Customer Reviews

Destiny (Immortal Witches)

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I am a huge Maggie Shayne fan and consider her to be the "Queen of Paranormal". Ms. Shayne's unique style of writing will keep you spellbound from start to finish. I read this novel in one day which I hated doing but couldn't seem to stop myself. Destiny, the story of two immoral high witches, Nidaba and Eannatum, was an interesting journey to the dark side. Imagine finding the one you loved and lost after four thousand years and once again it seems just like the first time (a love of a lifetime). This was an extremely powerful love story filled with deceit and betrayal. Although I enjoyed Destiny, it does not surpass its counterparts, Eternity and Infinity, but you will find it to be an entertaining reading experience. I anxiously await the next installation "Immorality " due out in fall, as I remain a devoted Maggie Shayne fan.

Since his days as Prince Eannatum circa 2500 BCE Sumer, he has adopted and shredded many identities. He currently enjoys his persona as Boston antiquities expert Nathan King even though he knows it places him at risk from other Immortals, especially the Dark Witches. However, everything changes when he sees a picture accompanying a newspaper article on a "miracle" in Manhattan. The picture looks just like the supposedly dead Light Witch, Nidaba and the article describes an Immortal. Nathan immediately drops everything to visit the patient in a New Jersey hospital and sees the woman he has loved for several millenniums.

Unbeknownst to Nathan, the Dark Witch Purabi is also at the hospital. After posing as a doctor and killing a physician, Purabi plans to murder Nidaba as she tried to do on that rooftop in Manhattan. Only Eannatum stands in her way of success, but he must first reclaim the love he thought lost for eternity if he and Nidaba are to fulfill their destinies together.

If anyone ever said that a romance would star characters from Sumer, a footnote in the bible, readers would call for a straitjacket. However, Maggie Shayne not only does this, but also makes DESTINY an incredible follow-up to her fabulous novel ETERNITY. The story line once again blends mysticism into everyday life in a good vs. evil scenario. The lead characters feel genuine as if they truly walked the earth 4500 years ago. The support cast provides a reality to the Immortal species and anchors the tale in the modern day Northeast. Although the flashbacks are enlightening they do disturb the contemporary suspense. Still, Ms. Shayne is deservedly destined to return to the best seller lists with a winning story.

Harriet Klausner

"Destiny" by Maggie Shayne is the third instalment in a series that has enchanted me from the start. Following on the heels of the wonderful "Eternity" and "Infinity", "Destiny" is a novel readers won't soon forget. Breathtaking settings, fascinating history, and vivid, genuine characters combine to make for a thrilling and mesmerizing tale of a love that transcends time.
Since his days as Prince Eannatum of Sumer, 2500 BC, Immortal High Witch Natum has lived under many different identities. For the last ten years, he has enjoyed his quiet, peaceful life as Nathan King, Boston antiques expert. But his life is suddenly turned upside down when he sees a fuzzy photograph in the paper of a woman who looks like his beloved Nidaba, who he lost over 4000 years ago. The article describes a miracle in which this woman fell from the roof of a building and survived.
Natum immediately travels to the mental hospital where the mystery woman is being held, and comes face to face with the love of his life, Nidaba. Unfortunately, she has been drugged into a state of catatonia and seems unaware of Natum's presence. Natum begins to concoct a plan to get Nidaba out of the hospital secretly, so as not to alert the Dark Immortal Witches as to the whereabouts of this immensely powerful, but currently helpless, Immortal Light Witch. What he doesn't know is that the Dark Witch Puabi is already there, and is planning to take Nidaba's heart at her first opportunity.

Only Natum stands in the way of Puabi's success, but he first must rekindle the love he and Nidaba shared, so they can stand united against their evil enemy and face their destiny together.
Shayne skilfully blends the present day romance and suspense of Nidaba and Natum, with fascinating flashbacks to their life together in ancient Sumer. I feel that the flashbacks add great depth to the story, and I firmly believe the book wouldn't have been as good without the history of what Nidaba and Natum meant to one another all those centuries ago.
"Destiny" is a truly wonderful read. I finished this book in record time, simply because I could not put it down. The tale of Nidaba and Natum had me utterly enthralled from page one, and I really cared about what happened to them. "Destiny" is a beautifully rendered tale that will leave you believing in true love. So buy this book (and the other two in the series) right away, you will not regret it!

