behind while I absolutely devoured every word. I honestly love Rebecca’s books so much and she is finding herself at the top of my favourite authors list as I just cannot get enough of her phenomenal books.

One thing I adore about this book is that while we have the setting of a war between gods, it does not focus on the ins and outs of it. We experience the myths about the history of the gods, but the focus of the book is on the impact the war is having on the families of those fighting on the front lines. I found this so refreshing as many books regarding wars and gods, we usually see them first hand. In this book we don’t and I just found the focus of the story being on the bigger impact of the war on the communities and families etc. so heartbreaking, in the best way.

Iris and Roman are just the most gorgeous couple you could ever imagine. Their love story is so adorably sweet and so romantic. If you’re a movie buff think You’ve Got Mail but with magic. I just loved every single moment of it. And while this is fantasy and set in a fantasy land the magic is so subtly woven into this story, it’s not in your face obvious magic. It’s just an accepted part of the world that some things are magical… like a magical typewriter. I just loved absolutely everything about it.

Divine Rivals is without a doubt the best book I have read so far this year (and I’m writing this on December 27th after reading 75 other books). I loved every single moment of it and I will be diving straight into Ruthless Vows as I need to see what is going to happen to my beloved characters. If you’ve been putting this one off… don’t. It’s absolutely gorgeous and it has me, a series non-finisher, diving straight into the next book. I never usually read more than one book in a series at a time as I get bored, so the fact I am diving straight into book 2 really says a lot!

Headlines:
Slower start to all in
Opposites in all the ways
War, separation and heartbreak

Ross' idea to bring a wartime feeling to fantasy in an identifiable way was quite genius. We see lots of war in fantasy, like fae wars, game of thrones style but this gave a WW2 feel but make it fantasy. Add to that, the epistolary parts of the book and I was in my element.

Iris was a cactus of a character with all the valid reasons. Her nemesis and rival, Roman was smooth, collected and seem unruffled on observation. I loved getting through the layers of both of them to the emotional complexity underneath.

The story took us on a journey from offices, family homes, war fronts and beyond. I was not prepared for the fear I would feel on behalf of these characters and their loved ones. Nor was I expecting to feel like my heart had been put through the cheese grater, with wet cheeks and soggy tissues in a few moments.

There's so much feeling in this story but much to learn about the world that seemed similar to ours but wasn't. Ross built the world around the characters gently but clearly and I have so much 'need to know' at the end of this book.

THIS BOOK!!!

Oh my god, I absolutely devoured this. I was NOT expecting to love this book as much as I did. I read it in one sitting and immediately wanted to start all over again. Ross has whacked it out of the park with Divine Rivals. It broke me and I dread to think how much Ruthless Vows will break me.

Beautifully written, as all Rebecca Ross books are. I enjoyed the premise of a fantastical ww1, haven’t read anything like that before. Real, hopeful romance that made even a cynic like me smile. A cliffhanger that has me longing for the sequel. Enjoyed it very much!

Another incredible book from my TBR pile that I wish I'd read sooner. A historical fantasy where two rival reporters compete for a columnist position against the looming backdrop of a war between gods. The prose is exquisite, with every sentence carefully honed to elicit a particular reaction. It's one of those books where you want to linger over every word and you know it will be a pleasure to re-read. The rivals to lovers romance is amazing and it's hard not to fall a little in love with Roman. The ending is quite a cliffhanger but at least I don't have long to wait for the concluding book.

Divine Rivals is easily Rebecca Ross’ best work to date.
The love story between Iris and Roman, grown within their magical letters, was everything I wanted it to be.
Now to try and exist again whilst waiting tor the next one!

“I don’t have my typewriter. I don’t even have pen and paper. But I have my thoughts, my words.They once connected me to you, and I pray that they’ll reach you now. Somehow, someway.An old trace of magic in the wind.”

Divine Rivals is a historical fantasy-romance loosely based on World War 1 events. In the story, we have have two ancient gods at war who use humans to fight their war, and whoever they choose has to heed their call.

Life changed for Iris Willow when her brother enlisted to fight the war heeding the Goddess’ call just as others did. Her life wasn’t spectacular except for her job.

Roman C Kitt was her office rival. He challenged her in every task and kept her on her toes. Roman was rich and pristine unlike her poor, “unkept” self and they were competing for the same columnist position.

Iris would never pass a chance to rattle Roman and he’d never stop being interested in her business. They were perfect opposites bickering every step of their way.

Although with things not working in her favor at work, she tries to best Roman with her essays but a personal tragedy and Roman’s dad snatches that chance from her.

No matter how hard her day was, Iris found peace when she typed her letters to her brother which would magically vanish when she kept them in the closet. For months she thought her brother was the one receiving and replying to them, but she was stunned to learn that some stranger had access to her personal words. Only we as readers know it was Roman on the other end but our girl is clueless about this.

After a few heated exchanges with the stranger, she becomes friends with him and share their knowledge of history and the war. With not getting the columnist position, she quits her job and becomes a war correspondent. Roman follows her by becoming a war correspondent as well (because dude’s in love) and there they learn how real war could get.

I am a huge fan of writing letters. Now you can guess what made me enjoy this book. The romance was also top-notch. It’s so hard to find YA fantasy books where the author is not trying to force romance in the plot but Roman and Iris were true to the rivals-to-lovers trope.

The fantasy part of this book felt isolated at times from the plot to me. It only came in play when necessary but if we erase the feud between the gods–Dacre and Enva– and the magical typewriter, this book could easily be a war fiction.

However, that climax made me lose my sanity. Everything we knew about the war was toppled with the biggest twist in the end. I’m realy looking forward to see how Dacre and Enva are going to fight this war. Are things going to get darker and how would Iris fight against stronger forces are some of the questions I’m eager to seek answers to in the 2nd book.



Thanks to HarperCollins and NetGalley for the DRC of this book!

A fantastic book that had me enchanted right from the very start to the final sentence. I loved it and couldn't put it down

I knew after reading the incredible Dreams Lie Beneath that there was a strong chance this story could be just as good, but I was not prepared for it being even better. Divine Rivals is an incredible fantasy romance, in a world that feels much like the First World War, and this story is honestly like nothing I've read before.

To everyday soldiers, it doesn't matter if the cause of the war is Gods or Humans, and this is shown brilliantly in this story of warring Gods, where the battlefield doesn't feel any different to the trenches of the World Wars that inspired it. I felt this was a really clever move, truly bringing us down to mud, blood and gore that the soldiers experienced, through the eyes of reporters Iris and Roman.

The romance is so, so good, and I love that the magic is kept fairly simple with the typewriters that can transfer messages in an instant. Iris finds herself accidentally writing to her rival, instead of her missing brother, and I loved that those letters helped create a bond between the two before Iris discovered who Carver really was.

The ending is such a cliffhanger, and I'm devastated that I'm going to have to wait a few months to find out what happens next. I foresee the story changing and becoming much larger as the Gods enter the picture, but I'm hoping the day to day mundanity isn't forgotten.

Oh, how I loved this. Roman and Iris you have my heart.

This novel was so beautifully written, and, after recently reading the Ricers of Cadence duology, I expected no less. Ross truly knows how to weave an intricate, heartfelt story, giving life to her characters, the world and the plot.

I love Ross incorporated exploring the tradition of oral myth, and how myths can take many shapes depending on where you are and who you heard it from.

Ross also explored themes of censorship and bias when it comes to writing, which are topics that are (and should be) discussed and recognised more today. I like how she explores both sides of bias and how it isn’t necessarily always bad thing (i.e., when writing to convey your emotions).

The descriptions of war in this felt so raw and real, they were horrific. But again, it just shows how competent kf a writer Ross is. The war very much felt like a threat and I was feeling so panicked for all of our characters (the ones I liked anyways, however the ones I didn’t like were too far from the war effort).

Some of my theories came true, some of them I’m still waiting to see if they’ll come true. I can’t wait for answers! Especially after that heart wrenching ending. I knew things were going too well to be true. Bring on the sequel!

After reading A River Enchanted I have been a fan of Rebecca Ross’ writing, in particular her ability to write incredibly tender, intimate moments between characters and the way she approached the complex layers of a relationship. With this expectation in mind, Divine Rivals both pleasantly gave me the same comfort, but unfortunately also frustrated me at times.

I won’t go into the plot because well, that’s what the synopsis is for, but the premise in itself is an interesting one with a lot of potential. However it feels more attention is put into the relationship of these 2 main characters, Iris and Roman (or Kitt) than the war they’re in. There are feuding Gods but we learn so little about them, there is magic in this world because that’s how the type writers Iris and Roman use connect them to pass letters to each other, and yet you learn nothing about magic - for example, how common is magic?? If magic exists, why is the rest of the way people live so 1940s technology when people could literally magic things to happen?? The world is Oath, although essentially this is England, with the characters moving from London to the country to first report then aid in the war efforts, but again we know so little about Oath. The war is so close to the city and yet no one cares, there is no panic at all about it. Yes people can be desensitised to war far away but it’s literally a train away (or bizarrely, you can apparently walk the distance it turns out!). What do Dacre’s monsters the eithrals really look like?

Now I’ll be fair, because I do like Ross, and acknowledge that this is book one so a lot of my grumbles can and may be addressed in the next instalment, particularly we will absolutely be learning more about Dacre from how this story here wraps up. We may also, hopefully have more explanation on magic, and I want to learn more about Enva.

My main issue with this book unfortunately is Roman, on his own he’s a sweet character, I wanted to know more of him (especially how he stood up to his father) however from a romance perspective he’s awful. Essentially, and this is just my opinion, I think the issue was the decision to make Roman know he was talking to Iris from the start of their correspondence. Had Iris simply found his letters and connected the dots, or vice versa, I would have loved these 2 people to be together. However how it goes (and it’s not a spoiler, it’s not treated as a grand reveal) is that Iris, worried and missing her brother who is at war, types up a letter on her typewriter and pops it under her wardrobe door, just so she feels like she sent it. And then it disappears and in hope she keeps writing to him. Months later she gets a reply, after the recipient has read Iris at her most vulnerable and encouraged in his silence for her continue doing so, reading a part of her heart that she otherwise hides, a part of her heart that was for her brother alone that he takes advantage of in allowing from this girl who is lonely and scared. And the recipient is Roman who from the start connects the dots from what Iris says about herself and knows it’s her. This is what made the romance uncomfortable for me, not sweet. Roman is noble in many ways but acts incredibly selfishly. He had no right to read the letters he knows were not for him, it’s actually quite cruel that for months he allows her to believe and hope the letters are going to her brother. He intrudes on intimate moments not intended for him and, when he finally admits he is not her brother, lies and says he cannot give her the letters she wrote back to her - he can, he just doesn’t want to, even though those letters were never for him. I’m sorry but that’s weird and gross.

When it is finally revealed to Iris that Roman is Carver, the mysterious penpal she’s been writing to and falling for, we then enter the next red flag of this relationship because sensitive, sweet Roman turns out to be a manipulative gaslighter. At no point does Roman apologise for misleading Iris, in fact he’s very self righteous and painfully pedantic as he explains that he never actually lied to Iris, he just omitted the truth … I mean, ridiculousness aside, he does literally lie, when Iris says she can’t wait to see him, he says it back when he has literally already seen her. He said he couldn’t return the letters, he could, he was selfish. He says his name is Carver (his excuse is that she never thought to ask her what the C in his name stood for, so help me) but if no one refers to you as that, that’s not your name.

Yes before and after this behaviour Roman does some very noble things but his behaviour, which is cowardly (he writes her his big reveal when he could literally just tell her, and even then he interrupts her so she can’t read it when she wants and he would have to suffer the reaction), selfish and lacks accountability, is never addressed. Iris apologises, Roman at one point just sulks in his room and mopes, Iris is always the bigger person and takes full responsibility or forgives things that are never apologised for. Iris wants to be loved and belong and that’s what makes her accepting this behaviour so uncomfortable for me, because the behaviour is never seen as unacceptable. He doesn’t allow her the right to be angry because he loves her and he has made sacrifices for her so she basically be mad what he did to get there - he made sacrifices FOR HIM, because HE wanted her, so she can still be mad that he lied and betrayed her. And no, don’t think kissing someone when they’re angry solves a thing, please, please don’t do this. Carver and Iris work better writing to each other than Roman and Iris work in person, the moments are sweeter, more intimate, even though it’s still built on lies.

Now Iris, Iris I adored. She loves her brother, she cares for her mother, she juggles so much and has so little but still tries. She works at the Oath Gazette, she feels intimidated by Roman as her ‘rival’ because she feels he’s a better writer than her and he advantages she does not. But there’s an incredible hope to her, to find her brother, to write something that matters, find her place, find someone to be loved by and love. And you experience Iris grow and find her purpose. I found Iris incredibly endearing. Likewise, Marisol is a lovely character and while you don’t experience a lot of them together, I really loved her relationship with Keegan and want more of that please.
Doing what Ross does best, there are also some touching and powerful scenes of Iris experiencing the reality of war and the losses that come with, a scene where she watches a soldier die particularly stayed with me. That said, the war and the gods and magic felt very much like subplots to a romance that I didn’t feel was worth it. We only learn about one soldier, Lark, we don’t know what Keegan has been through, Iris is there to spread the truth and say something meaningful and yet you don’t even really experience her as a writer to know, bar one article, what she writes. We’re told Iris is a great writer, we’re told the war is and, but we don’t really see either enough. I think that’s sometimes the problem when romance is in a book, it overshadows the plot.

Overall I did enjoy this book, the approach to the romance just wasn’t for me and there was wasted potential with the premise that I hope is remedied. But I still have a lot of respect for Ross and will be looking forward to finding out how this story ends.

Thank you NetGalley for the copy in exchange for an honest review