Book Review of "The Dark Divine" by Bree Despain

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Title:  The Dark Divine (The Dark Divine #1)
Author:  Bree Despain
Classification:  YA Fiction, Paranormal Romance
Source:  Public Library

Overall Grade:

B-

Would I read it again?

Probably not.

Would I recommend it?

Sure?

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Summary:

Grace Divine's basically ordinary life is again interrupted by the return of Daniel Kalbi, childhood sweetheart and former best friend of her brother Jude.  That is, he used to be until that night Daniel disappeared... coincidentally the same night Jude came home horribly injured and covered in blood.  Then, Grace and her younger sister were immediately sent away to live with a relative for three weeks, never getting the full story from their parents or Jude about what happened... and where Daniel went.

Daniel's sudden reappearance in Grace's life several years later threatens her potential romance with the gorgeous Pete and her relationship with her family.  You see, Daniel used to be considered part of the Divine family until that night that no one will talk about.  Now he's a blemish on their perfect records and even the mention of his name will send Grace's family members into an uproar, especially Jude, who makes Grace promise that she'll never talk to or see Daniel again after their first reunion moment at school.

But Grace knows Daniel and thinks she is possibly the only one that can help Daniel in his troubled state.  Plus, Daniel seems to know more about the mysterious disappearances and gruesome maulings that have been happening around town...

But when Daniel reluctantly gives up his secret, Grace finds that Daniel isn't the only one carrying a terrible burden...

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My Thoughts:

This book through me off a little.  The bold-faced type of the book may seem trivial, but definitely takes some getting used to when you first start reading.  However, I quickly got past that and started falling into the story.  I love the characters that Despain created, a very well-round cast and very well-written.  I love how Despain was able to write about a religious family (Grace's father is a pastor) without the moral aspect being preachy or trite.  However, where I did find the narrative a little trite was with the relationship between Grace and Daniel.  I found their dialogue, especially Grace's, to be extremely cheesy at times, which definitely hurt my love for these characters.  But, having said that, I still really enjoyed their relationship, a great testament to the strength of the book, since usually a couple weak moments can make me close the book forever.

Also, the plot of the novel was great: it was exciting, mysterious, and a fresh new take on a popular theme in today's YA lit.  Again, however, there were a few areas of weakness.  For example, while the development of Daniel as a re-emerging character, yet a new character for the reader, was great.  I thought the pacing would be too slow and the slow revelation of his secret too teasing, Despain executed the plot in a way that was still exciting, yet built up tension until the big reveal.  However, I found the action scenes to be clunky and awkward, taking a lot of imagination to make sense of Despain's inexperienced narrations.
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Overall Grade:
B-
Would I read it again?
Probably not.
Would I recommend it?
Sure?

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