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Manifesting Destiny
Sixteen-year-old Cee Klinger is destined for heartbreak and she knows it. She's helplessly in love with Marcus, her childhood best friend. But soon they will change, transforming for the first time into whichever animal Clan they belong to, and once they join those Clans, they may never see one another again.
Cee is desperate to make the most of their remaining time, but after Marcus's brother leaves to join the Aerie, Marcus begins pulling away. And then Cee discovers she's harboring a dragon named Livian within herself, and the situation rapidly becomes volatile. Dragons are thought to be extinct, but Livian is very real. Powerful. Demanding. And potentially dangerous. Marcus begs her to have him removed by the ruling Magi Clan, but Cee begins to wonder whether it's worth losing a part of herself for a crush who can never return her love.
Manifesting Destiny is the enthralling first novel in a brand-new YA fantasy series, bursting with shapeshifter lore, slow-burn romance, political intrigue, and identity-defining magic. Perfect for fans of Divergent’s coming-of-age stakes, Graceling’s morally complex powers, and The Mortal Instruments' emotional intensity.
Dive into a world where belonging is earned, love is complicated, and destiny… is just the beginning.
Cee is desperate to make the most of their remaining time, but after Marcus's brother leaves to join the Aerie, Marcus begins pulling away. And then Cee discovers she's harboring a dragon named Livian within herself, and the situation rapidly becomes volatile. Dragons are thought to be extinct, but Livian is very real. Powerful. Demanding. And potentially dangerous. Marcus begs her to have him removed by the ruling Magi Clan, but Cee begins to wonder whether it's worth losing a part of herself for a crush who can never return her love.
Manifesting Destiny is the enthralling first novel in a brand-new YA fantasy series, bursting with shapeshifter lore, slow-burn romance, political intrigue, and identity-defining magic. Perfect for fans of Divergent’s coming-of-age stakes, Graceling’s morally complex powers, and The Mortal Instruments' emotional intensity.
Dive into a world where belonging is earned, love is complicated, and destiny… is just the beginning.
262 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 4, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
October 27, 2025
The strong bonds of friendship forged between two teens drive them to protect one another despite the danger they face and the awareness they have that their futures will likely diverge in Manifesting Destiny by Amanda Innes.
To read this, and other book reviews, visit my website: http://makinggoodstories.wordpress.com/.
Growing up together and learning that one day they should transform into the animal of the Clan they belong to and leave the community, Cee and Marcus have become inseparable best friends despite the impending separation and heartbreak that their future will bring, and more so for Cee as she’s in love with him, knowing he doesn’t feel the same. After Marcus’s brother Arlon leaves to join the Aerie, Marcus begins behaving oddly and distancing himself, and Cee starts to exhibit a strange ability to absorb the skills of others, a trait of a Clan thought to be extinct: Dracona. This proves to be true when Cee hears a voice within her, Livian, who helps her navigate the escalation of precarious situations but also sows discord by provoking Cee into behaving and saying things that push Marcus closer to the Magus Clan and further from Cee. With few options left to them, they embark on a journey that will play a role in the fate of their community writ large as well as in each of their sense of individual identities.
In a narrative that presents an interesting world of communal living and collaborative co-existence among a variety of shapeshifters that has its own clearly outlined social norms that govern the expected behavior of its citizens, a gradual reveal of a more complex issue generates intrigue, which includes a group whose views are different from the prevailing viewpoints and occurs in conjunction with moments of more traditional teenage angst and identity-based developments. The story and action advance quickly, which means that some character behavior also progresses at a rapid pace, occasionally feeling a little out of balance and too sudden with what had been established; however, as there are bigger changes at play with morphing into animals, it could be attributed as part of the animal side of them. There is lore and a system to the kinds of animals, traits, and abilities that they have, as well as the alliances that the Clans have formed, which is depicted through the writing, and it connects well into the larger politically driven drama and intrigue that’s built up to continue forward into the future of the series.
*I received a copy of this book via BookSirens in exchange for an honest review as requested by the author.
