The Wretched Divine

The Wretched Divine #1

by Adalyn Grace

Aurelie Chantelune was born to serve. Raised as a knight in a kingdom ravaged by demons, she's spent her life honing her blade, driven by the memory of the monsters who tore her family apart and by the knowledge that she's one of the few who can stop them.

If Aurelie can claim her first kill, she'll inherit a legacy passed down through the Chantelune bloodline: a soulbond with Yuriel, an angel whose power is vital to her kingdom's survival. But when those she loves begin turning into the very monsters she's sworn to destroy, Aurelie is forced to seek help from the last place she ever imagined. Desperate, she forges a second and far more dangerous bond with Severin, a demon she can hardly trust, but who claims to know how to end the war for good.

With their lives and fates entwined, Aurelie, Yuriel, and Severin must team up to hunt down a cure capable of turning demons back into humans. But the more they learn about one another and the deeper their relationships grow, the more Aurelie begins to question the war and her place in it. With both of her bonded on opposing sides, she'll have to make a choice: continue to stand with the angels, or risk everything by trusting a demon.

Genres: Fantasy, Romantasy, Romance, Adult, Fantasy Romance, Demons, Fiction

512 pages, Hardcover

Expected publication September 22, 2026

About the author

Adalyn Grace is the #1 New York Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal, International, and Indiebound bestselling author of Belladonna and the All the Stars and Teeth duology.

Prior to becoming an author, Adalyn spent several years working in live theatre and studied storytelling as an intern on Nickelodeon Animation’s popular series The Legend of Korra.

Local to San Diego, Adalyn spends her non-writing days by watching too much anime, and by playing video games with her two dorky dogs.

Reviews

[Clace]

She said its like a more mature version of daughter of smoke and bone and The infernal devices but set in a world like the stormlight archives!! I AM SCREAMING BECAUSE BRANDON SANDERSON SUPREMACY EVERYONE!

[Adalyn Grace]

UPDATE TO ADD:
Tour stops in the US, UK, and Ireland have been announced. All are ticketed and limited. Tickets for stops still available can be found here.







Page overlay Pre Order incentives have also been announced for the US.


This Yuriel page overlay is available by pre ordering the B&N signed Angel Edition





Claim your Yuri page overlay here

This Severin page overlay is available by pre ordering the standard US Demon Edition




Claim your Severin page overlay here



This Aurelie page overlay is available as a US tour exclusive, while supplies last





Original Review:

Hello and goodbye! Before this book launches and I must hide from Goodreads again, I wanted to share where you can find signed and exclusive editions.

In the US: (all bold text should be clickable)

The B&N Limited Angel edition:
- Signed
- A stunning designed red case printed straight onto the hardcover
- Gilded edges
- A deleted chapter
- Alternate jacket coloring with golden x on the cover
- Red designed angel wing endpages

This limited signed edition is exclusive to B&N





The Standard Demon Edition:
- A beautiful red case design printed straight onto the hardcover
- Red metallic edges
- Gold angel wing endpages
- Red X on jacket

Signed editions of this version can be pre ordered through my local indie, Mysterious Galaxy. All pre orders will be signed. If you'd like personalization, please include how you'd like it personalized in the order notes at checkout.




In the UK:

Signed Waterstones Exclusive:
- Signed
- Very limited and nearly sold out
- Alternative gold dust jacket colorway
- Deleted Chapter
- Fiery edges
- Beautiful red hardcover case design (matches US)
- angel wing endpages





We also have the beautiful silver standard edition. Some indies should also be getting signed editions of this version. I will share information as it comes.



This is my favorite book yet, and I'm so so excited to share it with you! If you like big, epic fantasy worlds, plot driven stories that still have a ton of romance, angels, demons (including a demon bard), knights, a medieval inspired fantasy world, and a boatload of magic, TWD might be the book for you! I really hope you love it as much as I do.

[Sophie]

✎ᝰ.┊ pre-read: after loving the Belladonna series, I couldn’t be happier to get my hands on this ARC 😍

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc!

[angelinabvby ۶ৎ (semi-ia)]

⚔️ 𝖕𝖗𝖊𝖗𝖊𝖆𝖉 ⚔️
i got a sample!! thank god for booktrovert ❣️❣️❣️

ADALYN GRACE??????? GIVE HERE

[Kristina]

Angels, demons, AND Renaissance-inspired?

Yes. Without a doubt, yes.

