The Dragon of Denmark
Jennifer Ivy Walker
Viking Historical

Skårde the Scourge, bastard son of the Danish king Harald Bluetooth, is a fierce Viking warlord who earned the prestigious title Dragon of Denmark through victorious battles and lucrative Viking raids. When his royal father announces that Skårde will forge a Viking alliance through an arranged marriage to the daughter of Richard the Fearless, the Dragon of Denmark considers the voyage to Normandy an infuriating banishment.

Illegitimate daughter of Richard the Fearless, the Viking Duke of Normandy, Ylva is a Druid priestess and Celtic healer with the otherworldly gift of sight. She learns that she must leave her Breton village behind and travel to Normandy, where she will marry the Viking brute that she has foreseen in a terrifying vision.

When the Frankish king, determined to drive the Vikings from Normandy, attacks and seizes Richard’s clifftop fortress, the Dragon of Denmark must ally with Ljósálfar Light Elves, a Viking völva with powerful seiðr magic, and a vitki– a shapeshifting sorcerer who can assume the form of a falcon–to reclaim the ducal palace.

Uncaged Review: I haven’t read a ton of Viking books, but after reading this book, it makes me want to read more and even watch The Vikings series on TV. This book adds the Norse mythology with the Viking lore, romance, epic battles and magic. I couldn’t have been more immersed in this world as I read along and one thing this author is known for, is her exquisite attention to detail. There is not a stone untouched in the research and the author manages to keep upping her game, I don’t know where she will ever hit her limit.

I loved Ylva from the moment I met her, and Skarde is a hero for the ages. This is a steamy novel, and my new favorite from this author, which I feel like I say every time I read a new book from her. I felt like I was a part of this story, and that’s the best kind, not too many authors can pull that off, especially with the historical stories, but Ms. Walker has done it for me. When I list my top ten historical authors, this author is definitely in the top five. Reviewed by Cyrene

5 Stars

Knight of Mayhem
Sherry Ewing
Medieval Historical

Torn between duty and love, can a knight and a woman warrior forget they are enemies and let love into their hearts?

As one of Empress Matilda’s most trusted knights, Lord Richard Grancourt helps plan his monarch’s escape when Oxford Castle is held under siege by King Stephen’s army. When a woman in Stephen’s forces discovers their plan, Richard is tasked with remaining behind and keeping her silent.

Lady Annora de Maris will do anything to save her son, who has been King Stephen’s hostage since his men killed her husband and took her home. Though she’s forced to raise her sword against King Stephen’s enemies, her loyalties are secretly with the Empress she’s compelled to fight against.

Richard takes Annora captive, but his tactics challenge his beliefs about honor and justice, and his feelings for Annora conflict with his duty.

As the mayhem of war pulls Richard and Annora apart, can love overcome the barriers that separate them?

Uncaged Review: The knight of Mayhem, Lord Richard Grancourt, might have always been the champion of chaos and disruption. Richard was also known to be an upstanding and loyal man-at-arms of the Empress Matilda. As Richard, some other friends, his sister and Queen Matilda stayed trapped in a castle in Oxford, England, Richard comes up with a brilliant plan to move the Queen out in the dead of night. As the plans get under way, Richard runs into Lady Annora de Maris, an enemy and loyal supporter of King Stephen. Richard takes her prisoner just so the Queen can escape and brings Annora back to the castle. Richard might keep her as a prisoner, but he was also sworn to protect her too. As Richard gets to know Annora though, the attraction between them flares. Pretty soon, Richard had fallen deeply in love with Annora, which could bring him down, including everything he had stood for too.

Since I have fully been invested in this series, I could not avoid reading this book! So, no, I wasn’t going to just stop reading because Richard isn’t truly a brother to the Norwood’s. He is still a brother to them in his heart and spirit, he is part of them. I truly do relish these stories of big honorable knights that can do no wrong, but when they meet their match in the feisty spitfire of a woman, they fall and fall hard! The book even seems almost real because there are kernels of truth spilled throughout, with the Empress Matilda, King Stephen and the Anarchy being real live people and a real event. Of course, the book just captivates and spins a tale wrapping the reader and me up, never letting go until the end! Richard is the consummate-flawed hero who captures Annora, but she doesn’t seem to mind. While Annora is the fire to his ice. There were some minor things that didn’t make sense, but the story still flowed smoothly, and it’s sad that the book and series had to end. I hope Ms. Sherry Ewing writes more stories of warriors because I definitely will read them! Reviewed by Roslynn Ernst

4.5 Stars

The Highlander Burns for Vengeance
Julie Johnstone
Medieval Romance

Divided by treachery, bound by an edict, they must decide their fate: to love or to hate.

After years of captivity, Graeme Stewart has returned home with a burning desire for vengeance, and it’s all directed at the Campbell clan. They attacked his home, killed his parents, and imprisoned him for eighteen long years. So when the king demands Graeme handfast with his enemy’s sister to end the warring of their clans, he intends to use her to get the revenge he yearns for. But Maisie’s courage and character surprise him at every turn, conjuring admiration and stirring desire. Now, with revenge within his grasp, he must make a choice before it’s too late: either cling to the malice that kept him alive or release it for the chance at love.

The vengeful and unreasonable Highlander intends to destroy her family, and Maisie Campbell is bound to him for a year and a day. She hates everything about Graeme, except the way he kisses, which is a force that nearly brings her to her knees. But lust does not a marriage make, and the man is hell-bent on proving her brother a traitor and herself treacherous, so she sets out to prove otherwise. Yet, as questions of her brother’s character arise in her own mind and Graeme displays an honorable, fiercely protective nature, Maisie faces a decision: seek a truth that will doom the brother she adores or remain blindly loyal to those she’s always held dear and lose the man she has come to love with all her heart.

Uncaged Review: I was very excited to read Graeme’s book, and it didn’t disappoint. This is my favorite of the three books so far, and when Graeme finally escapes the prison that he and Eppie (the older woman that was tasked with taking Graeme away as a boy to keep him safe) have been in for eighteen years, all that’s in his heart is revenge. But the king is tired of the two warring clans – the Campbells and the Stewarts, and insists that Graeme will be handfasted for one year and a day, to one of his enemies daughters. Forced to protect her, Graeme and Maisie will need to find the truth, both about their families and their feelings that have grown between them.

This book has everything you could want in a Highlander book. There is mystery, danger, and the enemies-to-lovers trope working here and this book is very difficult to put down and I was sad when it was over. The ending is satisfying and the pace is steady and fast to the finish line. The reader will understand the feelings of distrust from both Graeme and Maisie, but will also cheer them on. The epilogue was a great touch. Reviewed by Cyrene

5 Stars