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Daughter of Destiny #1
Keeper of the Winds
My name is Jenna Solitaire and everything I thought I knew about myself, my family, and my future is wrong. My life is not my own. It never has been. I just didn't know it―until now… After the death of her grandfather, nineteen-year-old Jenna Solitaire finds an ancient wooden board hidden away in the attic of his house. Scorched by fire and covered in mysterious symbols, the board fascinates her―and scares her―at the same time. As does Simon Monk, the handsome stranger who has come into her life, claiming to know about the board. Even more frightening is the voice whispering in Jenna's head, calling her "Keeper." Does Jenna have power over the winds, as Simon claims? Is she truly the Daughter of Destiny?
256 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 2006
9 people are currently reading
328 people want to read
About the author
Jenna Solitaire
9 books41 followersJenna Solitaire was raised in Ohio, and now lives the life of a vagabond, searching the world for the next Board. When she was nineteen, she learned that she was the Keeper of the Boards, and her life has been filled with magic and mayhem ever since. With Simon Monk, she continues to travel the world and learn about the Boards of Babylon. She believes that sharing her story with others is important and plans on continuing to do so for as long as she can....
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews
April 22, 2009
Keeper of the Winds by Jenna Solitaire is teen fiction and I suppose I would put it into the urban fantasy genre. Other readers might slot it into the mystery/suspense genre and possibly even romance (although I feel the romance thread isn’t strong enough to do that).
The book is the first in a series called Daughter of Destiny and from a writer’s perspective there were two things that really stood out to me.
The first – a positive – is that I enjoyed the writer’s style and voice. It was easy to read and felt comfortable, which I feel is very important for any reader, especially me, as it allowed me to become absorbed in the story. I also liked the way the book was set up, i.e. at the beginning of each chapter are tiny scenes that lift the suspense and will make readers want to find out what they relate to. In my opinion, these teasers (as I call them) were well done and added to the overall story.
The second – actually there are two negatives – relates to the character building aspects of the main character. The other characters were fine, believable, but the main character is a girl who really got on my nerves because she continually moaned and groaned and fought against everything…and I mean everything! I understood that her makeup was a non-believer, but I think the author ended up making her unrealistic. As I read the story, I found myself wanting to cross out sentences that took this “non-believer” stuff too far. The second negative is that I got a bit confused about the time of the day that some of the scenes in the story took place. For instance, one scene started at about lunchtime but before I knew it the main character was exhausted and going to bed! It was supposedly 9pm by this time but the events that occurred in that time didn’t feel right to fill up that amount of time. This happens several times throughout the book.
Putting the negatives aside, the overall story was interesting enough for me to continue reading. In fact, I wanted to know where everything was heading and only felt annoyed by the main character’s refusal to accept anything that was happening to her. The other negatives were minor nit-picks on my part.
One thing that is worth mentioning is that the author of the book is also the main character in the story. I believe this was a clever decision on the part of the author and/or publisher. They are making out that the events are based on truth. The plot has been well thought out and the book is written in first person. I believe that this author/main character thing will create a bit of a buzz that will bring more sales. Good luck to them.
Anyway, overall I think readers of fantasy and young adult fiction will enjoy this book.
The book is the first in a series called Daughter of Destiny and from a writer’s perspective there were two things that really stood out to me.
The first – a positive – is that I enjoyed the writer’s style and voice. It was easy to read and felt comfortable, which I feel is very important for any reader, especially me, as it allowed me to become absorbed in the story. I also liked the way the book was set up, i.e. at the beginning of each chapter are tiny scenes that lift the suspense and will make readers want to find out what they relate to. In my opinion, these teasers (as I call them) were well done and added to the overall story.
The second – actually there are two negatives – relates to the character building aspects of the main character. The other characters were fine, believable, but the main character is a girl who really got on my nerves because she continually moaned and groaned and fought against everything…and I mean everything! I understood that her makeup was a non-believer, but I think the author ended up making her unrealistic. As I read the story, I found myself wanting to cross out sentences that took this “non-believer” stuff too far. The second negative is that I got a bit confused about the time of the day that some of the scenes in the story took place. For instance, one scene started at about lunchtime but before I knew it the main character was exhausted and going to bed! It was supposedly 9pm by this time but the events that occurred in that time didn’t feel right to fill up that amount of time. This happens several times throughout the book.
Putting the negatives aside, the overall story was interesting enough for me to continue reading. In fact, I wanted to know where everything was heading and only felt annoyed by the main character’s refusal to accept anything that was happening to her. The other negatives were minor nit-picks on my part.
One thing that is worth mentioning is that the author of the book is also the main character in the story. I believe this was a clever decision on the part of the author and/or publisher. They are making out that the events are based on truth. The plot has been well thought out and the book is written in first person. I believe that this author/main character thing will create a bit of a buzz that will bring more sales. Good luck to them.