Update: Adalyn Grace just posted the first character art on Instagram and I am IN LOVE.

Update 2: We've got a release date (just before my birthday!!) and an epic description.

Update 3: We have a cover!

[Val · Rating 3 out of 5]

dnfed at 30%

i couldn't care less if I tried

unfortunately, this book doesn't have interesting enough politics or narration for me to care. it's meant to be new adult i think? the only time it feels like new adult instead of YA is for the yuri chapters. the demon and aurelie chapters are very reminiscent of a really boring prototype of bantery enemies to lovers we're seeing these days. a lot of themes we begin with also feel very ya and the chemistry between the demon and aurelie is very middling. aurelia feels not much different from a staple fantasy fmc and her decisions are very impulsive and not interesting enough to hold my attention. she doesn't really have a unique characteristic so I didn't care much about her.

the one who I did care about, was yuri. the angel character is ironically the most interesting character in the book. he's got a set up and arc that feels very unique and mature. a sort of character that doesn't feel box-ed or boring. his pov kept me up from dnfing a lot sooner. he brings a fresh and interesting pov into the book and the world as an angel navigating humans and I'm sure his interactions with demons at the later part (if we ever get them) will be just as nice.

ultimately, I need my fantasy books perfect in setting their vibe from page 1 and building on it, so this wasn't for me as I don't think it blew my mind with unique ideas. i wish everything was as interesting as yuri but well, I'll never find out even if it is.

edit: okay I skimmed the middle part and then got to the ending and LOLLLL this might be one of those fantasy books that is insanely good in the last 50-100 pages. what a ride. I wish the beginning wasn't that slow but yeah whatever. I don't regret dnfing but OOOF that was some intense last 50 pages. and the ending???????? i wish i cared cause it's actually peak 😭😭😭😭😭 WHY COULDN'T I ENJOY THIS BOOK UGHHHHH

(and why was the yaoi serving so much)

thank you so much to the publisher and netgalley for the arc

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m going to be thinking about this book for a while , how am I supposed to move on ??. Easily a 6 star read with the most amazing world building and characters you want to slap and cheer for !! Aurelie is this crazy awesome knight who I just adore and I do not envy the choices she has to make. Surrounded by two very sexy guys , one demon .. one angel. I normally have very strong leanings towards the bad guys , but my angel , Yuriel , gave some strong vibes I was having a hard time saying no to. Severin is everything fun and wicked I love in my demon boys. Who knew the dynamic that would get me was grumpy angel and sunshine demon !!! Totally here for it !! Oh yah and there is a kingdom in peril and her dad got changed into a demon and she has to save him. Honestly this whole plot was riveting and I loved the story as it unfurled. That ending ended me. I’m gonna cry having to wait for book two and will just console myself by buying all the special editions.

This book has:
Multiple POV
Angles & Demons
Enemies to reluctant allies
Forbidden Love
Forced Proximity
Hidden Identity
Political Intrigue
Magical warriors
Found family

[Youssra (semi ia- shelving books don't mind me)]

so sat for this release.

[Laurens.Little.Library · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 or 4.5. Undecided.

Ooooo ya’ll are going to eat this up!

[Erin Dunn · Rating 5 out of 5]

✨She bonds with an angel and a demon?! Yes, please!✨

I was HOOKED immediately from the prologue!!

Oh boy…The Wretched Divine is SO INCREDIBLE! The FMC Aurelie bonds with an angel AND a demon. Aurelie is trying to end a war between angels and demons and humans are caught in the middle… sold!!!!

This is a fast- paced read with such cool world building!!! I really love the main 3 characters who are all bonded with each other. I especially enjoyed the grumpy angel and sunshine demon dynamic! That’s a cool twist! Love, love, love Severin and Yuri! I absolutely love everything about this book. Oh and that ENDING was so good and emotional! 😭😱 A new favorite book for me!

I can’t recommend this book enough. I need book 2 ASAP!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a free ebook copy in exchange for an honest review. This book is expected to be released September 22, 2026 .

[Natalie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was really confused by the plot and world building here. I ended up just having to DNF because I was so lost in the sauce. It is a medieval world where humans are bonded to angels fighting demons, but that’s about all the explanation you are given, and it just gets more confusing from there. Then there’s this weird 3 way bond between an angel, human, and demon. I was like ???? I guess someone who is really into angel and demon mythology would love this. The author had such a witty and creative voice in her Belladonna series. This reads too serious and tortured. It just wasn’t for me.

