Dark, but not divine - The Dark Divine review

I was one of the people who loved Twilight at the start of its hype. I’m not really embarrassed to admit it – curiosity got me to check it out after reading a post by a blogger friend raving about the saga. I found it in a bookstore near where I work, bought it, and devoured it over a weekend. I admit to also falling in love with Edward Cullen and the romance, and then falling for Jacob and all his wolfish charms by the second book. I was never a rabid fan, but I liked the saga up until I read the last book. After Breaking Dawn, I turned my back on Stephenie Meyer for making an ending like that.

I won’t go into detail why I stopped liking the saga, but whenever I run into other supernatural romances, I can’t help but compare them to Twilight. Wait, a correction: whenever I come across any supernatural romances with vampires or werewolves, I can’t help but compare them to Twilight, probably because it’s the first book I read on that genre. I also blame it on all the hype the Twilight Saga gets.

So when I came across Bree Despain’s debut work, The Dark Divine, I wondered if it would be another Twilight-like novel. Spoiler Warning starts here.

Grace Divine is the daughter of the local pastor, and by default, she is considered one of the town’s perfect girls, blessed with a perfect family. But Grace’s family hides a secret that even she doesn’t know: something terrible happened the night Daniel Kalbi disappeared, the same night they found her brother Jude covered in his own blood on their porch. No one in their family talks about Daniel, not until he suddenly comes back into Grace’s life three years later. Grace promises to stay away for the sake of her brother, but she can’t deny that she finds Daniel and that strange hungry glint in his eye irresistible. Despite her promise, she gets closer to Daniel, and this unleashes a chain of events that only she can undo.

Let’s see. Pretty and dark cover – check. Ordinary girl and a guy with a secret – check. Danger and love all at the same time – you got it. So is it the same?

Not entirely. First of all, The Dark Divine has quite an unusual – albeit imperfect – cast of characters. Grace Divine is not exactly the best or most sympathetic protagonist I’ve ever seen, with inconsistent intentions almost all throughout the novel. Being a pastor’s daughter, she’s expected to be the nice girl. Daniel’s presence in the story gives her the conflict that she needs in her life, with her family being the opposition. Unfortunately, in her struggle between Daniel’s affections and her family’s rules, she comes off as self-righteous and selfish. While Grace showed some strength in her attempts to avoid Daniel for her brother Jude’s sake, for the most part her self-doubt and internal dialogue revolved around herself. That’s not really bad per se, although I did have a hard time connecting with Grace throughout the novel. What I found strange was that throughout the entire book, she never thought about praying, not even once. For pastor’s daughter, faith and religion should have been a big part of her life, right? (Whether or not she embraced the faith or rejected it.) But it wasn’t portrayed that way, and that was kind of disappointing.

The boys, however, are a different story. I won’t reveal what Daniel’s secret is, but it definitely gave him a depth that cannot be seen in Edward Cullen. The conflict between Daniel’s two identities felt believable, and his despair and contrition felt genuine as well. Jude, on the other hand, was a real mystery. I really wanted to get to know him more, but he was avoiding Grace most of the time, and I only saw him through her eyes. Jude was the golden boy, the one everyone liked, but he felt that he still needed to compete with Daniel even after what happened between them. His struggle with himself is what made him stand out, and I was genuinely surprised when I found out what his secret was. Daniel was the requisite bad guy in this kind of supernatural romance, and Jude…well, it’s hard to explain what he is as a character. He’s not like Jacob Black, but he definitely made a bigger impact.

What set The Dark Divine different from other paranormal romances are the references to Christianity. This isn’t considered as Christian fiction, and while there have been a few paranormal romance works that had a bit of religion in their overall concepts (Meridian by Amber Kizer, for example), The Dark Divine actually used Bible stories as a plot device. These efforts didn’t always pan out, however. I’m not an expert in history, but the “facts” that the author wove into the story did not sit well with me – in fact, they felt a bit forced. Sure, there was some mention of the Crusades and Knights Templar and even an ancient diary from a priest, but it seemed pasted on to add some “credibility.” Perhaps it’s because I didn’t see Grace check the facts herself, or maybe it’s because her only sources of information are Daniel and her father, or maybe it’s because the back story just wasn’t done right. Despite this, Despain did use the Bible stories well--juxtaposed with Daniel, Grace and Jude’s situation, the stories of forgiveness and the prodigal son gives the readers a hint of how the climax would unfold.

And the climax… now that was fun to read! Sure, there was a failed attempt at foreshadowing, but I was really and truly surprised to find out who the real bad guy was in the end. I won’t spoil it, but I have to say that it was a real climax, and the main character didn’t, say, black out in the entire scene, giving us a chance to see what she sees (instead of just hearing what happened next from another character after everything has happened--unlike in a certain other book). Grace was right in the danger zone, and it was exciting to read about it, especially since she wasn’t an overpowered character you’d be sure would survive.

Still, characters and climax aside, a good book needs good writing, and here Despain was a disappointment. The writing was a bit clunky, too simple for the expectations set by the concept, and by the way the book is presented. For a book with a cover like this and a blurb that speaks of a great, dark secret in a small town and a religious family, I expected more flowery prose, one that pulls the reader into the story so they can see what Grace sees and feel what she feels. There could have been a lot more “oomph” if the writing didn’t sometimes feel like a school assignment. What’s more, I don’t understand the use of the time headings at every scene cut – time isn’t really significant in the story. Headings like “Later that same afternoon” or “In Bed” in between scenes seem like a way to avoid having to transition to the next scene properly.

So how does The Dark Divine compare to Twilight? I’d say that Bree Despain’s work is better than Stephenie Meyer’s, in terms of story, supporting characters, and the climax. It’s not a great book in my opinion, but it’s not so bad, either. There’s a sequel coming out, too, and I’m considering picking that up just to know what happens next. Fans of Twilight – especially the ones on Team Jacob – and paranormal romances will probably enjoy this book, but if you’re neither, I don’t think you’d miss much if you skip this.

[Image source: randombuzzers.com]

Add this page to your favorite Social Bookmarking websites