I felt this was a slow starter of a book, the writing is very descriptive so it took a little while to get used to the detail. However, ultimately I really enjoyed the writing overall and it reminded me almost of Rebecca Ross and Divine Rivals. I did find I preferred Teddy over Aurelia to begin with as Aurelia was very set in her views about him but we didn’t have much context to the why she hated him so much, but as the book progresses and the pair open up to each other I thoroughly enjoyed Aurelia’s feelings change. This was the slowest burn of romance but it was done so well for the rivals to lovers vibe.

The story itself I felt lacked a little, I did enjoy it but the actual finding the villain element felt very sub plot and any action of the story was very short. It felt like it was resolved a bit too quickly but knowing this is just book 1 I am expecting things would explode more in book 2 and I will definitely be reading it.

Overall I gave this book a 4⭐️ as though I did enjoy it and see a lot of potential in the series it just lacked in the plot a little that I couldn’t give this more. I received the audio arc of this and I did really enjoy the audio, however I am familiar with the narrator from the Poison Study series and I did find myself losing focus a fair amount as I kept forgetting I was NOT listening to Yelena and Valek as the voices were exactly the same. However her narration is excellent and I do recommend the audio.

This book is a captivating contemporary fantasy, with witches and rivals to lovers romance. The novel starts as fast-paced but soon turns into a more character-focused narrative. There’s a lot of insight into Aurelia’s thoughts and feelings. I liked all the characters, especially Aurelia and Ingram, their arguments and the slow burn romance. I haven’t read a book with such intense yearning in a while.

The only aspect of this novel I did not enjoy was the change in pacing after the initial drama. The characters stay in hiding for quite a while. They spend time together and learn more about each other, but apart from that, nothing happens.

I would recommend this book to readers who enjoy slow-burn romance subplots. I will definitely continue this series when the next book is published.

✨Modern divination Review✨

Talk about a captivating story!! When I started listening to the audiobook I couldn’t stop for 2 hrs!!

💛Adult Fantasy
✨Cosy elements
💛Witches
✨Slow burn
💛Rivals-to-Lovers
✨Found Family
💛Bisexual rep

The thing I loved most about the book was how the main characters’ relationship slowly developed from this rivalry with sharp words and jabs at one another to a place of understanding of each other’s pasts and hardships, of understanding themselves and what made them who they are.
Aurelia and Teddy’s love story is a well-worth-the-wait slow burn you won’t want to miss. They don’t just fall into each other’s arms straight away, there are a lot of emotions to get through before they get there.🤍

When it comes to the magic and its manifestations I delighted in reading about the magical bookshop!! It sounded truly so beautiful and cosy! But the sparkle of magic is weaved all throughout the story.
If you love anything witchy and character- driven stories then you must check this book out.

I also highly recommend the audiobook! When I started listening I was so pleased to find out the narrator of the audiobook was Kristin Atherton who also narrated Howl’s Moving Castle and Belladonna which are two of my favourite books and audiobooks. You can count on Kristin for an immersive listening experience.💕

Thank you Netgalley, the publisher, and author for this ARC. All opinions are my own.

This book is a bit of a hard one to follow. I enjoyed the narrator but the actual writing style wasn't my favourite. A shame because the premise - fantasy academia with a bit of mystery - seemed like something I'd love!

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

This book is an academic rivals to lovers story with a magical murder mystery element to it. The real strength of the book was the relationship between the two main characters. It is a true slow burn romance which I find to be a strength as I enjoyed the anticipation. I loved the inclusion of a bisexual male main character, something I haven’t seen done often.
I opted for the audiobook which is unusual for me. However, I found the narration of this book was well done and easy to follow along with.
The main issue I had with the story was the ending. I felt as if the pace was building well in the middle of the book and the ending was anticlimactic. I believe the ending could have been condensed to leave the reader with more anticipation of what’s next.
I also think there could have been stronger description of the magic system in the beginning of the book as it took me a while to grasp the world.
Overall, I think this book is great if you are looking for a slow burn romance, but the fantasy elements could be improved upon.

I enjoyed this book it was fun and exciting and the narrator was also fun and interesting to listen to.

An enjoyable read that really had me engrossed in the story.

Lots of good things going for this, slow burn rivals to lovers plot, academia vibes, magic, witches, murder and great atmospheric settings.

There really was just so much that I enjoyed in this.

