Book Review: The Wretched Divine by Adalyn Grace
Adalyn Grace’s first foray into adult fiction following her debut YA duology All the Stars and Teeth and the bestselling Belladonna series is a blissful reminder of why fantasy readers have long loved angels vs demons tales. It centres on a devoted knight torn between her duty to serve her kingdom and her growing disillusionment for a war that has already taken so much from her. Though it might not be marketed as a romantasy, The Wretched Divine has all the sizzling chemistry and love triangle friction you’d expect from a fantasy where the heroine is caught between celestial/infernal beings on resolutely opposing sides.
Aurelie Chantelune was born to serve. Raised as a knight in a kingdom ravaged by demons, she’s spent her life training to be the ultimate protector for her people. If she can claim her first demon kill, she’ll inherit the legacy passed down through the Chantelune bloodline: a soulbond with an angel whose power is vital to her kingdom’s survival. Yuriel is the angel selected for the bond, though the peaceable soldier sees it as more of a punishment than an honour. They’re both determined to do their duty but when Aurelie’s father is turned into one of the monsters she’s sworn to destroy, she must seek help in another form: a demon called Severin who’s as untrustworthy as he is dangerous, but who claims to know how to end the war for good.
With their fates entwined, Aurelie, Yuriel and Severin form a tenuous alliance in order to hunt down a cure capable of turning demons back into humans. But the more they learn about one another, the deeper their relationships grow, and Aurelie begins to question the war she’s spent her life fighting, as well as the true nature of angels and demons. With the lives of those she loves on the line, she must make a choice: continue to stand with the angels, or risk everything by trusting a demon.
Even the most wretched souls could masquerade as divine.”
Whilst Grace’s Belladonna books were set in a gothic, Victorian inspired world that felt familiar to our own, The Wretched Divine is a medieval fantasy through and through, complete with knights, royals and divine influences. This isn’t a book that slowly eases readers into the story. The action begins from the prologue, throwing us into Aurelie’s fragile existence with a sudden demon attack that changes the course of her future forever. A second attack is quick to follow in the opening chapters, which sets the tone for the rest of the book. Danger is never far from Aurelie’s heels and her decision to form a bond with a demon only adds to her predicament. The fact that Severin could also be her saviour gives this already conflicted knight even more to struggle with.
What begins as a story between good and evil shifts as the story progresses and the lines that so clearly separated the two at the beginning become increasingly blurred. Aurelie is the best kind of fantasy heroine. She has strong convictions and though she’s driven by loyalty, she’s also led by her heart, and she’s not afraid to make difficult decisions if the end justifies the means. The struggle between light and darkness plays out in two ways – in the fight between the divine and the demons, and in the battle Aurelie wages within, and it’s never quite clear which is going to win. The fact that Yuriel and Severin are both such heart-stealers – Yuriel because he’s so chivalrous and kind, Severin because he’s such a barefaced troublemaker – makes readers just as conflicted as Aurelie. Love triangles have always been a popular trope in novels, and this one is so full of yearning and jealously that it becomes difficult to pick sides.
The Wretched Divine is a fantasy novel that has it all – adventure, betrayal, romance and bloodshed. It’s beautifully cinematic, as Adalyn Grace’s books always are, and has the power to transport readers far from the mundanities of daily life and into a world that simmers with magic in all its enchanting and destructive forms. It’s not entirely perfect – there’s a certain reveal that has some pretty heavy foreshadowing, which steals the shock from what’s supposed to be a bombshell moment towards the end – but in a world of samey romantic fantasies, it still feels epic and devastating enough to leave readers feeling like they’ve been put through the wringer.
The future might be uncertain for the characters after that stirring cliffhanger ending but one thing is for certain: the sequel can’t come soon enough.
★★★★
The Wretched Divine was published by Gollancz on 22 September 2026
