The Lost Saint: A Dark Divine Novel [Kindle Edition]

Bree Despain (Author)

Book Description

The non-stop sequel to The Dark Divine delivers an even hotter romance and more thrilling action than Bree Despain's first novel.  Grace Divine made the ultimate sacrifice to cure Daniel Kalbi.  She gave her soul to the wolf to save him and lost her beloved mother.  When Grace receives a haunting phone call from Jude, she knows what she must do.  She must become a Hound of Heaven.  Desparate to find Jude, Grace befriends Talbot - a newcomer to town who promises her that he can help her be a hero.  But as the two grow closer, the wolf grows in Grace, and her relationship with Daniel begins to crumble.  Unaware of the dark path she is walking, Grace becomes prideful in her new abilities - not realizing that an old enemy has returned and deadly trap is about to be sprung.  Readers, raveous for more Grace and Daniel, will be itching to sink their teeth into The Lost Saint.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Gr 9 Up-After offering herself as a sacrifice in order to rid her boyfriend of his werewolf curse, high school senior Grace Divine has absorbed some of his lycanthropic abilities. As she trains with Daniel in an attempt to achieve mastery over her powers, she meets another young man who urges her to embrace the anger that triggers her strength and encourages her to join him in the fight against evil demons and vampires. Push back from Daniel, her family, and a visiting pastor lead her to question the benevolence of her new friend; however, Grace's passion to save her brother-whom she fears has been absorbed into a cohort of evil supernatural creatures-leads her to defy those closest to her. Like A Dark Divine (Egmost USA, 2009), The Lost Saint is a lengthy supernatural novel that, at its core, is a traditional romance. Chapters further divided into sections headed, "Later That Same Day" and "After Lunch" ensure that no detail of Grace's life-including her obsessive ruminations on Daniel and their relationship-goes undescribed, and it is this content that makes the book difficult to read and less satisfying than, for example, Maggie Stiefvater's Shiver (Scholastic, 2009). A religious tone distinguishes this novel from others of its ilk and complicates the discussion of war and retribution-supernatural or otherwise. That said, it is not distinguished by its pacing because of its superfluous narrative content.-Amy S. Pattee, Simmons College, Boston (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

From Booklist

The Dark Divine (2009) explored the religious faith of 16-year-old Grace Divine�s family as they tried to save Grace�s boyfriend from his werewolf destiny. With fight scenes galore, this sequel is far more focused on action. Grace attempts to keep her werewolf nature in check as she searches for her missing brother, struggles with relationship issues, and battles a powerhouse attraction to a new older kid in town, a handsome fellow werewolf. Despain�s prose is primarily expository, without the thoughtful exploration of faith of her first novel, but fans are not likely to object as they await the next title. Grades 7-11. --Debbie Carton

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• File Size: 446 KB
• Print Length: 414 pages
• Page Numbers Source ISBN: 1606840584
• Publisher: EgmontUSA (December 28, 2010)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B003WUYON4
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Not Enabled
• Lending: Not Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #205,149 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The Lost Saint by Bree Despain December 28, 2010

By A Bookworm's Haven VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover

Seriously, this book rocked! I love this series! End of review. Okay, just kidding. I did have to think about my review for this book because I was not sure how to put into words how much I loved it. Bree has done a wonderful job of telling a dark story filled with suspense and love. The relationship between Grace and Daniel drew me into the first book, The Dark Divine, and in this book I remember why I love the two of them together so much. They have a unique relationship because they have been friends since childhood and have grown up together. They are also bonded by their secret. The only trouble is, they are teenagers. They are new to the whole idea of love and events in this book put their relationship to the test. They both want what is best for the other and try to protect them, but in doing so they are inadvertently unraveling all the groundwork they have laid in this relationship. It was heartbreaking to watch the events unfold and the relationship strain, but at the same time I felt it was necessary. No relationship is perfect and if Grace and Daniel never had any bumps in the road it would not be believable. So while I felt it was tough to read it, I admire Bree for writing a realistic relationship.

I will also admit that I started and finished the book in one night. I could not put it down. There was so much going on and so many questions I needed answered, I could not go to sleep without knowing how it ended. And it was quiet and ending! I am of course, not going to spoil it for you, but I think once you get there you will understand.

The Lost Saint had a dark edge that kept me fully engrossed with plot twists that kept me on the edge of my seat. I didn't dare put it down!

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Spectacular Sequel! December 29, 2010

By Lauren's Crammed Bookshelf

Format:Hardcover

If you thought The Dark Divine was fantastic fun, well, just wait until you read The Lost Saint because not only are some of your favorite characters back in style, but their story proves to be even more exciting, chaotic, and romantic than ever before!

The Lost Saint starts a few months after The Dark Divine ended, and Grace's life is nothing like it was before. For one, she's dealing with the side affects that came with sacrificing her soul to cure the beautiful and dreamy Daniel Kalbi...side affects that mean learning about the inner wolf inside of her to dealing with the fact that her brother will probably never be coming back. Though, at least she has Daniel, the guy who manages to be there for her time after time in ways that her family and former friends can't. But when Daniel starts to hide secrets from Grace everything begins to change for the worse once again. Can Grace save the day once again? Also, will Grace fall to the charm of newcomer Talbot, or will she end up with Daniel once again? Only time will tell in this action-packed of a sequel!

