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Uncaged Review – A Secret Scottish Christmas by Regan Walker

By
Cyrene Olson
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0

A Secret Scottish Christmas
Regan Walker
Historical Regency

Spies and Scots and Shipmasters, oh my!

Scotland 1819 ~ Twin brothers Nash and Robbie Powell of Powell & Sons Shipping, London, sail with their fellow Agents of the Crown to Scotland for a secret celebration of Christmastide, a holiday long frowned upon by the Scottish Kirk. But more than Christmas is being kept secret. The two brothers have accepted an assignment from the Home Secretary Lord Sidmouth to ferret out a fugitive fomenting rebellion among the Scots.

Aileen Stephen, the only daughter of an Aberdeen shipbuilder, had to be clever, devious and determined to gain her place in the family business. She succeeded to become a designer of highly coveted ships. One night, a man’s handsome face appears to her in a dream. When two men having that same face arrive on a ship full of Londoners, Ailie wonders what her second sight is telling her. Is the face she saw a portender of the future, a harbinger of danger, or both? And which of the two Englishmen is the one in her dream?

Older than Nash by a mere five minutes, Robbie has always been protective of his twin. When he realizes Nash is attracted to the sister of their Scottish host, he thinks to help matters along. But Nash wants no help from his brother, not where Ailie Stephen is concerned because Robbie is attracted to the girl himself!

Two brothers vie for the affection of the Scottish lass but only one stirs her passion. Which one will it be? And what will she do when she learns they are spies?

Uncaged Review: The perfect dose of intrigue and romance, Regan Walker hits another home run with her Scottish/English Christmas story. Again, the author weaves this story tightly with real history and whether we know it or not, we are learning along with being entertained. This story isn’t action packed, but the story grabs hold and soon you are a bystander within the story.

The Powell’s are visiting their Scottish friends for the Holidays, sailing from England to Scotland-but the twin brothers, Robbie and Nash are also secret spies for England trying to find a fugitive, unknown to their hosts. Things get even more intriguing when the brothers fall for the hosts’ sister, Aileen. Will they be able to keep their secret? Which one will win her heart?

A perfect story to read this holiday season
Reviewed by Cyrene

5 Stars

Uncaged Review – A Montana Bound Christmas by Linda Bradley

By
Cyrene Olson
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0

A Montana Bound Christmas
Linda Bradley
Contemporary Holiday

Chloe and John McIntyre await Maggie Abernathy’s arrival at the 617 Ranch, but snowfall has halted flights from Michigan to Montana. While Maggie and her mother prepare for a delayed departure, eight-year-old Chloe prepares for disappointment by inviting her Hollywood mother to the ranch in hopes of filling the void. Brook’s unexpected acceptance raises the stakes for John who longs for the perfect Christmas. This cast of misfits bands together in true Montana Bound style when unexpected guests arrive and a curious dog goes missing.

Uncaged Review: When we last left John, Maggie and Chloe in the Montana Bound three book series, we had our happy ending, and it ended in a good place, I was happy with the series. Imagine my excitement when Ms. Bradley sent me this fourth installment – and a Christmas one at that!

I’m not going to give a lot away, but I think I see even better closure for a couple more characters. This book alternates point-of-views each chapter – and I liked seeing in the thoughts of the other characters like John’s father and his ex-wife. If you’ve read the Montana Bound series, this is a welcome addition, and if you haven’t – you can read it as a standalone, but to get the full impact of what these characters have been through, start at the beginning, Maggie’s Way.
Reviewed by Cyrene

5 Stars

Uncaged Review – Her Sweetest Christmas by Holly Blair

By
Cyrene Olson
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0

Her Sweetest Christmas
Holly Blair
Contemporary Holiday

Natalie LeClair will never forget the kiss she shared with Cooper King three years ago. Too bad he’s the enemy, back in her life to buy her grandmother’s chocolate company right from under her nose.

Cooper King will stop at nothing to acquire LeClair’s Chocolate Shop and its famed recipe. There’s only one wrinkle. Natalie is standing in his way, and he wants nothing more than to rekindle their romance. Cooper longs to return to just business as usual, but Natalie may be the sweetest distraction he’s ever imagined.

Uncaged Review: A shorter length sweet holiday story – easily a book you can sit down and read in your quiet times this season, and put a bit of joy into the holidays. Natalie LeClair is back home after a false alarm with her Grandma. When she gets home, she finds her Grandma is preparing to sell the family business to King Chocolates – and no other than Cooper King is there to finish the sale, a man she shared a smoldering kiss with three years ago and never forgot.

