“Even the most wretched souls could masquerade as divine.” – The Wretched Divine by Adalyn Grace

---

What do you mean she is bonded to an angel AND a demon? I was READY.

The potential for an angel and demon love triangle… I was having major Twilight flashbacks (I’m saying this in the highest form of a compliment). But that was YA and this is Adult… so the emotional conflict should be more intense, right?

While the premise of The Wretched Divine had me hooked, the execution left me wanting SO MUCH MORE.

This post could contain affiliate links, which means I would receive a small commission at no cost to you should you shop using the links.

The Wretched Divine by Adalyn Grace Summary

Aurelie has spent her entire life raised within a world where angels are good and revered, and demons are bad and feared. But everything she thought she knew is suddenly called into question when the fate of those she loves is on the line.

Aurelie, bound to an angel through a dishonest connection, finds herself forming an unexpected bond with a demon as well. With the fate of those she loves, she’ll have to confront the beliefs on good and evil she’s built her entire life around and decide where her loyalties truly lie.

The Wretched Divine by Adalyn Grace Review

This story started off strong. I had plenty of reasons to be intrigued, and I was, but then very few reasons to remain emotionally invested.

First, the worldbuilding. There are some really interesting ideas and questions all throughout this story surrounding faith, morality, loyalty, and ultimately what it means to cross the lines between good and evil.

I was immediately invested in seeing how these concepts would further unfold, but somewhere around the 40-50% mark, the story began losing momentum, and I never found my way back into it.

There truly was plenty happening, but I struggled to find an emotional reason to care about it all.

Next, the love triangle. Aurelie has been raised to despise demons, only to find herself bonded to one named Severin. I so badly wanted to experience that contradiction of feelings alongside her. I wanted to feel the hesitation, the resistance (the yearning!), the questioning of everything she’d believed.

Instead, her prompt shift in feelings felt incredibly underdeveloped and underwhelming.

And then there’s the angel, Yuriel. Their bond, established under a lie, could have been another opportunity for interesting emotional complexity. I expected this relationship to carry more weight, especially given its significance to Aurelie’s entire identity and beliefs. Instead, he felt sidelined for so much of the story.

Overall, my biggest disappointment was the lack of emotional depth in all areas.

The Wretched Divine by Adalyn Grace Review ALC Review

The audiobook featured four narrators (Kristin Atherton, Major Curda, Marisa Calin, Shane East) and all four truly did a fantastic job! I was never confused about who was speaking, and each narrator created a true personality to their character (sometimes multiple charaters)

The narration easily carried this story for me, and I am so thankful I got to experience this story in this format. Thank you Macmillan Audio!

Final Thoughts: The Wretched Divine by Adalyn Grace

I REALLY wanted to love this one. The premise had me pulled in at the very beginning and I could see so many possibilities for a story exploring complicated relationships with good and evil.

I had plenty of reasons to be intrigued, but very few reasons to become and remain emotionally invested.

Should you read/listen to this story? If you’re drawn to fantasy concepts with angel and demon mythology, you might find something to enjoy here. The four-narrator audiobook production is truly a standout that I would 100% recommend if you want to experience this story.

Just don’t go into this expecting to be emotionally torn. I was promised a love triangle, after all…

⭐⭐⭐ Thank you MacMillan Audio and NetGalley for this ALC!