Review: The Diviners

The Diviners by Libba Bray
Series: The Diviners #1
Published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers on 12/03/2013
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Mystery
Pages: 578
Format: Paperback
Source: Library
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Evangeline O'Neill has been exiled from her boring old hometown and shipped off to the bustling streets of New York City--and she is ecstatic. It's 1926, and New York is filled with speakeasies, Ziegfeld girls, and rakish pickpockets. The only catch is that she has to live with her uncle Will and his unhealthy obsession with the occult. Evie worries he'll discover her darkest secret: a supernatural power that has only brought her trouble so far.

When the police find a murdered girl branded with a cryptic symbol and Will is called to the scene, Evie realizes her gift could help catch a serial killer. As Evie jumps headlong into a dance with a murderer, other stories unfurl in the city that never sleeps. And unknown to all, something dark and evil has awakened....

Alright, I’m officially a YA convert! While I’ve always been a Potterhead because that’s what I grew up in, the Young Adult genre hasn’t been something I’ve really delved into until now. The Diviners is the second YA title that I’ve loved in the past while and I’m into it. Maybe it’s more the Historical Fiction or Fantasy side of things that I love but this is a series I want to continue reading.

Characters

The Diviners has some really fun and dynamic characters! We’ve barely scratched the surface on some of them which makes me excited to read more of this series.

I wasn’t feeling Evie as a protagonist at the beginning but she grew on me as things progressed. It seems I wasn’t the only one who felt that way either! Similarly, Mabel tended to bore me and many others BUT I did find her a great contrast to Evie and Theta.

This fan art by @AceArt3mis of the girls in THE DIVINERS by @libbabray is just the bee’s knees—and it’s only the first of many gorgeous renditions of the hip to the jive characters in the series! https://t.co/Fa0U5sNF85 pic.twitter.com/qzgCf70LEQ

— NOVL ☔️ (@TheNovl) April 12, 2019

Speaking of Theta, she was one of my favourite characters and I have a suspicion that we’ll be learning more about her in other books in the series! This girl gives no shits and I love her for it. There’s so much more to her than what we have learned thus far and I can’t wait for more of her! Same goes for her “partner” Henry. The two of them together have some of my favourite interactions which, looking back, makes me really wish I had marked some examples of this so I could have shared. I am a mediocre blogger at best.

See my review of The Raven Boys for more YA love!

If you’ve been around for a while, you already that I love a bad boy so it should come as no surprise that Sam had me hooked from the get-go. The looks, the sarcasm and wit, the street smarts! Swoon! He’s also got a mysterious and intriguing backstory that I can’t wait to explore. In stark contrast to Sam, Jericho bored me for most of the book until I learned his dirty little secret close to the end. His personality still doesn’t excite me like Sam’s does but I am curious to have more of his story unfold.

Brothers Memphis and Isaiah have such a sweet and interesting dynamic that I really loved and I can’t wait for the Memphis & Theta pairing to flesh out. While romance isn’t a main theme through the book, it didn’t take away from it either. I felt like the focus in The Diviners was more on relationships in general rather than only romantic ones. Friendships, mentors, family, etc. The mentorship between Will and Jericho is one I’m curious about as well as the strange intrigue added by the Proctor sisters, Miss Addie and Miss Lillian.

The John ‘Naughty John’ Hobbes character is a real doozy! From the origin story and flashbacks into his motivations throughout the book, he is complex and frightening. Many of his creepy scenes stayed with me for a while after putting the book down. The whistle, his song … I have chills right now thinking about it!

Setting

1920’s New York City is such a cool time and place in history that it is the perfect backdrop for this thrilling tale. A creepy museum, glamorous theatres, dark speakeasies, a haunted mansion, even an old cemetery! This is the stuff my dreams are made of!

 

via GIPHY

I love reading about the flapper lifestyle and The Diviners satisfied me with it in the way that The Great Gatsby did. So glamorous and forbidden … women after my own heart! It gives the city a certain noir feel that I enjoy and is such a character in its own right.

In many regards, the various locations were characters in themselves. The old house certainly had a life and persona all it’s own! The museum also had a fantastic mysterious aura about it and I was able to picture the ambience of the opulent theatre. Libba Bray does a fantastic job creating a dark, intriguing atmosphere that is full of detail and personality which made reading this book a very rich experience for me and worth the 5 star rating.

Did you love The Diviners as much as I did?