I am so excited. I just got finished reading the new Maggie Shayne book. Destiny was a good book. The plot of the book is wonderful. Nibada, a character from Infinity is the main character of this book. The man she falls in love with turns out to be a man from her past. I don't want to give away much of the story here and it would be too easy to do that. Ms. Shayne has once again developed her characters very well and paid great attention to detail of all of her scenes. The story flows well and there is never a dull moment. Her usage of skipping time lines in the middle of a chapter is a little unusual but very well written and easy to follow. I only gave this book a four star because while it is a great book and well written. It lacks the spark of some of Ms. Shayne's other works. I would however recomend the book to everyone.

After reading Eternity & Infinity I couldn't wait for Nidaba's story. Nidaba is the mother of Nick from Infinity & Nathan, his father in Nick's previous life. We find out more about Nidaba in her very long life (4500yrs.) Nathan finds Nidaba, locked in a mental institution, kidnaps her & helps her recover. But there is someone from both their past who is looking for her as well, a dark witch or so it seems. After reading about the next book in the series, i'm not so sure. There is a taster in the back of this book.

I do hope this series continues & Maggie brings back characters from the previous books, especially Nidaba & Nathan. I just love them all & don't want to see them end.

"Destiny" works very well as a standalone story and it's not necessary to have read the previous stories ("Infinity" and "Eternity") to follow the action, although one or two nuances, as well as some characters, aren't explained completely. This story follows Nidaba who was mentioned a great deal in "Eternity" as a four thousand year old woman whose mind was perhaps letting go. We meet Nidaba in this story after she has just committed suicide after jumping from a high building, only to recover in the ambulance and to be drugged and then kept in a mental asylum. When Nathan Ian King sees her photograph in the newspaper with the question "who is this woman" he is sure he knows who she is... only that she died four and a half thousand years ago. However he goes to investigate and discovers that she is indeed Nidaba, Priestess of Inanna who was his childhood playmate and only real love when he was the King of Lagesh in ancient Sumer.

With the help of two of his friends, Nathan rescues Nidaba from the mental asylum and cares for her at his house, trying to help her to recover from her catatonic state. However when she does they have a lot of history to cover - they both have much for which to be forgiven. The novel takes place in two times in history, with the modern-day sections when Nathan is caring for Nidaba and the historical sections where Eannatum and Nidaba are growing up and learning to love each other in ancient Sumer. The Sumerian sections are interesting and reasonably accurate.

Of course there is a 'baddie' in this book. Nathan's former wife Puabi, who is trying to get Nidaba's heart to extend her own immortality and to finally pay back her old, old adversary (and who gets her own story told in the much shorter "Immortality"). We also briefly meet Arianna and Nicodimus from "Eternity" but most of the action is between Nathan/Eannatum and Nidaba. It was an interesting story and the historical sections in Sumer added a great deal to the story but somehow it never really completely drew in this reader to the world described.

Even though I am a huge fan of Maggie Shayne I did not care much for this book. To be fair it is just because it is darker then most romance novels I like to read. While I expect my hero's and heroine's to have to go through a struggle before they can be brought together or reunited unbelievable torture and thousands of years of separation just takes it too far.

The plot was fresh however, and the writing fantastic; as usual. If you like your romance with an edge this is for you, if not I'd say pass.

I am a huge fan of Maggie Shayne's paranormal fiction, and Destiny is among her best. The book kept me rivited. The detail and description of life in the ancient time of Sumer is absolutely fascinating. Her characters are appealing and well drawn. No one writes romance like Maggie.

Although Infinity is still probably my favorite book out the trilogy, Destiny is not far behind. It's definately a keeper and a re-reader! I can't wait for Puabi's story in the fall.

MAGGIE HAS DONE IT AGAIN. EACH BOOK IN THIS SERIES JUST KEEPS GETTING BETTER. A TRULY TALENTED AUTHOR, KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK MAGGIE. YOU CAN REALLY IDENTIFY WITH EACH CHARACTER. HOPE THERE WILL BE A FOURTH IN THIS SERIES.

The first book, Eternity was great. The second book, Infinity was good. This book was OK. I thought it dealt too much with their past. I think the other books should be read to understand the heroine better.