One of my favorite parts about the prequel was characters and the same thing applied to the sequel as well! I loved finding out more about Daniel and Grace's story, as I'm sure most other Dark Divine fans will. Adding this, I always liked the way Daniel and Grace managed to grown throughout this arc of the story. For one, Grace becomes an even stronger person in this novel, and even though she made a few mistakes in The Lost Saint, she still manages to learn from them and move on. In this addition, Daniel become even more mysterious, but that aspect always had me on the edge of my seat, eager to find out more about him and his many secrets. Best of all, I adored the relationship between Daniel and Grace, because not only are their interactions cute to read about, but I love the fact that there are not the "stereotypical YA couple". Instead they have their good AND bad just like real couples do.

Another high point of The Lost Saint was the action-packed plot. I loved the way it always kept me on the tip of toes with all the twists, turns, and revelations that kept occurring with every chapter. I especially liked all the new characters Bree introduced in this to keep the plot moving in a fun and fast pace.

In all, Bree Despain yet again proves her worth as a paranormal YA writer in the romantic and suspenseful The Lost Saint. This is a read that I highly recommend you pick up, but word of warning, after you finish the last chapter, you'll be clamoring for yet another addition!

Grade: A+

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Saints and Sinners in Wolves' Clothing January 2, 2011

By Leah

Format:Hardcover

Bree Despain's THE LOST SAINT is a blend of the supernatural and faith. Beginning with her first novel, THE DARK DIVINE, Ms. Despain created a world of werewolves who serve God to fight evil, only somewhere along the way, the wolf's power was corrupted. Now, the beast tries to rule its host into becoming a monster, a Dog of Death.

Grave Divine, the protagonist from TDD, has been living on the perimeter of her former life since her older brother Jude ran away from home. Her family is in shambles and her peers at school treat her like an outsider. Even her best friend April has abandoned her. But she has Daniel Kalbi, her childhood friend and now boyfriend, with her through it all. He was once a Death Dog, but now trains Grace to become a "superhero" since she is now infected with the wolf.

Things dovetail when someone she thought never to hear again calls her. Jude is back in town. When mysterious robberies start taking place in their tiny town of Rose Crest, Minnesota, the culprits are dubbed "invisible burglars," but Grace and Daniel suspect otherwordly creatures. Added to the mix is a mysterious boy named Talbot, who knows more about Grace than he lets on.

TLS is a story where every main and secondary character has a secret. Grace is training on the sly with Talbot, but then the seductive voice of the wolf starts to overtake her. She's determined to become a "superhero," which is all well and good at first, but she references her superhearing, superspeed, and super strength on every page that after a while it becomes repetetive. We get it. And when she and Talbot track down a group of demons (which finally make their appearance after mention in the first book), Grace loses her wits. Really? What were you expecting?

Her relationship with Daniel can get a tad obsessive, but I have to remind myself that she's a teenager and she has loved Daniel for years. Daniel does the disappearing act in the story, keeping secrets from Grace. Near the shocking ending (I won't say anything to prevent spoilers), their love for each other shines through, and then I remember, "Yes, that's what true love is." Concepts of sacrifice are found in stories around girls all the time--girl sacrifices herself, her family, or the like for something--but Daniel sacrifices much too.

Jude's transformation to antihero is comical. He doesn't do much except whine about being the victim most of the time he's seen. The bad guy is a worthy counterpart to the "good," however still a two dimensional, blathering I'm-super-evil-and-you'll-never-win villain.

I must admit when I reached the ending I was devastated. Ms. Despain has a compelling story which will make the reader want more. What we see in the final book in the series should be interesting- demons and werewolves, heaven and hell. That's another story.

More About the Author

THE SHORT VERSION
Bree rediscovered her childhood love for creating stories when she took a semester off college to write and direct plays for at-risk, inner-city teens from Philadelphia and New York. She currently lives in Salt Lake City, Utah with her husband, two young sons, and her beloved TiVo. THE DARK DIVINE is Bree's debut novel.

THE LONG VERSION
As a kid, Bree would staple folded papers to make her own "novels." As a teen, she wrote stories in notebooks while her friends waited for the next page to be finished. Her teachers told her she should be a writer. But Bree thought only special people could be writers, so as the years past, she settled into the idea of becoming a lawyer or something else just as ordinary.

Bree rediscovered her childhood love for creating stories when she took a semester off college to write and direct plays for at-risk, inner city teens from Philadelphia and New York. With a renewed passion for story, and the young adult audience, she returned to Brigham Young University, filled her schedule with creative writing and literature classes, and started writing stories again. But regular life kicked in, and she soon found herself married with a new baby, working full-time, and with very little writing done.

That's when the universe threw a pick-up truck in her path. The car accident left Bree with an understanding that life was too short to not do what you absolutely love. A few days later, her husband brought home a used laptop computer, placed it by her bedside, and said, "You'd better start writing." Her life has never been the same since.

In a moment of karmic perfection, Bree received the offer to purchase The Dark Divine on the 6th anniversary of the car accident that put her back on the path to becoming an author.