Title: Destiny Awaits
Series: Juniper Grove Chronicles
Author: Jaidis Shaw
Published: July 19th, 2014
Publisher: Crushing Hearts & Black Butterfly Publishing
Word Count: approx. 50,000
Genre: YA Paranormal Romance
Recommended: Age: 14+
Synopsis:
She wants a normal life. They want her dead. Destiny has other plans.
Twenty-year-old Alayna Scott receives visions around water, btinut even her foresight couldn’t prepare her for the tragic accident that claimed the lives of her parents. With everything she loves gone, Alayna packs up and moves to the small town of Juniper Grove in hopes of starting over.
Jayden McKnight can’t explain the attraction that he feels whenever Alayna is near, but he does know that he will do whatever it takes to win her heart. When a vampire selects Alayna as his next victim, Jayden will stop at nothing to ensure her safety – even if that means bringing Alayna into a world that she never knew existed.
Love blossoms, challenges are made, and Alayna will find herself fighting not only to survive, but to understand what she has become.
Series: Juniper Grove Chronicles
Author: Jaidis Shaw
Published: July 19th, 2014
Publisher: Crushing Hearts & Black Butterfly Publishing
Word Count: approx. 50,000
Genre: YA Paranormal Romance
Recommended: Age: 14+
Synopsis:
She wants a normal life. They want her dead. Destiny has other plans.
Twenty-year-old Alayna Scott receives visions around water, btinut even her foresight couldn’t prepare her for the tragic accident that claimed the lives of her parents. With everything she loves gone, Alayna packs up and moves to the small town of Juniper Grove in hopes of starting over.
Jayden McKnight can’t explain the attraction that he feels whenever Alayna is near, but he does know that he will do whatever it takes to win her heart. When a vampire selects Alayna as his next victim, Jayden will stop at nothing to ensure her safety – even if that means bringing Alayna into a world that she never knew existed.
Love blossoms, challenges are made, and Alayna will find herself fighting not only to survive, but to understand what she has become.
Book Trailer
Excerpt
Sunlight caught the crystal that hung from the rear view mirror, and rainbow bursts of color radiated throughout the car. My parents and I had gotten up early so that we could make the three hour drive to my uncle’s house, but from the line of backed up traffic in front of us, it seemed that it would take us longer. I leaned back in my seat and let the music blaring in my earbuds help pass the time. My mother turned in her seat in the front, and I glanced at her. Seeing her mouth my name, I pulled one side of the earbuds out of my ear.
“What did you say?” I asked.
“I asked if you were hungry,” she replied. “Your father thinks that we should get off the interstate at the next exit and grab something to eat while the traffic clears up.”
“Sure, that’s fine with me. It’s a good idea, anyway, since Uncle John turned vegetarian. There’s no telling what he’s going to try to get us to eat.”
My father’s hearty laugh rumbled through the car. “Do you remember that rolled up spinach thing he tried to feed us last time?”
“How could I forget?” I said.
Mom sprung to her brother’s defense. “It wasn’t so bad.”
“Then how come you didn’t eat it? I saw you slip it to the dog when you thought nobody was watching.” My father glanced at my mother while she tried to come up with a retort.
“If you saw that, then it’s obvious that I wasn’t sneaky enough.” She crossed her arms over her chest and stared out the window.
My dad laughed as he flipped on the turn signal and merged into the right lane, coming to a stop behind a logging truck. I looked at the long logs protruding from the flatbed. “It always makes me nervous when they hang off like that,” I said. A shiver raced over my body.
“It’s okay. They make sure to load them on so that they won’t come off,” my dad reassured me.
I opened my mouth to reply, but stopped when I heard a screech of tires behind us. Turning my head, I locked eyes with the man in the driver’s seat of the truck that was hurtling toward us. The truck slammed into the back of our car, and my mother’s scream echoed in the tight space around me. A shower of white stars filled my vision as pain ripped through my shoulder and cut off my own scream. As the darkness closed in around me, I heard the faint shrill of sirens in the distance.