Anyway, overall I think readers of fantasy and young adult fiction will enjoy this book.
May 5, 2012
This book had me really annoyed at first. They way the author wrote and portrayed the characters drove me crazy. In fact, it still does. I mean, who names the main character after themselves? That was the first thing that bothered me. Then, the author has to use the very typical writing idea of creating a love triangle where the girl in the love triangle has a best friend who is in love with her, but she only wants to be friends, and that the other boy in the love triangle repulses her and intrigues her at the same time. Its been done before. Also, the guy who the main character, Jenna, wants to not like, is perfectly fine. The author forces conflict between them when it doesn’t make sense. If the story was really happening in real life, they wouldn’t fight or argue. They are perfectly cohesive! Also, no one loves coffee THAT much. The author seems to focus on all these teeny tiny details that really doesn’t matter! Plus, the character has idiotic trust issues that don’t make sense, either. Not to mention the fact that the author’s writing is the equivalent of a kindergartener! She uses the same words over and over again in one sentence which just makes it repetitive and annoying.The plot, and idea, are both really good, but the way the author writes it and the characters is positively awful.
February 8, 2008
I was really looking forward to this book but after I read it I was quite dissapointed. I found the main character somewhat annoying at times, she seemed to do everything opposite from what I would have done in her tough situations. So in other words I had a hard time relating to the character. Also the author's style of writing was not my favorite. She seemed to focus sometimes too much on little unimportant details, like the weather (which is important at some points but not constantly). And lastly the climax was rather disapointing and hardly as intense as I thought it should have been. it only lasted a few pages. The book definetley had potential at the beginning, but it wasn't written as good as it could have been.
October 2, 2009
Synopsis: A girl discovers a powerful board that will change her life.
Classification:
Audience: Teens
Purpose: Entertainment
Medium: Novel
Genre –Setting: Fantasy
Genre –Plot: Action
Genre-Style: Idealism
Criticism: This book left me wanting more. I love how Jenna Solitaire Draws out the drama making your eyes glued to the page waiting for more.It also kept me wanting to much more.In the end i was disoponted and how much i was left guessing.
Classification:
Audience: Teens
Purpose: Entertainment
Medium: Novel
Genre –Setting: Fantasy
Genre –Plot: Action
Genre-Style: Idealism
Criticism: This book left me wanting more. I love how Jenna Solitaire Draws out the drama making your eyes glued to the page waiting for more.It also kept me wanting to much more.In the end i was disoponted and how much i was left guessing.
December 30, 2008
This is an awesome book. A mix of history,fantasy,adventure, and a tiny bit of romance. I Loved the big fights.
June 9, 2022
Its a crime that this series didn't get to be finished. Read it in High School and loved it from the first page. The Board of Destiny or Elements gosh cant remember right now. And Simon was one of my first book crushes!!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Read
November 3, 2021DNF - just no interest in picking this back up.
February 1, 2022
Nice fantasy story. Will likely read more in the series.
December 21, 2022
Amazing written.
The supernatural events came early: that's a plus in my Book. And, Jenna's dreams are quite interesting.
The supernatural events came early: that's a plus in my Book. And, Jenna's dreams are quite interesting.
August 6, 2023
I’d give it a 3.8. It has some very obvious issues but I liked it nonetheless
December 17, 2022
Very teen love/mistery.Something to read on the beach.
May 28, 2024
Something randomly triggered my memory of reading this series. I don't remember anything except that I enjoyed them and that I wished my name was Jenna Solitaire. I should give them a re-read! 3/5
February 15, 2024
I really enjoyed reading this book so much that i think i might reread the book at some point in the future
August 15, 2020
Keeper of the Winds by Russell Davis
Jenna Solitaire has just lost her grandfather who raised her. She lost her parents as a young child and then her grandmother a few months after that. Jenna is a first year college student with very few friends she lets in her life. Her best friend from childhood, Tom, has firmly been relegated to the friend zone.
As Jenna is going through her grandparent’s attic she finds an intriguing box in the bottom of her grandmother’s trunk. Jenna can tell it is very old and has runes carved in the wood. Now it seems to be calling her, and she can’t stop thinking about it. She is having strange dreams infesting her sleep. Then someone breaks into the house and she notices men following her. This is all stressful and she has a right to have a short fuse. But, honestly she needs to cut back on the coffee, eat something, and reassess the situation. Her incessant whining is nerve-wracking and for a smart girl she sure shrugs her shoulders a lot. It almost seems like a tic.