I won’t say anymore, but it’s a sweet romance and if you have an hour or so to sit with a nice story for the season, this is a sweet choice.
Reviewed by Cyrene

4 Stars

 

Uncaged Review – The Christmas Dragon by Katharina Gerlach with Excerpt

By
Cyrene Olson
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0

The Christmas Dragon
Katharina Gerlach
Holiday Fantasy Shorts

six unusual tales about the woes and joys of winter

Find out why Granny needs a dragon for Christmas. Get a scare as you witness a young dragon’s meeting with the Georges. Find stinky socks and be awed by the light of an angel. The tales in this collection will soothe your heart even if you’re not overly fond of the season.

Excerpt

From the story:
Third Time’s a Charm

Christmas was a week away and Mom was still in the hospital where his little sister Ella was sleeping, when Rudi built his first snow dragon. Ben, his older brother, laughed at the result.

“It doesn’t look like a dragon at all,” he said. “More like a drunken rat.” But he didn’t stamp it, and that was something Rudi was grateful for.

Since there were a lot of activities at school—the annual play, a cookie baking contest, and an advent afternoon—he had to wait for the weekend for his second try. This time, he built the dragon as big as he could. More than once the wings broke off, and he pondered a whole night how to stabilize them. Early on Sunday morning, he got up and fetched a bunch of tulle his mother had bought for a princess’ dress for Ella. Rudi tried not to think of his little sister. Carefully, he cut two big wing-shapes from the material. Then, he went outside, fetched some wire from the garden shed and attached the material to the wire, before he stuck them into his snow form. The dragon still didn’t look much like a dragon. More like a horse with wings. He sighed and went back inside. He needed to research dragons. So he spent the two last afternoons before the holidays in the school’s library and copied dragon pictures as best he could.

On the second afternoon, Mrs. Fielding, the librarian, sat beside him. “What are you looking for? Maybe I can help you.”

Rudi wondered if he could trust her, but she’d always been nice to him. “I need to make the perfect winter dragon.”

“Oh, someone’s out for some special magic, ey?” She winked at him and he blushed. He should have known that she had read the Christmas Chronicler’s advent story too. The one where wishes came true.

“You know,” she said, “I’ve got just the right kind of book for you.” She hurried away and returned with a big, square book bound in real leather.
The Book of Dragons, the title said.

“Look, there’s an ice dragon inside.” She opened the book to a page with a white, slender dragon. “Since you need a winter dragon, this one should do the trick, right?”

Rudi beamed at her. “Can I borrow this?”

“Sure. But treat it well and remember to bring it back after the holidays.” She signed the book out for him, and he hurried home with his new treasure. The whole night he lay awake under the covers with the book and a flashlight and planned. Mom returned very late at night. Rudi heard her cry herself to sleep while Dad whispered nonsense about things getting better soon.

Uncaged Review

Six wonderful and mystical tales perfect to read to the younger group. My favorite of course is The Christmas Dragon, but all are whimsical and worth the time. I am not normally a short story person. But the author brings a bit of sunshine to these seasonal holiday tales that are great for any age. Reviewed by Cyrene

4 Stars

#bookreview #indieauthors #holidayread #shortstories

Uncaged Book Reviews – December 2017 Issue Now Available

By
Cyrene Olson
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0

Uncaged Book Reviews, December 2017

Featuring authors: Katharina Gerlach, Char Chaffin, Becky McGraw, Cherry Christensen, Madelyn Hill, Shanna Hatfield, Patricia Bond, Patricia Eddy and Tawdra Kandle!

December Issue of Uncaged Book Reviews

By
Cyrene Olson
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0

Unfortunately, the December issue of Uncaged Book Reviews will not release until Saturday, December 2. With the website overhaul, and some unforeseen issues, the magazine is delayed. I refuse to hurry and sacrifice the quality of the magazine, but everyone deserves an update.

Thank you for your patience, I believe this issue is well worth the wait.

Uncaged Review – Ellie Walker’s Justice by Susan Federici

By
Cyrene Olson
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0

Ellie Walker’s Justice
Susan Federici
Historical Western

When Ellie Walker spots smoke coming from the direction of her farm, she races home to find her father mortally wounded and everything they own, burned to the ground. As her father lay dying, he tells Ellie that the son of his estranged wife, Tom Gordon, is the one responsible. Ellie vows to find Tom and bring him to justice.