[avi ౨ৎ]

IS THIS A NEW ADALYN GRACE BOOK!!!!!!
- Will I eat this book up? Yes
- Will I fall in love with the mmc? Probably
- Will the writing be amazing? Uh duh it's by Adalyn Grace!

[Christiana Joy · Rating 2 out of 5]

My opinion on this may change, but yeesh. That second star is for Yuriel, he’s the only one whose side I’m on.

First of all, this is Romantasy, pure, unadulterated, stereotypical Romantasy. I may have enjoyed this more if it had been marketed that way.

I hated the FMC, saw everything coming and still managed to be horrified by the ending. I don’t think I’ll continue the series.

[Sierraaa · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5/5⭐️

~~~
First, i would like to thank NetGalley, Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group, and Adalyn Grace for the opportunity to read and review this book early. All thoughts and opinions are my own

~~~
I wanted to love this book so badly, but unfortunately i didn’t; i simply don’t think this book was for me. It wasn’t all terrible the entire time i read it, but there was a lot i did not enjoy.

For starters, i did not like the female main character, Aurelie. This entire book was just her making one poor decision after the next, and i feel like she didn’t really reflect on those choices at all, nor did she have any growth as the novel went on. Her choices left me frustrated to the point where it often took me out of the story, because i couldn’t believe a heroine would act the way Aurelie did.

I also did not like one of the two male main characters. Severin was infuriating the entire time, and it was blatantly obvious that he didn’t care about Aurelie and was only usually her for his own gain. and I know that he’s a demon, but he was presented as a “love interest” for Aurelie, but there wasn’t any romance between them either! A little bit of attraction and lust, sure, but he treated her terribly for the entire duration of the book, and it was overall annoying to read. As the book progressed, it felt as if the story was put on the back burner, and everything just became the Severin and Aurelie show— despite her being bonded to Yuri as well! For a book that says it includes romance, there was no romance in here to me, only lust.

Yuriel, the angel who is bonded to Aurelie, was the only character i actually liked. He would almost always think before he acted, and tried to consider how his choices would impact not only Aurelie but the general population of humans too. I think his character had a lot of depth, and i actually enjoyed when his point of view would pop up. His character is the main reason that i actually pushed through to finish this book; getting his backstory sprinkled throughout the present story was great.

Overall, i’m sad that i didn’t enjoy this book, but i hope someone else will! And i’m thankful to have been given the opportunity to read and review it early.

[Chasie⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖ ࣪]

a love triangle with a vengeful demon, battle hardened angel, and a human knight (which are all hot) who is thrust into the middle of an ancient war??? a Renaissance-inspired magical world?? an adult romantasy written by the queen Adalyn Grace herself?? i am sat. they are trying to kick me out of B&N because it doesn’t release until 2026, but I am simply too seated. ✨

[angie]

99.99% of why i want to read this book is because of lotusbubble’s artwork of it

[Toriఌ]

Coming out September 22

[Kalliy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is easily going to be one of the big books of the year. Completely addictive from start to finish—I devoured every chapter. And the ending? Absolute chef’s kiss.

[Shanna (shannasaurus_rex_reads)]

I broke my “No Romantasy” rule because this was pitched as Daughter of Smoke and Bone meets Attack on Titan, but I should have trusted my instincts. The world building was so clunky and honestly a bit confusing, and I didn’t like Aurelie very much. Knowing this is just a first book in a duology (or series? I don’t know) made me not want to bother with it. If you love Romantasy, you might enjoy it. But if you’re like me and you thought you’d try it out and maybe this time it would be different, it won’t be enough for you.

[Noi (in & out)]

oh?

[Paige]

woohoo did not expect to be approved for this arc after my long hiatus but thank you Hachette!!

[Veronica ☽◯☾]

after the disappointment that was Belladonna, I'm kind of scared to get my hopes up, but this sounds too good to pass 😂

[Sylvie {Semi-Hiatus}]

An adult book by Adalyn Grace, which is described to be a mix of 'Daughter of Smoke & Bone', 'The Infernal Devices' AND 'The Stromlight Archive'?

Do you hear me screaming, crying and fangirling? No, of course not. Because I'm announcing this thorugh a post. 😅

[Abbi :) · Rating 5 out of 5]

6🌟

Adalyn Grace has blown me out of the water. I can't believe this is her adult romantasy debut. I have not a single complaint regarding this. It was phenomenal start to finish.