Now, on to better things. Tom and Kristen are adorable as a couple. Tom is all reason and logic, Kristen is anything but. I loved her character and I think any reader will agree with me. Jenna thinks she’s an airhead. Simon, one of the men following Jenna, is a good guy and doesn’t deserve the way Jenna treats him. There is a lot more to learn about him though. Simon has spent years researching this ancient magical artifact and is trying to teach Jenna about the box and her new destiny as its new Guardian. As the weather around her town grows dark and rainy with the winds growing in intensity, Jenna refuses to acknowledge her moody emotions have anything to do with it.
Jenna is a selfish character and hard to like. It’s not often I run across a character that I consider TSTL. But she does live or there wouldn’t be a story. In between Jenna's pity party and stupid decisions there is a lot of action. Because of course there is a malevolent man, who seems to have unlimited resources with minions to do his bidding. He wants both the box and Jenna for his own evil purposes. On a more positive note there is an epic battle that comes to a satisfying climax as Jenna seems to find her moral compass during the devastating storms that almost kill her friends, of which there are four…
After all is said and done this novel was a bag of mixed nuts for me. If you like urban fantasy with a twist of occult you may really enjoy this novel and adore the characters.
FYI: TSTL = Too Stupid To Live. **Originally written for "BigAl’s Books and Pals" book blog. May have received a free review copy.** June 22, 2020.
Format/Typo Issues: The version of the book I read was a pre-release ARC, so I can’t judge the final version in this regard.
Jenna Solitaire has just lost her grandfather who raised her. She lost her parents as a young child and then her grandmother a few months after that. Jenna is a first year college student with very few friends she lets in her life. Her best friend from childhood, Tom, has firmly been relegated to the friend zone.
As Jenna is going through her grandparent’s attic she finds an intriguing box in the bottom of her grandmother’s trunk. Jenna can tell it is very old and has runes carved in the wood. Now it seems to be calling her, and she can’t stop thinking about it. She is having strange dreams infesting her sleep. Then someone breaks into the house and she notices men following her. This is all stressful and she has a right to have a short fuse. But, honestly she needs to cut back on the coffee, eat something, and reassess the situation. Her incessant whining is nerve-wracking and for a smart girl she sure shrugs her shoulders a lot. It almost seems like a tic.
Now, on to better things. Tom and Kristen are adorable as a couple. Tom is all reason and logic, Kristen is anything but. I loved her character and I think any reader will agree with me. Jenna thinks she’s an airhead. Simon, one of the men following Jenna, is a good guy and doesn’t deserve the way Jenna treats him. There is a lot more to learn about him though. Simon has spent years researching this ancient magical artifact and is trying to teach Jenna about the box and her new destiny as its new Guardian. As the weather around her town grows dark and rainy with the winds growing in intensity, Jenna refuses to acknowledge her moody emotions have anything to do with it.
Jenna is a selfish character and hard to like. It’s not often I run across a character that I consider TSTL. But she does live or there wouldn’t be a story. In between Jenna's pity party and stupid decisions there is a lot of action. Because of course there is a malevolent man, who seems to have unlimited resources with minions to do his bidding. He wants both the box and Jenna for his own evil purposes. On a more positive note there is an epic battle that comes to a satisfying climax as Jenna seems to find her moral compass during the devastating storms that almost kill her friends, of which there are four…
After all is said and done this novel was a bag of mixed nuts for me. If you like urban fantasy with a twist of occult you may really enjoy this novel and adore the characters.
FYI: TSTL = Too Stupid To Live. **Originally written for "BigAl’s Books and Pals" book blog. May have received a free review copy.** June 22, 2020.
Format/Typo Issues: The version of the book I read was a pre-release ARC, so I can’t judge the final version in this regard.
June 15, 2010
Author, and supposed main character, Jenna Solitaire, portrays a world with a strong female heroine who disbelievingly discovers she is the "Daughter of Destiny" and Keeper of the Boards. The Boards, being aligned with the apparently evil powers of the various elements/forces of nature (Wind, Water, Fire, and Earth), along with several others that are not yet introduced, have been passed down since before Christ, always in the care of a Solitaire woman. One gets the impression that the boards are ancient supernatural artifacts with a surfboard appeal, eager to be "used" to unleash their powers and battle the Keeper for control of the elements. While the Boards and their Keeper battle for control, they also battle for each other's protection. Jenna and her friends come head to head in a battle for control of the Board of the Winds, which has been passed down from the female lineage in her family. By the book's end, Jenna and mysterious, attractive, new friend, Simon, are traveling off to another part of the world in search of the next board, the Board of
Waters.
Similar reads: Rachel Caine's "Weather Wardens" series for YA to Adult
Waters.
Similar reads: Rachel Caine's "Weather Wardens" series for YA to Adult
December 22, 2010
This is nasty. Crappy writing. crappy concept. Crappy cover.
