Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross

I listened to the first half of this Good Reads Choice Award teen fantasy on audio, narrated by Rebecca Norfolk and Alex Wingfield, both excellent narrators, and read the rest in print a few weeks later. This is the first book in the Letters of Enchantment duology. The second, Ruthless Vows, will be published December 26, and is likely to be just as popular.

Iris Winnow, a poor teen journalist, is vying for a columnist job along with well-educated and well-dressed Roman Kitt. Forest, Iris’s brother, has enlisted in a war between two recently awakened gods. Iris types letters to Fores on a typewriter she inherited for her grandmother, hoping her mother doesn’t find and pawn it. The typewriter turns out to be linked to another typewriter, now owned by Roman, who replies to the letters using his middle name.

After Iris suffers a loss and a setback, she signs up to be a war correspondent and takes the train to a distant town, staying along with a fellow war correspondent, with a kind boardinghouse owner. The town is on high alert for human or magical attacks. Iris hopes to find news of her brother. Iris is surprised (though not the reader) when Roman follows her, now also a war correspondent, and Iris learns of their grandmothers’ connection. At Iris’s request, Roman shares stories of the gods. Once rivals, Roman and Iris quickly fall in love. A dramatic cliffhanger ending sets up the sequel. The rivals to lovers romance is believable and the characters and dark, dangerous steampunk setting are memorable. Not a happy book, but a compelling read.

Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute by Talia Hibbert

Black British teens Celine and Bradley were friends until a few years ago, when Bradley, an athlete, became very popular. Bradley has obsessive compulsive disorder, but it’s not presented stereotypically and most of his friends are unaware of his issues. Celine is refreshingly weird, is usually scowling, and has a popular conspiracy themed social media site. Their mothers are best friends, and are delighted when the teens both qualify for an unusual scholarship competition, which involves hiking, orienteering, and camping. Neither Celine or Bradley is outdoorsy, though they’re both capable hikers. Speaking of the title, Celine is highly suspicious, and thinks that Bradley is unfairly cute, especially his hair. They become friends again, with plenty of funny banter leading to a sweet romance. This was an entertaining and enjoyable read from an author best known for her adult rom-coms, the Brown sisters trilogy.

Brenda