Guardians of Destiny: Book One Stone of Souls Trilogy

5 Star Review

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Editorial Book Review:

By Inma Hollis

Epic fantasy has a particular kind of reader, the one who grew up with dog-eared copies of David Eddings and Robert Jordan and Robin Hobb, who knows exactly what it feels like when a world opens up completely and pulls you in before you've had a chance to resist. Louise Briony Hallam grew up that way too, and it shows in every page of this debut. She didn't just write a fantasy novel. She built a world that feels like it existed long before she started writing it down.

The realm of Asteria is in serious trouble. Decades of drought, a looming war after a thousand years of peace, the Shadow Master rumored to walk the land again, and Destiny itself having made a mistake that now needs correcting. Into this steps Dorien and Alora, two Guardians of Light sent to the mortal realm with missions that are nearly impossible and powers that are frustratingly limited. Splitting the two protagonists early and sending them on separate quests is a bold structural choice that pays off beautifully. Their individual journeys have completely different textures and rhythms, and watching them navigate different dangers, different relationships, and different truths about their own past lives gives the book a richness that a single narrative thread simply couldn't have achieved.

The slow burn romance woven through both storylines is handled with real patience. Hallam understands that the tension between characters who are clearly drawn to each other but haven't figured it out yet is far more compelling than anything that resolves too quickly. You feel it building. You want to shake people. That is exactly the right experience for this kind of story.

What genuinely surprises about this debut is the confidence of the world-building. The lore feels deep and internally consistent, the immortal history of the guardians carries real emotional weight, and the shift between their divine existence and the vulnerability of the mortal realm is rendered with striking clarity.

For readers who have been quietly waiting for an epic fantasy series that feels like coming home, this trilogy is off to an extraordinary start.

About the Author

Louise Briony Hallam

Louise Briony Hallam grew up in Sydney, Australia. Her youth was spent reading classic fantasy epics by authors such as David Eddings, Raymond E. Feist, Terry Brooks, Robert Jordan and Robin Hobb.

A love of nature led her to a lifelong career in ecology, but her passion for fantasy novels remained with her. In 2022 she commenced writing the Stone of Souls trilogy.

Louise currently lives near Canberra, Australia, with her son Finn, husband Andrew, cats Aya and Tom, and dogs Jake and Julie.

Guardians of Destiny is her first novel.