It really is a slow burn story, like super slow but the author incorporates that with an interesting magical evil side story plotline.

Overall I liked the two MCs with their hate / hate relationship and how the fact that they were both magical drew them together.

The narration of this audiobook worked really well. Great atmospheric vibes, tone and definitely added to the intensity of the story.

The ending wrapped up enough of the story to leave me intrigued and satisfied at the same time, and knowing I'll want to read book two.

My rating is 3 stars
This book is about a young witch, Aurelia and her academic rival, Theo. Aurelia's magic is fading and becoming uncontrollable. Theo decides to help Aurelia and decides to take her back home with him for the holidays. Whilst this could be a cute cozy fantasy there is a power hungry witch stealing other witch's power. Theo and Aurelia uncover secrets and hidden pasts and try to find and take down the killer witch.
The pace of this book was a little off and the ending was just generally too long. But overall this was a good book and I am looking forward to the sequel.
I really enjoyed the relationship between Teddy and Aurelia, the slow burn was real.
Three words to describe this word: Witches, Children & Whimsical

𝑀𝑜𝒹𝑒𝓇𝓃 𝒟𝒾𝓋𝒾𝓃𝒶𝓉𝒾𝑜𝓃 𝒷𝓎 𝐼𝓈𝒶𝒷𝑒𝓁 𝒜𝑔𝒶𝒿𝒶𝓃𝒾𝒶𝓃 (𝒮𝓅𝑒𝓁𝓁𝓈 𝒻𝑜𝓇 𝐿𝒾𝒻𝑒 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒟𝑒𝒶𝓉𝒽 𝒷𝑜𝑜𝓀 1)✨🪶🌌
𝖱𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀: 🌟🌟🌟🌟.5

“𝘈𝘶𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘢 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘸𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘺-𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘶𝘮 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘩𝘶𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘶𝘳𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘵. 𝘞𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘯 𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘨𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘊𝘢𝘮𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘨𝘦, 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘺 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘯𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘴𝘱. 𝘊𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘯 𝘶𝘯𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘧𝘶𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘨𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘦, 𝘈𝘶𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘢 𝘨𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘪𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘳 𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘴, 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘤𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘴𝘢𝘧𝘦𝘵𝘺 𝘳𝘦𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘳𝘦𝘴 𝘣𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘳𝘶𝘭𝘦𝘴 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦: 𝘔𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘯𝘰 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘦𝘴. 𝘛𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘯𝘰 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘳𝘦. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵.”

𝖳𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝗐𝖺𝗌 𝖾𝗏𝖾𝗋𝗒𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖨 𝗐𝖺𝗇𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖾𝗑𝗉𝖾𝖼𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝗂𝗍 𝗍𝗈 𝖻𝖾. 𝖳𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝗂𝗌 𝗐𝗁𝖺𝗍 𝗋𝗂𝗏𝖺𝗅𝗌 𝗍𝗈 𝗅𝗈𝗏𝖾𝗋𝗌 𝗌𝗁𝗈𝗎𝗅𝖽 𝖻𝖾; 𝗇𝗈 𝗆𝗂𝗌𝖼𝗈𝗆𝗆𝗎𝗇𝗂𝖼𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇, 𝖻𝗎𝗍 𝖺 𝗅𝗈𝗍 𝗈𝖿 𝗉𝖾𝗋𝗌𝗈𝗇𝖺𝗅 𝗀𝗋𝗈𝗐𝗍𝗁, 𝖺𝗉𝗈𝗅𝗈𝗀𝗂𝖾𝗌 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖺 𝗁𝖾𝖺𝗅𝗍𝗁𝗒 𝖺𝗆𝗈𝗎𝗇𝗍 𝗈𝖿 𝖻𝖺𝗇𝗍𝖾𝗋 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖼𝗈𝗂𝗇𝖼𝗂𝖽𝖾𝗇𝖼𝖾. 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖻𝖾𝖺𝗎𝗍𝗂𝖿𝗎𝗅 𝗐𝗋𝗂𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗁𝖺𝖽 𝗆𝖾 𝖿𝗅𝗒𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗁𝗋𝗈𝗎𝗀𝗁 𝗂𝗍 𝗐𝗂𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗇 24𝗁𝗋𝗌. 𝖳𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝗋𝖾𝖺𝖽𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖾𝗑𝗉𝖾𝗋𝗂𝖾𝗇𝖼𝖾 𝖻𝗋𝗈𝗎𝗀𝗁𝗍 𝖻𝖺𝖼𝗄 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗌𝖺𝗆𝖾 𝖼𝗈𝗌𝗒 𝖿𝖾𝖾𝗅𝗂𝗇𝗀𝗌 𝖨 𝗁𝖺𝖽 𝗐𝗁𝖾𝗇 𝗋𝖾𝖺𝖽𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖽𝗂𝗏𝗂𝗇𝖾 𝗋𝗂𝗏𝖺𝗅𝗌 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖺 𝖽𝗂𝗌𝖼𝗈𝗏𝖾𝗋𝗒 𝗈𝖿 𝗐𝗂𝗍𝖼𝗁𝖾𝗌. 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖼𝗁𝖺𝗋𝖺𝖼𝗍𝖾𝗋𝗌 𝗋𝖾𝖺𝗅𝗅𝗒 𝗐𝗁𝖾𝗋𝖾 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝖻𝗈𝗈𝗄 𝗌𝗁𝗂𝗇𝖾𝗌 𝖻𝗋𝗂𝗀𝗁𝗍𝖾𝗌𝗍, 𝗐𝗂𝗍𝗁 𝗈𝗋𝗀𝖺𝗇𝗂𝖼 𝗀𝗋𝗈𝗐𝗍𝗁 𝗐𝗂𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗇 𝗋𝖾𝗅𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇𝗌𝗁𝗂𝗉𝗌 𝗆𝖺𝗄𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝗌𝗍𝗈𝗋𝗒 𝗌𝗈 𝖾𝗇𝖽𝖾𝖺𝗋𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗁𝖾𝖺𝗋𝗍𝗐𝖺𝗋𝗆𝗂𝗇𝗀.