CRAPPY
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I read this as a travel read and I just don't get how anyone can rate this book any higher than 1 star. It would have been a lot more interesting if she simply made one girl control fire another earth ect. But no. Just one girl with all these powers have random flash backs. No one actually did anything in the first book. It was such a pile of KAKA. Its one of those poor quality cheap little books that sit in the corners of second hands book shops and should have never been published but kept on some middle aged woman's Microsoft Words file.
This is put in teen fiction . Im a teen and I don't usually reads teen fiction but I find that whenever I do I am reminded why I don't .
PILE
OF
SHIT.
There we go. I hate this book.
CRAPPY
CRAPPY
CRAPPY
I read this as a travel read and I just don't get how anyone can rate this book any higher than 1 star. It would have been a lot more interesting if she simply made one girl control fire another earth ect. But no. Just one girl with all these powers have random flash backs. No one actually did anything in the first book. It was such a pile of KAKA. Its one of those poor quality cheap little books that sit in the corners of second hands book shops and should have never been published but kept on some middle aged woman's Microsoft Words file.
This is put in teen fiction . Im a teen and I don't usually reads teen fiction but I find that whenever I do I am reminded why I don't .
PILE
OF
SHIT.
There we go. I hate this book.
December 29, 2013
It wasn't hard to get into - but I will say that the author seemed to write this either quickly, or very slowly over a long period of time - by the look of things - without sleep too. Using the same words, the same phrases, the same descriptions over and over again. The way she would describe action from every angle she possibly could, as if announcing to the world "I CAN'T GET THIS DESCRIPTION RIGHT THE FIRST TIME, SO I'LL JUST DESCRIBE IT ABOUT 5 MORE TIMES IN THE SAME PARAGRAPH AND PEOPLE WILL GET IT." It was pretty amateur.
Also, the main character was very, very annoying. A whiny brat, who protested EVERYTHING and loved coffee un-realistically. The way she kept nagging on about what she was going through - I mean, isn't she supposed to be a heroine? Suck it up and get it done then!
Having said that, it was a nice way to pass time - could have been better though.
Also, the main character was very, very annoying. A whiny brat, who protested EVERYTHING and loved coffee un-realistically. The way she kept nagging on about what she was going through - I mean, isn't she supposed to be a heroine? Suck it up and get it done then!
Having said that, it was a nice way to pass time - could have been better though.
December 19, 2007
I actually found myself bored by this book. It was sad. It looked really interesting - woman finds ancient board with magical powers that is her birthright to protect - but it lacks something I can't quite put my finger on. It was a little reminiscent of Dan Brown's DaVinci Code and Angels and Demons, so if you loved those, you might give this a try. It definitely has more of the supernatural than Brown's work, however (it is a fantasy series, after all).
November 9, 2009
What can I say? This book isn't horrible, but it isn't that great either. I think it's lame the author either uses her real name as the character or her pen-name. The characters were not fully developed in a way that made me actually care about what happened to them. It's too bad because I think the concept was pretty interesting. I don't think I'll be picking up the next book in the series anytime soon.
January 30, 2014
This author deserves to be heard! Her writing style depicting this young woman is wonderful, especially with the creativeness of the four elements' raw power locked away in ancient boards. I strongly recommend you give her a chance; it's clever, funny, and sometimes suspenseful! A great story that is sorely underrated!
September 14, 2008
It was slow to start, but once you got into the book it really picked up. Jenna is relunctant scared resist to too much change. I can really relate to that, life and changes all at once can be overwhelmening
May 22, 2010
Surprisingly good start to a 4 books series. Enjoyed the idea and find the fact that the author is the main character interesting. Definitely going to read the next 3 now and then give them to my daughter to read.
March 18, 2013
I loved this book. It was about magic, good faith, love and many other things. I love the mysterious things that happened in the story like the guy who came to Jenna's grandfather's funeral. All together I would say this book is a blend of everything including mystery.
July 24, 2013
This was one of the first book series I ever read. And tbh, since then I have read it once or twice more. It was so long ago that I barely remember how it was written, I just know that I enjoyed it. It made me cry and laugh and it did captivate me. Just... ya know, in 2006, when I was... 13. :/
December 12, 2013
When I first started to read this book i was so annoyed with it. I just did not like this book, but I forced myself to stick it out. The plot of the book is interesting and one of it's own. Other then that not much to really say about this book.
November 4, 2007
the first book of the series of 4!!!!
December 1, 2007
Good book. Took a while to get started, but when it did, it was good.
September 15, 2008
Fell in LOVE with this book and can't wait to read the next three. It does not get the attention it deserves though, which makes me sad because it's really good!
February 25, 2009
This book was an excellent read, and I liked the story a lot! I love the characters too.
July 8, 2009
This was an awesome book. As "Potato" said on her review. xD
Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews