The Dark Divine
By Bree Despain
Released December 21st 2009
(I actually got it on the eve before it came out. My husband sweet talked the ladies at Barnes and Noble into giving it to him early so he they didn't have to deal with him 2 days in a row during the busy Christmas season. Can you blame them? But seriously...GO Garth!!)
So here is the synopsis from Bree's Website:
A prodigal son
A dangerous love
A deadly secret . . .
I stood back and watched his movements. Daniel had that way about him that could shut me down in an instant. . . . I kicked the gravel a couple of times and worked up my courage again. “Tell me . . . I mean . . . why did you come back? Why now, after all this time?”
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 really held. And when Daniel returns three years later, Grace can no longer deny her attraction to him, despite promising Jude she’ll stay away.
As Grace gets closer to Daniel, her actions stir the ancient evil Daniel unleashed that horrific night. Grace must discover the truth behind Jude and Daniel's 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.
Yeah exactly! After reading that now you see why I had to have this as soon as it came out. Sounds cool huh? Well, Bree is a first time author from Utah-not sure if she is LDS or not but on her site she did reference the BYU/Utah game at one point.
So my favorite part of this book is that it kind of had a centering around the story of the prodigal son. Ok, Ok maybe it is really all about a love story but the way the author handled this theme really spoke volumes to me. Grace is a girl who has a very religious family who are truly good at heart but they really struggle in the face of this test to their faith. Each is deciding if they are going to put into practice what they have believed their whole lives. Consciously or subconsciously they are asking is it really true or isn't it and if it is what does that mean for me? In each book you read don't you tend to ask yourself, "If this was me what would I do?" I loved that this book was a supernatural romance that had basis in religious and moral dilemma. Because lets face it...put in a supernatural situation like this ourselves our decisions would be based on those things because of what we have been taught and what we believe. I really liked the main character Grace, she was very real to me and relatable. I also really liked Bree's writing, she made me very comfortable in this family and this story. The lore she involved in it was typical but with a few twists to make it more modern and and make you think this could all be explainable. I did feel a little rushed by the end not quite feeling like I had all the facts straight when Grace and Daniel finally put it all together. But I kind of think that is just because the back story is so involved and Bree knew there would be time in the next book. (Yes of course there is a sequel that will be coming out toward the end of the year but what are you going to do?) Truthfully, the last line alone makes me want to pick up the next one as soon as it comes out. I recommend this as a great and fun read. (I read it in about 3 days.) And as always it is on my shelf if anyone wants to try it out.
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