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 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 boys' 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.
While werewolves seem to be getting as popular as vampires, it's always nice to read a new angle on the mythology, and this one is definitely a fresh take on werewolves. It blends popular myth with new origins and blends together nicely to make a great mythology for this world. But I won't say more, since it plays a part in the story. And a subplot also draws a parallel to the parable of the prodigal son, which added a great layer to the tensions in the book between Daniel and Jude.
Our narrarator - Grace - is your typical good girl next door. She loves her family, does well in school, and tries to be a good person. But like all good girls, there's an inner voice begging for something to change; something to spice up her fairly predictable life. Enter Daniel - long lost friend and first crush for our girl Grace. The back and forth between Grace and Daniel is filled with sexual tension and suspense, since there are quite a few unknowns floating around and Daniel keeps leaving details out of his explanations to Grace. She's a morally strong character and I anxiously wondered which side of her would win - the side loyal to her family, who (with the exception of her father) hate Daniel after an incident 3 years prior, or the side loyal to her heart, which keeps pulling her to Daniel.
There's a fair amount mystery to the story, since you keep trying to figure out who is and isn't trustworthy and just what is going on in town. The ending took me by surprise and was a bittersweet conclusion to the first book in this trilogy. The next book - The Lost Saint - comes out on Tuesday and I can't wait to get my hands on it!
5/5
The Dark Divine
Bree Despain
Egmont USA
372 pages
$17.99 (hardcover)
The ending definitely took me by surprise. It saved the book for me. I thought this was pretty good, but sometimes confusing and irritating. Still want to read Lost Saint though.
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