To read this, and other book reviews, visit my website: http://makinggoodstories.wordpress.com/.
Growing up together and learning that one day they should transform into the animal of the Clan they belong to and leave the community, Cee and Marcus have become inseparable best friends despite the impending separation and heartbreak that their future will bring, and more so for Cee as she’s in love with him, knowing he doesn’t feel the same. After Marcus’s brother Arlon leaves to join the Aerie, Marcus begins behaving oddly and distancing himself, and Cee starts to exhibit a strange ability to absorb the skills of others, a trait of a Clan thought to be extinct: Dracona. This proves to be true when Cee hears a voice within her, Livian, who helps her navigate the escalation of precarious situations but also sows discord by provoking Cee into behaving and saying things that push Marcus closer to the Magus Clan and further from Cee. With few options left to them, they embark on a journey that will play a role in the fate of their community writ large as well as in each of their sense of individual identities.
In a narrative that presents an interesting world of communal living and collaborative co-existence among a variety of shapeshifters that has its own clearly outlined social norms that govern the expected behavior of its citizens, a gradual reveal of a more complex issue generates intrigue, which includes a group whose views are different from the prevailing viewpoints and occurs in conjunction with moments of more traditional teenage angst and identity-based developments. The story and action advance quickly, which means that some character behavior also progresses at a rapid pace, occasionally feeling a little out of balance and too sudden with what had been established; however, as there are bigger changes at play with morphing into animals, it could be attributed as part of the animal side of them. There is lore and a system to the kinds of animals, traits, and abilities that they have, as well as the alliances that the Clans have formed, which is depicted through the writing, and it connects well into the larger politically driven drama and intrigue that’s built up to continue forward into the future of the series.
*I received a copy of this book via BookSirens in exchange for an honest review as requested by the author.
November 21, 2025
Cee Klinger is in love with her best friend Marcus, but he can't love her back in the way she wants. Yet when it becomes clear that what they may become might be mortal enemies, neither of them wants to let go. As they come of age, they start to transform and will be placed with their animal clans. Yet Cee is a dragon, something thought to be extinct, and Marcus is a Magi, who killed all the dragons. Not ready to lose themselves, they flee into the forest. Dangerous people hunt them, but will they kill one another before they're found?
This is the first book in the well-written YA fantasy romance series, Changers. The world building is incredible. We get little quotes at the beginning of each chapter for flavor, and we're not bogged down by pages of history. The reader quickly feels like a natural part of the world through Cee's narration. This world has shifters, and not in the way one typically sees in YA books. There are normal creatures like eagles, foxes, and deer, but there are mythical ones too. I really enjoy Cee's dragon, Livian, and her friend's mysterious Kornyx. Cee, Marcus, and two friends, who are all on the verge of transformation, run away from town. They receive help, but it's questionable if it's honest. This leads to wondering just who is being truthful and who might betray them. Lots of politics and mystery, and so much more of the world to discover. Cee and Marcus' relationship is complex. She is crushing on Marcus, but he doesn't see her that way. Yet his Magi personality does. Livian, who is inside Cee, is male, and wants to just eat everyone else! This is a fantastic start to the series, and I can't wait to see where it goes from here.
This is the first book in the well-written YA fantasy romance series, Changers. The world building is incredible. We get little quotes at the beginning of each chapter for flavor, and we're not bogged down by pages of history. The reader quickly feels like a natural part of the world through Cee's narration. This world has shifters, and not in the way one typically sees in YA books. There are normal creatures like eagles, foxes, and deer, but there are mythical ones too. I really enjoy Cee's dragon, Livian, and her friend's mysterious Kornyx. Cee, Marcus, and two friends, who are all on the verge of transformation, run away from town. They receive help, but it's questionable if it's honest. This leads to wondering just who is being truthful and who might betray them. Lots of politics and mystery, and so much more of the world to discover. Cee and Marcus' relationship is complex. She is crushing on Marcus, but he doesn't see her that way. Yet his Magi personality does. Livian, who is inside Cee, is male, and wants to just eat everyone else! This is a fantastic start to the series, and I can't wait to see where it goes from here.