Uncaged Review: Ellie rushes to her home when she sees smoke when she arrives she sees everything gone and her father wounded. He tells Ellie who has done this and she vows to get Tom as her father dies.
She works hard to learn how to shoot better and with her neighbors Mustang she heads out to find Tom and make him pay.

Ellie saves Clint’s life in a range war and after he sees how she handles herself he delays her journey but not before his mother and his old sweetheart arrive. Delphine doesn’t make Ellie’s life easy. She is hurt and leaves to Clint’s dismay.

He has to find her fast but Ellie needs to find Tom.

The authors does an excellent job with the plot and characters. You really want Ellie to find Tom but yet you feel for Clint and what he is going through. The reader can feel the pull between the characters and it makes you want to turn the pages to find out what happens. Reviewed by Babs

5 Stars

Uncaged Review – Enslaving the Day by Jenn Langston

By
Cyrene Olson
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0

Enslaving the Day
Jenn Langston
Historical Regency

One night’s mistake finds Lady Annalise Hera in a very compromising situation. Pregnant, unmarried, and on her way to Gretna Green. Although Baron Dailey put her in this position, she belatedly realizes she can’t marry him and will do anything to get him to release her. Even lie. After all, life would be better as a disgraced, unwed mother than the wife of a cocky, irritating man she can barely tolerate.

Uncaged Review: If Annalise has quite the reputation as its believed she has – she’s not as innocent as she would have others think, so when she finds herself with child the worrying begins on the outcome this will bring to her and the rest of her family. Thoughts of telling the father occur to her, but remain worthless as the father of her child has a mistress. I really enjoyed this book and have been very lucky to have read both in the series.

This books focuses on the touched by fire series. The series is based on a group of childhood friends who got injured in a fire and there attempts. To find happiness. I think the series is very entertaining and the books can also be enjoyed as standalone reads. Reviewed by Jennifer

4 Stars

Uncaged Review – The Savage from the Sea by Claire Harris

By
Cyrene Olson
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0

The Savage from the Sea
Claire Harris
Viking/Medieval

The pagan Vikings pillage the shores of Anglo-Saxon England, striking fear in the hearts of the people. Fighting alongside the men, Finna Vidisdóttir is all too happy to participate in their destruction, until a near-fatal defeat lands her in the hands of the enemy. …

Uncaged Review: Finna was raised and trained as a warrior for her clan. Strong and capable, and when they plan a raid on enemy lands, most of her clan is killed along with her husband. Taken captive, she slowly learns that the leader of the clan, Colby, is an honorable man and she fights her growing feelings. As she gains his trust, will she be able to go back to her clan when the bartering is over?

This is a really well done Viking historical. Finna is a warrior and Colby doesn’t understand how women from Finna’s clan can be allowed to fight, when he believes women need to be cherished and honored. As feelings grow between them, each of them see the honor and passion in the other.

This book is hard to put down – even from the first chapter – it captured my interest and held it all the way through. Reviewed by Cyrene

4 1/2 Stars

Uncaged Review – Lovely Scars by Cassandra Jamison

By
Cyrene Olson
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0

Lovely Scars
Cassandra Jamison
Young Adult

Snooping on your boyfriend’s phone is never a good idea. Collins can’t help herself after he unexpectedly commits suicide, but what she finds makes her grateful he’s dead.

Collins Carpenter has always been the textbook good girl until her freshman year of college when an unplanned pregnancy with her best friend, Everett, complicates everything. In a desperate attempt to deny her feelings for her child’s father and her jealousy toward his new girlfriend, Collins jumps into a relationship with Brock Webber. Nobody suspects that his good looks and charm masks something quite sinister until after his death, when the things he had been involved in finally come to light.

Disturbing and inexplicable events leave Collins wondering if Brock’s spirit is not at rest or if somebody from his past is after her. Somebody who may be closer than she thinks.

Uncaged Review: A dark read that kept me on my toes reading. I admit I can sometimes guess the bad person in the book. This time I was pleased to see the author out-did me. A young single mother finds herself in danger after finding out her boyfriend isn’t who he says he is. A game of cat and mouse begins. I can highly recommend this book as I think this was a great read. Looking forward to seeing what the author comes up with next. Reviewed by Jennifer

5 Stars

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