Uncaged Magazine - Cover Reveal - First Issue - August 2016

I wanted to share the cover of the first issue of Uncaged. This magazine will go monthly, by popular demand. The magazine will release this weekend, with an official launch date of August 1, 2016 - and stay tuned for some special fun by one of the Featured Authors, Darlene Kuncytes.

Not full size.

Review - The Inquisition by Jacintha Topaz

Uncaged: First let's start off with the fact that Uncaged does not truly have a review team that is going to read erotic/gay/BDSM on a normal basis. If I get reviewers that are up to the task, I'll definitely let that be known. This novel was read and reviewed by my daughter, Kaitlin Olson.

The Inquisition
Jacintha Topaz
Genre: Erotic/BDSM/Gay
Adults Only

Blurb: After a quick stipend to pay the rent, July Greenfield agrees to put herself on the spot and answer some very personal questions … in front of a rolling camera. 

Filmmaker Thalia Akasidou is about to wrap up the last segment of her documentary when an irresistible addition derails her from completing the project as she had initially envisioned. 

Amazon LInk

Uncaged Review: The Inquisition by Jacintha Topaz is a short erotic novel with lesbian and BDSM themes. It was very well-written, which can be a pleasant surprise within the genre; the vocabulary was intelligent and unobtrusive, the descriptions made for good visualization while simultaneously remaining concise, and the characters and their behavior seemed well-thought out and consistent.

In a short story, the bar isn't set very high when it comes to background and character building, but Jacintha Topaz made each character feel substantial. There is insight into their thought processes provided, which feeds into their behavior and actions in realistic ways. This adds to the immersion of the story, which is a cornerstone to a great work-- especially in one that seeks to stimulate the reader.

On to the meat of the story; the sex scene. The Inquisition lacks the nonsensical verbiage employed by many erotic novels or scenes and instead uses descriptors that do not detract from the overall atmosphere. Something else worthy of praise is the realistic depiction of BDSM by the inclusion of verbal consent, clear boundaries, access to a safeword and the use of aftercare. It's a shame that more related mainstream novels don't present such an excellent and clear example of what true BDSM should be like.

All in all, The Inquisition was a pleasure to read. It succeeds in what it sets out to do, which is provide an immersive and titillating scene to bury oneself in for a short time. The writing itself is coherent and easy to both understand and follow, and the characters are relatable and realistic. Finally, the erotic scene at the heart of it is what all authors should aspire to match when seeking to represent a safe, sane and consensual BDSM encounter.

5 stars

(A copy of this book was provided by the author for an honest review)

Uncaged Magazine

Uncaged eMag is coming together nicely, it will release next weekend, on both Issuu and there will be a PDF you can download if you have issues with Issuu. Stay tuned!

With all the interest, it will be released on a monthly basis!

Review - A Good Night by Danielle Devon

A Good Night (Night Bound Book 1)

Danielle Devon Short Story
Genre - Historical Paranormal/Fantasy

Blurb: 

A dark and chilling gothic romance.

As the youngest daughter born to the Marquis of Whitney, Isabella knew all too well the tempers of men. She dreamed of nothing more than escaping her gilded cage. Spoke her prayers in the dark, to whatever God or Devil may listen.

Lucien heard his name, not from above, from within. Inside his own mind, deep in his soul, her voice was a whisper. A prayer, a calling, a summoning he could no longer deny.

Was he an angel sent from the heavens to save her? Or a demon cast from the darkness to tempt her?

Amazon Link

Uncaged Review:

This book was mesmerizing. The youngest daughter of five, Isabella had a different beauty than her sisters. Her father, was a brutal man, who blamed her for her looks, and never to be able to fetch a good husband. Beaten by her father and dreaming of escape, Isabella sends her prayers into the night and even within her dream

Lucien hears her within his soul, and comes to her. But is he a dream, a devil, or an angel?

I'm really hoping this short story is the jump off of a new series, and this story continues. I was taken aback at the dark, gothic touches and I want to know more! And I won't be able to draw any good conclusions about Lucien, without reading more. Hint, hint to Ms. Devon.

Uncaged Rating: 5 Stars

Gardens and Goats

So I took a few pics today of my gardens and my funny goats. I mulch my gardens down with the hay from the goats bedding, perfect fertilizer, keeps the moisture in and the weeds down. Plants seem to love it.

In the front, you see my pepper plants and in the back, my monster tomato plants:

And this one is my acorn squash on the right, and I think that's a burpless cucumber next to it, I normally keep a good log, but somehow I missed this one. Oh well, time will tell. 

And this is a sugar baby watermelon - there are so many of these, I'll be donating some to the local food pantry.

And finally a cute goat picture, because, well, why not? :)

Reviews: A Werewolf's Tale & A Werewolf's Struggle by Amber Taylor

A Werewolf's Tale
Paranormal/Horror/Graphic Violence
Adult

Blurb: Sara Stanton is just a girl trying to make it through high school with as little emotional scarring as possible. Her whole world is turned upside down when a stranger, Hank, appears claiming that she is a werewolf. 
Finding it to be true, she discovers it creates more problems than she can shake a stick at. For starters, her secret crush, Sam, won't leave her alone, talking about monsters killing local pets and wildlife, and admits he now seems drawn to her. This seems in line with the fact that although no one can put their finger on it, they sense something is different about her. Those are all trivial though compared to the unsettling voice in her head that seems to know her every move, every thought, and her secrets. Like a ghost, he's always lurking just out of view, terrifying her in her dreams. Is he a werewolf too, or something worse? 
Either way, Sara knows she'll eventually have to face him to save not only herself, but Sam as well. But what will be the cost?

