When two young rival journalists find love through a magical connection, they must face the depths of hell, in a war among gods, to seal their fate forever.
After centuries of sleep, the gods are warring again. But eighteen-year-old Iris Winnow just wants to hold her family together. Her mother is suffering from addiction and her brother is missing from the front lines. Her best bet is to win the columnist promotion at the Oath Gazette.
To combat her worries, Iris writes letters to her brother and slips them beneath her wardrobe door, where they vanish―into the hands of Roman Kitt, her cold and handsome rival at the paper. When he anonymously writes Iris back, the two of them forge a connection that will follow Iris all the way to the front lines of battle: for her brother, the fate of mankind, and love.
Shadow and Bone meets Lore in this epic enemies-to-lovers fantasy novel filled with hope and heartbreak, and the unparalleled power of love.
Staff Choice: Naomi
The prose was beautiful and lyrical and sucked me right into the story. The story itself was also amazing: the rivals-to-lovers relationship between Iris and Roman was really well developed (and had me grinning most of the time). I loved that they fell in love through writing letters, but that their relationship also evolved gradually outside of that.
The magic system is pretty unique and explored thoroughly, which makes it all the more frustrating that war is waged because one man/god couldn’t handle rejection.
There are some excellent plot twists in here, and it’s a very emotional and heartfelt duology.
Staff Choice: Júlia
This is a a beautifully written YA duology by Rebecca Ross. It’s one of my favourite reads this year. To my surprise this blend of young adult fantasy, romance and drama kept me reading at any available moment. The story follows two competing journalists, Iris and Rowan, during a war of gods. As the story evolves, the characters develop a genuine and vulnerable connection which keeps you fully engaged. I especially enjoyed the lyrical style of the books which made me feel all kinds of emotions.