Review by J. Hooligan
I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
The story line of the book was enjoyable, and I like many of the characters as well. I had an instant connection with Alayna, and was eager to figure out what was going on with her. She was definitely my favorite character, which is unusual for me because I rarely say this about a main character. Also Jayden wasn't the typical alpha, which made me like him a bit more. I'm not the biggest fan of alphas.
There were a few issues I had while reading it. The first of which was that there are grammatical issues, mostly with comma usage. Another is that there are parts where it is repetitious, in which I mean something is said in one sentence and then said again once or twice more in the same paragraph. Lastly, I felt some of it to be a bit rushed - especially when it came to what was going on with Alayna , including the relationship between her and Jayden. I don't mean that I believe that them being together was done too quickly, but I do wish there was more explanation to it.
For the most part, I liked it. It's a good light read and the change from the usual wolf shifter to cats was refreshing. I would recommend it to people who like something different with their shifter romances.
The story line of the book was enjoyable, and I like many of the characters as well. I had an instant connection with Alayna, and was eager to figure out what was going on with her. She was definitely my favorite character, which is unusual for me because I rarely say this about a main character. Also Jayden wasn't the typical alpha, which made me like him a bit more. I'm not the biggest fan of alphas.
There were a few issues I had while reading it. The first of which was that there are grammatical issues, mostly with comma usage. Another is that there are parts where it is repetitious, in which I mean something is said in one sentence and then said again once or twice more in the same paragraph. Lastly, I felt some of it to be a bit rushed - especially when it came to what was going on with Alayna , including the relationship between her and Jayden. I don't mean that I believe that them being together was done too quickly, but I do wish there was more explanation to it.
For the most part, I liked it. It's a good light read and the change from the usual wolf shifter to cats was refreshing. I would recommend it to people who like something different with their shifter romances.
Review by Sara
Destiny Awaits is a fast read, and a book I enjoyed from the beginning to the end. The pacing was good, and a lot happens in the story, including Alayna's introduction to the paranormal elements in the town. This includes vampires, and shifters (the fact they aren't werewolves is a refreshing change), in the town of Juniper Grove.
What drew me in to the story were the characters. I thought that even as short a read as Destiny Awaits was, Jayden and Alayna were decently developed as far as their background, and I liked both of them. I also thought that Alayna was a strong character in her own right, despite what happens to her in the story. When they met, I thought the chemistry between the two of them was obvious, and they soon developed a deeper connection with the other. I enjoy paranormal romance in general, and I thought they were a good match, and enjoyed reading the interaction between the two.
Out of all the secondary characters, Sofia was my favorite. She seemed to be very level-headed, willing to listen, and I developed an instant liking for her, along with Kyle and Darren.
Since this book is just the first in a series, I'm interested in reading more about Alayna and Jayden. A good paranormal romance, my rating is 4/5 platypires.
What drew me in to the story were the characters. I thought that even as short a read as Destiny Awaits was, Jayden and Alayna were decently developed as far as their background, and I liked both of them. I also thought that Alayna was a strong character in her own right, despite what happens to her in the story. When they met, I thought the chemistry between the two of them was obvious, and they soon developed a deeper connection with the other. I enjoy paranormal romance in general, and I thought they were a good match, and enjoyed reading the interaction between the two.
Out of all the secondary characters, Sofia was my favorite. She seemed to be very level-headed, willing to listen, and I developed an instant liking for her, along with Kyle and Darren.
Since this book is just the first in a series, I'm interested in reading more about Alayna and Jayden. A good paranormal romance, my rating is 4/5 platypires.
About the Author
Jaidis Shaw currently resides in South Carolina with her husband and beautiful daughter (with another daughter on the way). With a passion for reading, Jaidis can always be found surrounded by books and dreaming of new stories. She enjoys challenging herself by writing in different genres and currently has several projects in the works.
Jaidis also owns and operates Juniper Grove Book Solutions, voted Top Three for Best Promotional Firm, Site, or Resource in the 2013 Preditors & Editors Readers’ Poll. In her spare time, Jaidis maintains her two blogs, Juniper Grove and Blooming with Jaidis. One of her main goals in life is to encourage her daughters to let their imaginations run wild.
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