Romantasy – Readaholic Book Reviews

2024 was a great reading year. But it was also a year filled with quite a few reading slumps. While I did read a lot of new books, I also ended up reading backlists and quite a few re-reads as well.

I ended the year having read a total of 103 books. I didn’t do a top 10 or top 20 list this year, but rather a compilation of my favorite reads based on sub-genre. I did include 2 arcs {thank you Berkley Romance for the gifted copies} that aren’t released until 2025 – Deep End by Ali Hazelwood and First-Time Caller by BK Borison. I loved both and highly recommend them!

**I read a majority of these books as advanced reader copies courtesy of the publishers. Thank you Berkley Romance, Bloom Books, LibroFM, PRHAudio, SimonTeen, Dutton for the gifted copies**

I read quite a few amazing rom-coms this year! The Risk was a re-read, but I ended up loving it more the second time around. The Love of my After Life was amazing on audio {thank you PRH Audio for the gifted copy}. First Time Caller and Deep End are releasing in 2025 {thank you Berkley for the gifted arcs}.

If there’s one thing about me – it’s that I absolutely love a good book that makes me cry, especially when the story resonates with my own experiences and emotions, drawing me into its world and leaving a lasting impression on my heart. LOVED these books!

I read so many good fantasy books this year and these were a few of my favorites. Overall a great romantasy reading year.

This was the year I started reading more dark romances and I enjoyed them! Definitely not a sub-genre for everyone, but I’m looking forward to reading more dark romances.

So many amazing books that I read in 2024 and I can’t wait to see what books will make my favorites list in 2025.

Did we happen to read any of the same books? What were your favorite books of 2024?

Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross

Genre: Young Adult Historical Fantasy Romance

Series: Letters of Enchantment #1

Heat Level: 🔥 (closed door)

I have been seeing Divine Rivals all across my social media. One of my closest bookish friends has been recommending it to me for quite a while now and I kept waiting to pick it up. If you’re like me and are hesitant about picking up hyped books – I assure you that this book is worth all the hype. I adored every single thing about this book. And the prose by Rebecca Ross was so beautiful. I have so many wonderful passages highlighted that I keep going back to.

If you’re a fan of epistolary romances (think You’ve Got Mail) you will love Divine Rivals. I feel like this is a trope that is so hard to get right and Rebecca Ross clearly had no difficulty with it. If you’ve read Divine Rivals or plan on reading it – please let me know! I’m so excited for the release of the second book in this duet – Ruthless Vows – releasing at the end of the year!

SYNOPSIS

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 Rebecca Ross’s Divine Rivals, an epic enemies-to-lovers fantasy novel filled with hope and heartbreak, and the unparalleled power of love.

REVIEW

What you can expect in Divine Rivals
-enemies to lovers
-workplace romance
-epistolary elements
-*magic*
-mythology

“A girl who writes letters to her missing brother, and the boy who reads them” – Rebecca Ross, Divine Rivals acknowledgments

That right about there sums up this historical fantasy romance. I loved this book so much and I’m not quite sure how to put it into words. I have been seeing Divine Rivals all over my social media feeds and I’m not quite sure why I didn’t pick it up sooner. The magical, mythical, epistolary elements all combined together made this a read that I didn’t want to put down.

The writing by Rebecca Ross was truly beautiful. I have so many passages highlighted that I want to go back and read. She doesn’t shy away from tough topics and at the same time I was often feeling giddy over conversations that Iris and Roman were having. I was so immersed in the book that I felt like I was right there with Iris and Roman.

And that ending(!!!!) – I can’t wait for the next book in the series to be released!