𝖳𝗁𝖺𝗇𝗄 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝖬𝖺𝖼𝗆𝗂𝗅𝗅𝖺𝗇 𝖴𝖪 𝖺𝗎𝖽𝗂𝗈 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝗌𝖾𝗇𝖽𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗆𝖾 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝖠𝖱𝖢.📚
𝖯𝗎𝖻 𝖣𝖺𝗍𝖾: 30𝗍𝗁 𝖩𝖺𝗇𝗎𝖺𝗋𝗒 2025

I really thought I would live this book but it went in a different direction to what I thought it would be and I got bored reading it.
I will say the narrator was good and only reason i was able to keep listening even though i didn’t particularly care about the characters

Modern Divination presents a fresh take on contemporary fantasy, blending the mundane world with the allure of hidden magic. The protagonist, Aurelia Schwartz, is compelling in her struggle to balance her fading magical gift with the pressures of her human life. The story’s central conflict—an unexpected alliance with an infuriating classmate and the threat of a dangerous, power-hungry witch—unfolds with intrigue, delivering high stakes and plenty of twists.

However, while the premise is captivating, the writing style occasionally feels overwrought, with overly elaborate descriptions and dialogue that can detract from the pacing. The rules of Aurelia’s world are intriguing but not always explored as deeply as they could be, leaving some elements of the magic system feeling underdeveloped.

That said, Agajanian’s vivid imagination and knack for building tension make Modern Divination an enjoyable listen. The audiobook brings the characters and their dilemmas to life. While the execution doesn’t quite match the brilliance of the concept, this is still a good read for fans of character-driven fantasy with a touch of mystery.

Thank you so much Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for giving me early access to the audiobook!! Forever grateful.

I ABSOLUTELY LOVED THIS BOOK!!!!! I can’t believe I won’t be listening to the characters again. I feel like I’ve been broken up with. “I’ll never hear their voices again….never hear their thoughts…” *bursts into tears*.

I adore Teddy and Rory SO MUCH. It has everything I want in a book.

It was beautifully written. So many beautiful words. They’re so beautiful that despite already having listened to this on audiobook, I am now preordering the book so I can re-read it and underline all of my favourite lines. Such elegant writing and beautiful metaphors. Lots of showing not telling which is fabulous.

I love the magic and its description. I love that we don’t fully understand/know everything about it - we’ve only scratched the surface. And one of my favourite quotes ‘The colour of magic was gold”. Brilliant.

I also love the location and the academic setting. As someone in academia, I love reading about it and it’s just so fun to have a little glimpse into someone’s studies and lifestyle. Plus academic rivals is like the best kind of rival. I really enjoyed the difference between the Cambridge setting and Townsend. The description of the house in Townsend was so vivid that I want to live there.

