(Website, , , )Series: Haven Rising #1
on August 15th 2015
Genres: Dating & Relationships, Dating & Sex, Fantasy, Fantasy & Magic, Hispanic & Latino, Love & Romance, Romance, Young Adult, Young Adult Fiction
Format: eBook
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Elena Rosales has busted her ass to get into a good college. She’s the only one in her family ever to attend, and expectations are high. No pressure. But Elena’s got this one in the bag, because she’s as dependable as the molecules she studies, as reliable as the chemical reactions that comfort her in their predictability. Until they don’t.
Elena has always wondered why her mother abandoned her on her first birthday. It’s not until she turns eighteen and her chemistry experiments go berserk that she learns the truth: Her mother wasn’t human, and the Fae are willing to harm those Elena loves if she doesn’t use her power over the elements to cure them of a deadly disease.
Derek, Elena’s brooding neighbor, isn’t the friendliest guy, but he has access to an off-hours lab and is willing to help Elena create the antivirus. He has his own secrets to keep, and this business Elena is mixed up in could blow his cover. But when Elena and Derek get together, more than chemicals spark fire—and they soon discover just how complicated attraction can get when they find themselves on the other side of the portal, fighting for survival. Lives collide, and allegiance and love are tested, in Fates Divided.
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In the Halven Rising Series, love and ancient allegiances are threatened when the worlds of Fae and Halven collide. Each Halven Rising novel features a different couple and may be read as a standalone, but an overreaching story arc connects the books, so it’s fun to read them in order.
Fairies were a tiny obsession of mine for a while, and I still enjoy reading about them from time to time. Fates Divided put a new spin on fairies and added a dash of alchemy that drew me in. Plus, I love mature YA.
One of my favorite parts of this book was that the main character, Elena Rosales, was eighteen. I did find myself wanting to think of her as the Elena in The Vampire Diaries—the books, not the show—but I overall liked her character. Her love of science, specifically chemistry, kept the story going and showed that girls do know their ways around a lab (even if there were a few accidents here and there).
Since she was in college, it made sense that she didn’t have to go to class. That’s how college works. Even if I don’t do it, if you don’t feel like showing up, you don’t. I got the vibe that Elena was more like me, though: always at class, a planner, and homework completer. The only time I’ve skipped class (so far) I planned it—seriously, there’s no changing me. When the fae came into the mix, she kind of forgot about school. It didn’t seem realistic, and considering she was on campus, I expected her to run into people—professors, hello!—when she was back in her world. Nevertheless, the story only took place within one week, so I guess she could miss one week of class. (I’m cringing at the thought.)
I liked the fast pace of the book. Action happened, romance ensued, and heads did roll. It sounds gruesome and anachronistic, but it was oh so exciting. The only issue that I had with the timeline was how fast Elena and Derek O’Brien, her nerd-hot neighbor, fell for each other. Their relationship was faster than the speed of light. Derek did mention that he had watched her from afar (in a non-creepy way), but I would have liked it to have had more build-up.That’s not to say I didn’t love Derek, because I did—very much so! The second half of the novel had most of the action and gasping moments, and the pace was steadier. So if you have a few qualms in the first few chapters, continue! It’s worth it.
Reese, Elena’s roommate, didn’t have a heavy presence, but I loved her spunk. I’m glad that the next book in the series will be about her and Keen, Elena’s bodyguard, and have already starting anticipating what might happen. That brings me to Keen. He was an enigma. I couldn’t figure him out, and I don’t think anyone else could, either. It made him interesting and alluring, not to mention that he had a mess of blonde hair and was super tall. The chemistry between him and Reese couldn’t be denied, even if he tried to do just that.
Fates Divided kept me reading. The slow bits and inconsistencies were inconsequential to the overall story and faded the farther I got into the story. It was reminiscent of Julie Kagawa’s Iron Fey series but created a whole new lineage of fae that I will definitely be reading more of.
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Keen straightened and shrugged one shoulder. “As Portia said, millennia ago, angels mated with humans and created the Fae.” He turned the knob to the Fae classroom without opening it. “Fae only mate with Fae. At times, they’ve lain with humans and created a diluted, lesser being, the Halven. It doesn’t happen often. Fae do not generally desire humans. But when it happens, we must watch the offspring for signs of abilities.”
Doesn’t happen often? Must happen enough that they’d built the university.
Derek snorted. “Sounds like some serious denial you’ve got going on there, buddy.”
Keen shot him a look and opened the door.
Before Elena could walk through, Derek pulled her aside and spoke low in her ear. “Mating with humans? Tirnan and the Fae realm?” He shook his head. “We stick together inside Fae-U, got it?”
Elena wet her chapped lips. The things Keen had said, Derek’s deep voice in her ear and the protective way he’d been acting toward her—all equally distracting.
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About Jules Barnard
A RITA-nominated author, Jules Barnard began her publishing career in 2014 with Deep Blue, the first book in the contemporary Blue Series, hitting bestseller lists on Amazon, iBooks, and All Romance. In 2015, she launched Fates Divided, the first of a romantic fantasy series Library Journal calls “…an exciting new fantasy adventure.” Whether she’s writing about beautiful Lake Tahoe, or a Fae world embedded in a college campus, Jules spins suspenseful stories filled with realistic characters who have heart and humor.
When Jules isn’t in her sweatpants writing and rewarding herself with chocolate, she spends her time with her husband and two children in their small hometown on the California coast. She credits herself with the ability to read while running on the treadmill or burning dinner.
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Emily Endrizzi
This sounds like a fantastic book. I love the cover.
Moriah
Me, too! The cover for the next book is great, as well. Thanks for stopping by. 🙂