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From the first book in the Iona Stones series, prophecy shaped the edges of the world. The Stones carried purpose. The guardians carried oaths. The maidens carried power they did not fully understand. Fate moved like a current beneath every choice.
But in Stone of Destiny, that current surged stronger than ever.
The central question sharpened to a blade’s edge: Are we bound to prophecy, or do we fight it?
Ceallach embodied duty. His life revolved around oath and protection. He did not approach the Gathering as a man seeking personal happiness; he approached it as a warrior sworn to defend ancient magic. Every step he took aligned with responsibility. He measured risk through the lens of what safeguarded the Stones—not what soothed his heart.
Kat moved in the opposite direction.
She carried loss. She carried longing. She carried the stubborn refusal to surrender the people she loved to fate’s decree. Where Ceallach honored prophecy, Kat challenged it. She questioned why destiny demanded sacrifice. She refused to stand quietly when magic dictated terms she did not accept.
That tension drove the heart of the story.
I never wanted destiny in this world to feel like a cage. Prophecy did not strip characters of agency. Instead, it pressed them into moments of decision. The Stones did not force Kat to love Ceallach. They did not command Ceallach to step away from her. They placed them in circumstances where every choice carried weight.
Free will emerged in how they responded.
Ceallach could have hidden behind duty and shut his heart. Kat could have protected herself and avoided the risk of loving a Fae warrior bound by ancient vows. Neither path would have broken prophecy outright—but both would have bent it into something smaller.
Instead, they chose to stand inside the storm.
That choice mattered more than the prophecy itself.
In Stone of Destiny, fate functioned as pressure rather than prison. It revealed character. It exposed fear. It demanded courage. When Kat faced the possibility of losing both her brother and the man she loved, she did not bow to inevitability. She acted. When Ceallach realized love might complicate his oath, he did not retreat into silence. He confronted what devotion truly required.
Destiny, in the Iona Stones world, did not remove choice. It tested it.
And in that testing, love either fractured—or proved strong enough to shape fate in return.
Bound by destiny, torn by fate—their love stood unbroken, victorious over all.
Kat MacArthur still feels the loss of her brother to another time. Seeking solace, she stumbles upon Ceallach, a Fae warrior, she’s had feelings for ever since she met him. The emotion grows stronger whenever they are together. Yet he warns her to stay away from the upcoming gathering for the Iona Stones. Kat refuses—she needs to be there to help her family and Ceallach.
Ceallach is torn between duty, magic, and the ache for mortal love. His Fae soul is sworn to protect the Iona Stones during the Gathering, but his heart is lost to Kat. With the prophecy looming, he cannot promise her forever—no matter how much he longs to. The maiden of the Iona Stones now faces sacrifice, and he fears if his beloved gets too close, he cannot save her.
When dark forces rise to take the Iona Stones along with their powers, Ceallach is forced into an impossible decision—to defy destiny or surrender to love?
Enjoy an Excerpt
Still wearing a grin, he strode forward with confidence, and a sensuality Kat had not forgotten. The man still took her breath away with one look. Ceallach arrived before her, a smile playing on his lips. As his eyes swept across her face, the expression faltered. His brows knitted together in a frown, shadowing the sudden tension in his gaze. Reaching with his finger, he lifted a tear from her cheek, gripped his fist hard, and when opened, a small, clear teardrop-shaped gemstone sat in his palm.
“Dry yer tears, sweet Kat. Yer face is much prettier without them.” He took her hand and, with his other placed the gemstone in her palm. “When ye hold the gem, yer tears will fade, and happy thoughts shall fill yer heart.” When the stone touched her skin, her mind cleared, and a sense of ease washed over her.
Ceallach released her hand and strode past her to the doors.
Kat turned, calling after him. “Wait, why are ye here?”
The attractive Fae stopped and turned. “Dagda sent me. I’ve come to meet with the guardian of the stones. All the stones have returned. The gathering and battle of good vs evil is upon us. The gods have called, and we must answer.”
He opened the heavy oak doors without effort and strode through. The doors weight closed them, leaving Kat in the shadows again. She blinked, almost not believing her eyes and the truth before her. Her secret love had just casually strolled back into her life. Gripping the gem, he’d shaped from her tears, warmth washed over her. Ceallach was here. A smile crossed her face.
Ceallach was here.
About the Author: 
Margaret Izard is an award-winning author of historical fantasy and paranormal romance novels. Her latest awards are 2024 Reader’s Favorite Honorable Mention for Stone of Love and 2024 Spring BookFest Silver Award for the same title. She spent her early years through college to adulthood dedicated to dance, theater, and performing. Over the years, she developed a love for great storytelling in different mediums. She does not waste a good story, be it movement, the spoken, or the written word. She discovered historical romance novels in middle school, which combined her desire for romance, drama, and fantasy. She writes exciting plot lines, steamy love scenes and always falls for a strong male with a soft heart. She lives in Houston, Texas, with her husband and adult triplets.
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