I love that it was inclusive and had a bisexual character and someone with they/them pronouns - and it wasn’t a plot point which is so nice to read (it just is there and it’s great).

The characters are all phenomenal. Teddy and Rory have my heart forever. They feel so rich. Isabel does an AMAZING job of describing the feelings they have, the deep love they have for each other - it’s palpable through the page. I also love everyone else. Literally. There isn’t a single character I thought was lacking or misplaced.

THE SLOW BURRNNNNNNN OH MY GOD. Honestly, the best I’ve read. I couldn’t DEAL. So good.

I would definitely recommend listening to the audiobook! It was fantastic! The narrator, Kristin Atherton, is so amazing at accents and I especially loved the diversity of accents in the book. There was an American accent, a northern English accent and the more stereotypical ‘British’ accent and more and I loved them all. It’s so refreshing to listen to an audiobook where the main character is American, and where there is a variety of different accents. It’s not just the accents, though, Kristin manages to attribute so much personality to each voice she does. Just by listening to them speaking you can tell something about their personality and I love it. It really made me feel like I knew the characters so well. Aaaaand now I’m heartbroken that they are in fact stuck in the book and I can’t talk to them.

ISABEL I NEED THE NEXT ONE - WHEN ARCS ARE AVAILABLE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE CAN I HAVE ONE I NEED TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENS NEXT IMMEDIATELY


Everyone should read this immediately, but especially if you like:

- Dark academia (Cambridge students)
- Academic rivals to lovers
- Witch vibes (the colour of magic is gold)
- Incredibly well thought out characters
- SLOW BURN THE SLOW BURNNNNN

Thank you NetGalley for access to this ARC of Modern Divination. I'd give this one 2.5-3 stars.. but probably leaning more towards the 2.5 mark.

This book started out with such promise, I was getting Divine Rivals vibes from it in parts & I really liked the narrator. But the story was incredibly slow, the plot felt thin & nothing really happened with the characters for around 60-70% of the book.

I was really hoping that it was going to culminate into some sort of crescendo but really nothing happened. There was slight tension between the characters, but not enough for them to be all over each other like they were in the last 10% of the book. I needed more magic, needed more action, and I'm left not really knowing what happened to the woman that was after them... is she still after them?

Left not knowing what happened to Gem. The epilogue didn't really make sense either, Alric who had helped them before was still searching for Gem, but there was problems in his own country? Or something like that? That was really unclear.

And then there was a sort of reading from Teddy to Rory which again, didn't wholly make sense & we're left wondering whether they're actually together. Do they even have a plan or next steps? Are they just not bothered about the person that was after them now?

Overall it took quite a long time to get through, it had such promise but unfortunately didn't deliver for me.

R E V I E W

Modern Divination by Isabel Agajanian

☆☆

Advanced Reader Copy graciously provided by Macmillan UK Audio via Netgalley

After listening to an addictive book with terrible writing, I was cast directly into the opposite with Modern Divination. This book is written with an educated hand, each word carefully selected to tell a story of magical realism in which two academic rivals are forced to come together, despite their grievances, in the face of an unknown evil.

However, this book is incredibly slow and character driven, with nothing really happening as our two characters evacuate to the country and learn to co-exist. At around 70%, the pair were still tentatively circling one another despite the author clearly trying to suggest an undercurrent of sexual tension (that I struggled to feel) as they finally leave the safety of their seclusion to confront the evil that originally drew them together.

If it were not for the fact that this was an ARC, and I was out of Audible credits, I honestly do not think I would have persevered with this book and I certainly won't be reading the sequel. This book, unfortunately, demonstrates that just because you can write, doesn't necessarily mean you should. However, if you like narratives set in the modern day, with LGBTQ+ characters and 'they' pronouns, where very little happens and themes such as grief and loneliness are explored, then maybe this will be more to your liking.

Big thanks to NetGalley for the audiobook copy of Modern Divination by Isabel Agajanian ahead of its UK release at the end of this month!

This story had such an intriguing blend of vibes: part mystery, part academic rivals-to-lovers romance, and part witchy secrets. It follows Aurelia, a 23-year-old Cambridge student who’s secretly a witch, and Teddy, her academic rival who gets swept into her mysterious world. There’s a touch of spookiness, cozy moments, and just enough yearning to keep me hooked.

For me, the audiobook narration stole the show - I’m convinced it’s why I enjoyed the book as much as I did. If you’re planning to pick this up, I highly recommend the audio version for the full experience.

