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3.18.2010

The Dark Divine by Bree Despain

The Dark DivineThe Dark Divine by Bree Despain
Won my ARC from a book blogger giveaway!

Check back tomorrow for the Diva Divine Tour - I'll be giving away The Dark Divine Nail Polish!

PJVs QUICKIE POV: The cover of this novel was very compelling and had me drooling even before I read the synopsis.  After reading the back and review tid-bits, the cover was still the main draw and I was a bit leery because of the usual YA hype that surrounded it. (Don’t like to be disappointed) So, I painted my toenails, with my Dark Divine nail polish and put on the Soundtrack and settled in to read this book - and was totally surprised. The Dark Divine was highly entertaining, yet it possessed a very rich and romanticized darkness that kept me hooked and reading into the middle of the night. Which is why I have bags under my eyes. I kept coming back and comparing this novel to Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater, not because of content or style, but it just had the same feel as Shiver. If you enjoyed Shiver, give The Dark Divine a try, it is not as good, but you should definitely read.

The intensity and compulsion behind The Dark Divine is the mystery that surrounds the entirety of the book, and you want that mystery. So no peeking! I will keep my review as spoiler free as I possibly can!

REVIEW: Grace Divine is a member of the Divine family. Her father is a pastor, her mother channels an OCD Martha Stewart, her brother is perfect, giving spirit, good looks, popular...but something simmers in her family. Secrets and topics they don’t talk about.  Like the night Daniel Kalbi, her brother’s best friend, disappeared and Jude returned home covered in blood. No one talks of Daniel, which makes family-life a little tough when Daniel shows up 3 years later and Grace feels the old familiar tug at her heart.

The dark secret will not go away, and it hangs over Grace as she reacquaints herself with the very needing, Daniel Kalbi. Her brother Jude makes it very clear that she is to stay away from Daniel, or risk their relationship. Are her feelings for Daniel worth risking her families approval? And as darker mysteries are revealed she might be risking more than just her families love, she might be risking her soul.

The mystery of this book is what kept me turning page after page and staying up later and later.  Mystery upon mystery that lasted until the very last page. Some of the secrets are hinted at and I thought I had it figured out, but then doubt would creep in and I would think it was something else. The reveal was excellent, even though I thought they waited too long...but that was just me having very little patience. I thought Despain handled it very well and the heroine had one of the better reactions I’ve read so far in a paranormal romance.  It is probably what Bella should have done instead of being all “I don’t care that you want to kill me.”

The only problems I did find with this book were some pretty obvious plot holes, which really disappointed me.  I know this was a YA novel, but usually teens are more educated than I am (forgotten everything!) so historical inconsistencies were very obvious. Also, while the character and story lines were compelling and sucked you into the story, I don’t find myself caring for the characters as much as I usually do for books that I’ve enjoyed so much. I blame this on the fact that all of the characters were people that I probably wouldn’t like in real life, even though their story was intriguing. Grace was a little too good, she would intimidate me in real life and I would feel that I would contaminate her or something. Daniel would have too many personal problems...Jude would just be too, well All American. Did I like them, yes, but I would have steered clear of them in High School.

Overall an excellent addition to the current YA explosion. Bree Despain should congratulate herself, she has written a novel that is trendy, yet stands out from the crowd, jostling to satisfy the Twilight craze. I will be reading the second in the series.

RECOMMENDATIONS: Parents, this one is a good one to pass on to your teen of choice.  The novel promotes morals and devotion to both parents and God. Even when Grace errs she makes the conscious decision and acknowledges that what she is doing is wrong and feels guilt. It is very real world novel, nothing is sugar coated. It is also not to immature, so adults should enjoy also.




13 comments:

Mari - Escape In A Book said...

I was a bit disappointed by TDD but I enjoyed it, I had to high expectations I think. It is a good debut novel :)

Tales of Whimsy said...

Great review :) Mine posts 3/24 :)

Julie@My5monkeys said...

good review-- read the book and loved it too--so could understand about them being perfect.

brizmus said...

Glad to hear this almost lives up to the cover, as that has been the main draw for me as well. So beautifuL!

Patti (@TheLoveJunkee) said...

I do love that cover. I've been interested in reading it but with so many other books in my TBR have been putting it off. Nice review, I may go out and pick this one up (and possibly share with my teen!)

Melissa (Books and Things) said...

I've been wanting to read this one. Great review. Makes me want to read it more.

ParaJunkee said...

@Lady - it was a great debut novel. I love finding new authors.

@Juju I will check it out!

@My5 - Thanks Julie. I'm glad you loved it, perfect little family. LOL

@Brizmus It is, she's so pale though, which is why I kept going back and forth between what paranormal it was going to be before the reveal.

@Patti - It is a quick read, and entertaining, we should probably just get together and do a book swap since we are so close. LOL

@Melissa - If you come across it, don't pass it by.

Lola said...

Awesome review! I have seen this one intermittently around the blogosphere. Your review makes me want to read it1 :)

Monster of Books said...

Ooh I loved this book, so excited for it's sequel. Excellent, honest review!!

Unknown said...

Great review! I definitely want to read this one :)

You have an award on my blog: http://swordsforfighting.blogspot.com/

Reading said...

Great review. This is on my wishlist. I might have to take a trip to B&N this week.

lizzi0915 at aol dot com

Lola said...

I have been hesitant to pick this one up, but your review makes me want to read it! Looks like I'll be purchasing on my next trip to the bookstore! :)

Anonymous said...

I completely agree with you about this book! I was also *iffy* about reading it, because I sort of thought it would be another Fallen or Beautiful Creatures (both of which I couldn't handle o_o), too much hype, and nowhere near enough living up to it ... but I was blown away! (",)

I also found the book very Shiver-ish, I think I may have mentioned that in my review as well :)

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