Uncaged Review: This book is written in the first person narrative, and most of this book is written as the main character, Sara, writes in a diary/journal on a computer. It always takes me awhile to get into first person narratives, as you only see the world in one person’s perspective, but eventually, it works here. 

  Sara is a teenager, who is unpopular in school, a bit overweight and only has a couple of nerdy friends. When she is invited to a party in the woods, things get a bit out of hand, but a boy she has had a crush since grade school, finally begins talking to her, and lets her know what really happened at the party. In the meantime, a man named Hank shows up, and tries to convince Sara she’s a werewolf. Once Sara finally believes him, this is when the story finally gets moving. Sara has nightmares of a man with red hair, whose voice she hears in her head, and seems to know a bit too much - 

  I’m not going to give this story away, but I think the story really started moving along about halfway in, and

even though some of it was predictable, the suspense, and the action sequence near the back part of the book worked here. Be warned, it is graphic violence. Even though to a certain extent, it tied up it’s own storyline, it left it on a cliffhanger of sorts.  3 1/2 Stars

A Werewolf's Struggle

Paranormal/Horror/Graphic Violence

Adults

Blurb: Sara’s journey into the werewolf world continues and she would love to smack the crap out of Hollywood for getting so few things right. 

Trying to recover from the trauma of meeting her psychotic father, Angus, is just one of many issues she has to face. Her friend, Sam, needs to recover as well but he’s way beyond her in the damaged department. Or so she thinks. It doesn’t take long for her to discover that the two of them now share a connection that goes beyond the norm for even werewolves and not in a good way. Both seem to be carrying a piece of Angus’ not so nice personality traits which comes with a body count. Will she fight this connection and stay with her uncle to try and deal with the monster Sam’s become? Or will she follow him down a bloody trail in order to follow a destiny she may have been born for? 

Uncaged Review:  This book starts out where we left off in book one. It’s still first person narrative, but the diary/journel is gone. Now, after the trauma of her crazy father is over, Hank takes Sara back to the village where the rest of their kind live, to save her life, and to live. As Sara recovers, she begins to feel the connection to Sam, who is beyond  hope, according to Hank, but not to Sara. When she finds him, she feels it’s her mission to save him, as she believes it’s her fault that he was involved in the first place. This book actually was a bit faster paced, and there were a couple suspenseful twists that I didn’t predict this time. Sara is still her sarcastic self, and there is a bit of humor, and some heartbreak, but all-in-all, this was a good read. It kept my attention, even better than the first one. I wasn’t sure where the author was going in the first one, but this one ties it up a bit better and tightens the storyline. These are bloody, with graphic violence, so they are not for the faint of heart.  4 1/2 Stars

  The series on a whole is rated together, as I don’t think they read that well as standalones. Even though you could read the second book on it’s own, you would not get the full impact of the story without reading the 

first one. 4 Stars for the series on a whole.

Better Than Candy - Free short story by Myra Nour

Better Than Candy by Myra Nour
FREE SHORT STORY REVIEW
Genre: Horror/Gothic
Short Story
Free Read!!

From the start, I was yanked into this story – and I couldn’t stop reading. A young boy is hiding in his basement, trying to stay as quiet as he can, so the “monsters” upstairs won’t hear him. All the emotions and things he’s feeling, you are pulled right along with him. When he finally gets the courage to come out from his hiding place, things take a turn pretty fast.

This is a great short story, very mesmerizing. I had to read to the end without pause, and there is a twist to this story at the end that surprised me, and that’s not easy to do.

Honestly? I think this would be a great short story, that would be a perfect companion to a longer novel.

Uncaged Rating: 5 Stars

This is a FREE short story eBook! Get it HERE!

To See Reviews Updates..

Please check the tab above that says Requested Reviews. You'll see where I'm at with them. I'll keep this updated.

Legacy of Death by Myra Nour

(Science Fiction Short Story)

This is a short story, where the peaceful Wazee race, are explorers and scientists. They set down on a planet, that seems dead.

They find the remains of a being from a dead planet they land on, clutching a text in it's hands. When they take the text back to the ship and decipher it, the tale is very chilling.

Point of view switches between the wazee to the being who wrote the text, but it's easy to follow along. I don't want to give too much away, but the ending had a superb twist that I did not expect. Very original, very chilling, and a good short read.

Uncaged reviews - 5 Stars

Amazon Link

This review was also posted on Amazon.

A New Beginning...

I want to thank all the staff I worked with at BTS Book Reviews. Myra Nour, Dawn Seewer, Babs Hightower, Melanie Marsh, all the columnists that I truly enjoyed reading each issue, and the reviewers. You were all amazing, and taught me so much. I'm proud to call you all my friends. To all the wonderful authors that I worked with, thank you is not enough - but maybe Uncaged will be.

With the winding down of BTS Book Reviews, make sure you see the final issue at btsemag.com - and you will see the full page announcement for Uncaged. Uncaged is going to be a different magazine, with Author Features at the heart of the magazine. It's already getting some attention, and the first magazine will release on August 1st. I'm so excited that the authors I've already been talking to, are loving my vision. So get ready...August 1st will come quickly!

I will also open up this blog to authors who would like to be guests for a day - specially after the issue is released.

Uncaged Book Reviews Magazine...

The magazine is getting ready to begin! The first issue of Uncaged Book Reviews will feature authors, Danielle Devon, Darlene Kuncytes, Tessa McFionn, Jami Gray and Maggi Andersen!

I'm so excited for the very positive response from some great authors! Thanks for hanging in there - the magazine will release no later than August 1st - plans are for it to be bi-monthly, but if the response is great, we will go monthly! Woot!