Story-wise, it’s not the most groundbreaking plot, but it’s still an entertaining and atmospheric read. The ending left me feeling a little unfinished (the pains of a duology), but I’m definitely curious enough to pick up the sequel.

One slight disappointment: the new UK release cover feels a bit too traditional -- dare I say boring? The original cover captured the unique "vibes" of the story so much better. For those of us who judge books by their aesthetics, the original design just depicted the cute weirdness of the book a bit better I'd say.

If you’re into witchy mysteries, academic drama, and a bit of romance, this one’s worth checking out.

3.75/5 ⭐

If you love witches, dark academia, secret societies, mystery and tension, MODERN DIVINATION will keep you on your toes throughout its entire length. I absolutely loved this story, the characters, their intense rivalry and secrets!
The magic system is rich, well-crafted (but you need time to process it, which made the beginning a bit slower for me).

The audio book Narrator did a splendid job voicing the characters and delivering that academic feel to the story.

Modern Divination reads as if the writing of Divine Rivals was mixed with an occult dark academia, and I admit up.

From the get go we see an intense rivalry between Aurelia and Theadore, one fuelled by sharp tongues and vitriol so longwinded it’s hard to root out. But a magical conundrum soon forces the two into close proximity, and I loved the slow but steady progression in their relationship - their uncertainty, the small moments that meant more than expected, their relapses into bickering. I came to love reading about our lil duo, and could easily fall into their story.

The book did start to feel a little long, with that in turn making the stake feel…not as intense as they maybe should’ve been. But I was happy to experience this writing and enjoy my time with the characters, aided even more by the audiobook being fantastic. The narrator did a brilliant job at portraying emotions in a way that only heightened the intense back-and-forths, and their knack for accents is a wonder to listen to.

This definitely feels like the sort of dark academia that thrives off the definition of “ruminating”, with each character thinking over small moments and sayings and considering their place in the world at a constant rate. Both feel like lost souls, lonely despite having people around, and seeing their story unfold together is just heartwarming.

I was so excited for this one but it was so disappointing! I couldn’t get past 20% 😭 i didn’t feel like i knew any of the characters by that point not even the mc, things were happening but it felt very patchworked because the magic wasn’t explained, the setting was pieced together, there was more meditation on tea choices than anything relevant to the plot. I wanted to like it so much but i could barely hang onto the plot/world building let alone enjoy it. I also felt like the romance was forced- it used the cliche trope of her overhearing him say something mean out of context and him liking her all along but didn’t bring anything new to the dynamic so it fell a little flat for me, a shame :(

HOWEVER!! The audiobook was phenomenal- it’s the only reason I believe i got as far in as I did. The narrator did a brilliant job with conveying tone and with the accents, it was no chore to listen to her narrate this story! Will definitely be looking out for other things she’s done 🤭

3.25⭐

I had high hopes for Modern Divination because I loved the character art and I adore rivals to lovers, but while the characters were fine, the story was underwhelming. I felt like I was always waiting for something to happen and I think it needed more magic and action.

It's a book I'll probably forget by the end of the month but I did enjoy the romantic tension.

DNF 60%

I tried I really did. I should have loved this but I just couldn’t get into it. The writing style while poetic at times, was too much for the story that was trying to be told. So you just end up with two main characters going round in circles with each other, seeming to have a conversation then go back to square one with each other. I get that it’s trying to set up the “enemies” part but as it was mostly telling not showing this relationship it felt a bit hollow.

You the reader are just thrown in and expected to understand the magic system and the world set up and while it’s meant to be a lighter magic system I do think more was needed to settle the reader. The start is just lots of purple prose followed by a burst of plot only for there to be a big stretch with nothing really happening.

The characters were quite unlikeable but I can often get onboard with that, I just don’t think it was done well especially in the case of Theodore. Maybe because I often get onboard better with unlikeable female characters but he just felt insufferable, not understanding why some one wouldn’t like him and then keeping lots of important information from Aurelia only to get annoyed when she wasn’t understanding what was going on.

I think there was potential here, the poetic prose just needed to be toned down a bit to suit the story so as not to overpower it all. Maybe making it shorter too would eliminate the feeling of nothing happening, from what I can gather about the ending this is a common thought.

As usual Kristin Atherton is a wonderful narrator, definitely one of my favourites. It’s likely I only got as far in this because I enjoy her narration.

I received an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.