From the very first page, the writing hooked me. Grace has a gift for writing the most vivid scenes and painting beautiful pictures with her words without making her descriptions too flowery and lengthy. I was enraptured. I found this book to be so difficult to put down. The world building was excellently done. We got a lot on information from the get go, but it was delivered led so flawlessly incorporated into the story that it didn't feel too overwhelming. From there, she seamlessly intertwined the world building into the plot.

The pacing was perfection and plot was very prominent here. There was never any lull. What I also appreciated is how Grace took her time with her scenes. The angels vs demons plot line is one I have not read much of, but there was something just so epic to it here. An eons long war between two monumental races? I am sold. In the beginning, it seemed very black and white. Angels are good and demons are bad. But as you follow along and learn with our FMC, Auralie, you really begin to see that nothing is what it seems. Power is sometimes the world's most effective weapon. Expertly done.

Now, to our characters. I absolutely fell in love with Auralie. She is everything I want from an FMC. She was so incredibly courageous, and willing to throw herself off a cliff for love. She could hold her own against anything thrown at her even when the world tried to beat her down. And on top of all this, she had so much kindness to give even to those who don't deserve it. I can't wait for more of her. Then we have our boys: Yuriel and Severin. Yuriel is an angel who becomes bonded to Auralie out of duty and expectation to provide strength to the human race against the demons. he is a very nuanced character. Throughout his journey, you see him really struggle with inner turmoil. He has a lot of skeletons in the closet, and seeing him try to navigate that was heartbreaking. His relationship with Auralie was very sweet, and I found myself rooting for them by the end.

Severin is our demon who also becomes bonded to Auralie as a result of mutual needs. For me, he was my favorite character. He holds a lot of secrets, some you learn, some you don't throughout this book. He is witty, his banter with Auralie was top tier, He even had me laughing out loud periodically. He is by far the most complicated character., however, and there is a layer of grittiness and darkness that he is in a constant battle with. His relationship with Auralie also looked different. There was nothing sweet to it. he brought out a side of her that I don't even think she knew existed. I was so enthralled.

As for the relationship dynamic, that is not made very clear which I assume to be intentional. As a forewarning, this feels like a why choose romantasy. If that is something you aren't very comfortable with, be aware.

The ending was criminal. We got so many revelations just to turn the page and see "acknowledgments". I felt like I had been beat up. so many emotions were going through me at the same time. I need to see the fall out of everything so bad. This is absolutely worth the read, and I will yell off rooftops for everyone to pick it up on 9/22. I am going to go back to staring at a wall now.

HUGE thank you to Macmillan Children's Publishing Group for sending me this e-arc!!

[Freya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Obsessed!! Blown away again by this author’s brilliant mind. Everything about this book is captivating. This story keeps you enthralled throughout and then stunned into shock by the time you have finished. Book finishes with a few jaw dropping reveals and a cliffhanger. There also some partial reveals that will make you wonder but I am sure will be fully revealed in book 2. I cannot wait to read book 2.

This is a story of angels and demons. Of knights and soldiers. Endless war and loss. Aurelie is our vehement FMC. Severin is our charismatic wine enthusiastic demon. Yuri is our confused broody angel soldier. What is truth and what are lies? Who are the monsters? Each character questioning what they believe and who they should be loyal to. Each one holds secrets and nightmares of their pasts. Not to mention conflicted emotions towards one another.

The demons in this story are separated by their sin bloodline. Lustborn, greedborn, wrathborn and so on. Each line carries different features that represent their sin. Everyone has some demon blood in them. Don’t give into any of the sins to heavily or you just might turn into one.

🪽Multiple POVs
😈Slow Burn
🗡️Forbidden Bond
🪽Angels x Demons
😈Ancient War

Thank you to the author, @macmillanchildrenspublishinggroup and @netgalley for this gifted eARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Chels ❀ · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 ★

I loved Adalyn’s Belladonna series, so when I heard she was gifting us with an entirely new adult series, I could not wait to get my hands on it. The Wretched Divine, while not what I initially expected, ended up working its way into my soul. As someone who had a tough time through the earlier parts (mostly due to the multiple POV), I will say to those feeling the same that Adalyn has a plan. Trust the process, there’s a reason, and it all comes together (in an “oh sh!t” way) in the end. I am so eager for the sequel.