October 20, 2025
I am incredibly grateful to Amanda Innes for the opportunity to read and review Manifesting Destiny. Being selected to explore this captivating story before its official release has been such a treat, and I can’t wait to share my thoughts on it with all of you. A huge thank you to Amanda Innes for their generosity and for making this advanced reading experience possible.
As someone that grew up reading Twilight, Divergent and The Hunger Games this book took me right back to those days.
For current young adults, I'm sure you will love Manifesting Destiny and for those of us that are now adults that still haven't aged out of reading you adult books, this book made me feel incredibly nostalgic.
From the very beginning Manifesting Destiny kept me engaged and intrigued. The only downside to advanced reading or to reading new releases is that the rest of series isn't out yet and I need to know what happens. I am invested!
The author has done a great job at creating this world with it's own political structure and societal norms and I really enjoyed seeing more of this as the story progressed.
Manifesting Destiny is well written, filled to the brim with plot and just keeps you turning those pages. I am so eager to follow this series going forward! I think I'm most looking forward to learning about the different clans and seeing how the story progresses.
As someone that grew up reading Twilight, Divergent and The Hunger Games this book took me right back to those days.
For current young adults, I'm sure you will love Manifesting Destiny and for those of us that are now adults that still haven't aged out of reading you adult books, this book made me feel incredibly nostalgic.
From the very beginning Manifesting Destiny kept me engaged and intrigued. The only downside to advanced reading or to reading new releases is that the rest of series isn't out yet and I need to know what happens. I am invested!
The author has done a great job at creating this world with it's own political structure and societal norms and I really enjoyed seeing more of this as the story progressed.
Manifesting Destiny is well written, filled to the brim with plot and just keeps you turning those pages. I am so eager to follow this series going forward! I think I'm most looking forward to learning about the different clans and seeing how the story progresses.
November 15, 2025
I truely did like this book - Manifesting Destiny. It takes popular themes and changes them into its own ways. I defintely do see the influences of Divergent in this book but in the best ways. It has excellent imagery and choice. The main reason I am subtracing a star is some minor grammatical errors. There are also some things that to me seem to interrupt the flow of reading. When introducing new characters you typically do a line break, but later on in the story even establish characters are given paragraphs with only one or two sentences. It just seems to interrupt the flow of reading whereas something could be one paragraph is broken into several. It might also be nice to include an extra line after paragraphs. It doesn't add much in any way to file sizes but is easier on the eye and also to follow and keep track of where you are.
Overall, it's a very nice book that does suit YA and adults alike. The story is well written. It also provides a unique story and could be a niche story someone would love to pick up. I have no real complaints besides a few minor grammatical issues.
I likely will read book 2.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Overall, it's a very nice book that does suit YA and adults alike. The story is well written. It also provides a unique story and could be a niche story someone would love to pick up. I have no real complaints besides a few minor grammatical issues.
I likely will read book 2.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
October 28, 2025
review coming soon
November 25, 2025
I was lucky to get an ARC of this book
Really enjoyable, but I’m not sure if I’ll continue… I’ll write my whole review tomorrow.
Really enjoyable, but I’m not sure if I’ll continue… I’ll write my whole review tomorrow.
October 29, 2025
Manifesting Destiny takes the usual YA mix of identity, transformation, and social hierarchy and turns it into something more unsettling. The setup sounds simple: every teen morphs into their destined Clan, but the author uses that to dig into choice, conformity, and what happens when the world decides who you’re supposed to be.
The world feels bureaucratic and eerily believable, and the social structure has that quiet, creeping realism that sticks with you. Cee’s voice feels real and the story keeps building tension right up until the last page.
The world feels bureaucratic and eerily believable, and the social structure has that quiet, creeping realism that sticks with you. Cee’s voice feels real and the story keeps building tension right up until the last page.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews