Tag Archives: Enemies to Lovers

YA – Divine Rivals

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Ross, Rebecca. Divine Rivals. HarperCollins Publishers, 2023. 978-0-008-58815-1. 367 p. $18.99. Grades 9-12.

Divine Rivals introduces us to Iris whose brother has just left to fight in a war that is being waged between gods. Iris is trying her best at home, but with their mother addicted to alcohol and her job as a writer for a newspaper not going as well as she thought it would, things look bleak. In order to make things seem a little better, she writes letters to her brother that she slips under her wardrobe. However, the person who writes her back isn’t her brother… and she isn’t exactly sure who this mysterious person is. When Iris ends up at the front lines, with her rival from the newspaper Roman, she is forced to confront lots of things she has been ignoring.

THOUGHTS: This is a great young adult fantasy that has an extremely unique plot line, with wonderfully written characters. This will appeal to lots of readers, especially fans of Sarah J. Maas or Cassandra Clare.

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YA – Violet Made of Thorns

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Chen, Gina. Violet Made of Thorns. Hodder and Stoughton, 2022. 978-1-399-70777-0. 359 p. $18.99. Grades 12 and up.

Violet is a prophet with a problem… She’s a liar. The soon to be crowned Prince Cyrus is aware of this and has told her his plan for getting rid of her. However, Violet has no plans of going back to where she was before she became the King’s prophet so she forms a plan. But that plan causes a deadly curse that can either end in the kingdom being destroyed, or Violet can figure out a plan. There is one slight problem with this curse which is that it requires Violet to spend time with Prince Cyrus who hates her, or does he? Violet needs to figure out where she stands with the Prince so she can save the kingdom and her own skin.

THOUGHTS: This was a super fun enemies to lovers fantasy novel with minimal fantasy world building. If you are looking to get into fantasy or aren’t the biggest fan of it, this might be the read for you! There are some intense sexual scenes, so this is not for readers under grade 12.

Fantasy          Mary McEndree, Lehigh Valley Regional Charter Academy

Violet is a seer, and although she does have visions, most of her prophecies are lies to please the king and his agenda. After saving Prince Cyrus when he was just a child, Violet was brought to the castle to replace the previous seer who died after prophesying a curse upon the kingdom. Violet fuels the rumors about the curse after she announces the prince will meet his true love at the upcoming ball, a plan set in motion by the king. However, Cyrus has always seen past Violet’s deceptions, and Violet has always been immune to his charms. The night of the ball doesn’t go as planned, and Violet unknowingly awakens another curse that could threaten them all. Forced to work together, Violet and Cyrus cannot deny the attraction between them despite their better judgment. In the end, the curse, and their love, could be their salvation or their destruction. 

THOUGHTS:  Violent certainly draws the line between a heroine and a villain in this morally gray story of lies, deceptions, curses, beasts, and prophecies. I’d recommend this one to fans of Holly Black’s Cruel Prince series, since Violet and Cyrus have a similar relationship as Jude and Cardan. Violet is a strong, clever, and unapologetic seer who will do anything to survive in the deceptive world she belongs in, and some of her choices will surprise readers until the very end. There are some romantic scenes within the novel, but nothing overly descriptive or out of place for a YA novel. 

Fantasy          Emily Hoffman, Conestoga Valley SD

YA – Kingdom of the Cursed

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Maniscalco, Kerri. Kingdom of the Cursed. Hodder & Stoughton, 2021. 978-0-316-42847-7. $18.99. Grades 12+.

Kingdom of the Cursed picks up with Emilia selling her soul in order to figure out what happened to her sister, Vittoria. Some of the decisions that Emilia made have helped to unlock some secrets and cause her to ask more questions. As this book progresses, the reader sees Emilia trying to figure out if she should trust Wrath as she learns that she can’t trust anyone. Kingdom of the Cursed delves more into the world building of this fantasy world, as well as more character development of Emilia. 

THOUGHTS: Overall, this is a great addition to this series that continues to build on the characters and plot that was laid out in the first book. There are some scenes that are a little more on the explicit side, hence the higher grade level rating. However, this would be a great recommendation for fans of the first book, or fans of the author’s other work. 

Fantasy           Mary McEndree, Lehigh Valley Regional Charter Academy

Grades 10-12+.

After making a deal with the devil, Emilia travels to the seven circles in the Kingdom of the Wicked with Prince Wrath. As the betrothed of Prince Pride, her plan is to infiltrate his court and make it one step closer to avenging the death of her twin sister Vittoria. However, the journey is not easy, and before she meets Pride, she becomes a resident of House Wrath. From Wrath, she learns just how dangerous and deceptive his brothers can be, and he advises her to trust no one. When Emilia slowly begins to unravel the secrets of the past, she realizes that she’ll need the help of magical objects to discover who she really is and if she can really trust Wrath.

THOUGHTS: Kingdom of the Cursed is listed as a young adult title and can be found in the YA section of book stores; however, the romantic scenes between Emilia and Wrath are very descriptive, and I’d go as far to classify this one as new adult for that reason alone. Although it’s heavy on romance that doesn’t always advance the plot, I still enjoyed the book and cannot wait to see how it all ends. I’ll be impatiently waiting for the next installment. 

Fantasy          Emily Hoffman, Conestoga Valley SD