Things I Enjoyed:
🌓 The Angel/Demon Dynamics and Development
🪽 Yuri - He certainly has his work cut out for him and just wants to be enough for someone. His past, those interludes… my heart.
😈 Severin - He reminded me of so many MMCs I’ve been drawn to before, like Damon Salvatore, and, bringing it back, the Cole/Balthasar dynamics (IYKYK). But we also get that side you can’t help but love for the sass and humor, think Paul Bettany’s Chaucer role in A Knight’s Tale (those bard blurbs were hilarious). Learning his backstory and motivations… oof.
🌀 The Last 35% - The twists! The reveals! The drama! My chest hurt so badly as it all unraveled. This really geared me up for the next book.

Things I Struggled With:
👫 Multiple POV - This took me a bit to adjust to simply because I wasn’t expecting it. It’s also not typically my favorite because it usually prevents me from finding a real rhythm with the characters for a hot minute.
🫧 Aurelie - I initially found her character intriguing and admired her tenacity, but she slowly slid into a YA type bubble that had me frustrated with some of her choices and naivety.

[christinac_reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK

[Kris (bookish.bones) · Rating 4 out of 5]

(Updated review) 4.25 stars

You guys are going to eat Severin up.

The beginning of this one really impressed me in particular. You can tell Adalyn had grown as a writer; she manages to convey this new sprawling kingdom and its multi-faceted worldbuilding to us beautifully and w/o feeling info-dumpy while getting the story rolling. And when Yuri and Severin really step in I started GRINNING- their opposing personalities make for such hilarious banter!

Now I saw this originally marketed as fantasy and NOT romantasy, which confused me at first until I heard Adalyn talking about the overuse of the "romantasy" genre, especially for any female written fantasy. This had me not expecting much focus on the romantic relationships or spice, when in reality the entire middle portion of the book felt very much romance forward and full of sexual tension. So if you love a mix of the two genres, worry not, it is an epic fantasy WITH lots of romance. Perhaps "romantic epic fantasy" rather than pure romantasy.

That all being said, I really enjoyed the romance and I actually can't see where it's going yet, but I adored both Severin AND Yuri (who I think is going to be a little under appreciated lol). I do wish there was a smidge less focus on lust in the middle personally, but I was actually really happy to find romance and some spice in this despite my preconceived notions!

The romance winds back down for the last hundred or so pages as the fantasy plot ramps back up and shit starts hitting the fan. There was a twist that I saw coming, but then another that I didn't anticipate until it was revealed that had me SQUEALING and desperate for book two already since it left the series feeling like it just opened up so much more!

Definitely try this one of you like royalty, demons and angels, love triangles, irreverent bards, sexual tension, strained bromance and magical bonds.

[Kaitlyn Mahone · Rating 2 out of 5]

First things first, thank you to Netgalley for sending me an ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.

This is very disappointing for me. I honestly had to DNF this. I couldn’t continue reading it. I struggled a lot with this book. It actually was one of my anticipated reads when Grace announced it. However, as she continued to promote it and do some Q&As for it, my excitement started to diminish. There was a question that was asked about the book, and I got so nervous by the answer. So, I started to question it because I already had this happen to a series that I genuinely loved, and the ending was so disappointing. And I didn’t want this to be that way, but I still wanted to give it a chance because it’s Adalyn Grace! I adored the Belladonna series! So, I decided to give it a go.

However, I don’t know if what made me loose some of my excitement for this book kept creeping into the back of my mind as I was attempting to read, but I tried to push through. This world was very strange to me. I had a difficult time trying to follow. The FMC was a struggle to like and one of the MMCs was very annoying to me too. The other MMC I did enjoy. Also, the description of the bonds kind of made me uncomfortable. Especially during one of the spicier scenes. I wasn’t a huge fan of that.

However, the biggest positive was the writing itself. I still love Grace’s writing, but this was just so slow paced and had so many strange elements to me. I don’t want to keep forcing myself to read it. I hope everyone else enjoys this book, but it isn’t for me. It hurts my heart to DNF, but I don’t want to continue.

[millena ★ · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 ⭐️ omg this book finally cured my fantasy reading slump!!!!!! at first i wasn’t sure if i was gonna like the story bc it started kinda slow but at some point everything started clicking and i just knew it was gonna be a new favorite. i loved the characters and their relationships so much and i have soooo many expectations for how the trio is gonna interact in the sequel after that ending 👀 overall i loved everything, it just wasn’t 5 stars bc of the slower start and bc every single character annoyed me at some point (but i swear i ended up loving them all!!!)