Stone of Destiny (Juniper Samoni Trilogy Book 1) by Nadine Travers – Review by Stephanie Chapman

Stone of Destiny by Nadine Travers
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Stone of Destiny by Nadine Travers is a paranormal fantasy story about Juniper. Juniper was an orphan at a young age and adopted by Lilandra, the mentor of the Witch Warriors. Juniper was extremely emotionally driven in her missions. In her dreams, magical stones would call to her to rescue them from evil forces. The book opens with Juniper using her limited magical powers to keep a stone from a group that was made up of a werewolf, a witch, a vampire, and a demon. Just when it seems that she is about to succumb to her enemies, a strange man comes to her aid, and she escapes to safety. While recovering, Juniper is called again by the powerful Stone of Destiny. A secret power that Juniper holds is becoming stronger the closer Halloween approaches. Meanwhile, a strange being has sent the evil group in search of the same stone. Donovan, the werewolf, is mated to Sophia, a fire witch. Cross unions are illegal and the mysterious Lady has promised to use the powers of the stone to change the laws so that crossing of species is no longer a death sentence. Unbeknownst to them, the Lady has a much more sinister plan and is using the group as mere pawns.

This book defines good and evil but there is actually good within the evil. The group fighting against Juniper is actually looking at making life better for all. They are extremely loyal to one another and on many opportunities, try to avoid conflicts with the Witch Warriors. When they encounter Lilandra, she also avoids killing any of her enemies. Juniper is very hot-tempered and acts without thinking about the immense amount of danger she places herself in. The strange man that saved her in the first fight starts following her, which she resents. For some reason, the young woman seems to think that she should always be alone. This attitude and lack of forethought does have disastrous results to others that want to ally with her.

I would recommend this fantasy book to young readers with caution to some profanity used. There is a lot of action and the fight scenes are not exceptionally gore filled. Most of the book is from Juniper’s view but occasionally shifts to the perceptions of the other main characters. I couldn’t help but empathize with Donovan’s intentions because, as an antagonist, he was literally trying to make a better life for everyone. The ending of this book allows a seamless transition to the sequel.

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