Calista Taylor

Dr. Cat Ross is in Scotland to research the whereabouts of the Highland Hope, a priceless bejeweled necklace with significant historical value. She needs help from the MacCraigh clan since she suspects the necklace is hidden somewhere on their property. She just didn’t expect to have a flat tire as she’s driving up to meet the family, nor did she think a gorgeous man in the Jag would nearly run her over.
Iain MacCraigh is the laird of the clan, he’s some type of businessman (real show more estate, I think), and he’s in charge of taking care of his immediate family even though his father is still alive and well. He has a lot of responsibility and only dates models. After he leaves an angry woman on the road to deal with a flat tire herself, he didn’t expect to later find her in his castle talking with his dad.
Iain and Cat have great chemistry and the sexual tension was off the charts, but they argued a lot. They’re both stubborn and their tempers often clashed, which sometimes made them unlikable. Iain is dealing with family issues—his unrepentant brother owes a million plus dollars to some criminals—and Cat can’t escape the clutches of her ex-boyfriend, a fellow colleague who is determined to claim the discovery of the necklace for himself.
I enjoyed the mystery of the necklace, and Iain and Cat’s search for it, but there were a lot of starts and stops to finding it. I mean, they would discover a clue and then suddenly have to stop searching because something would distract them. Again and again. This made the story drag a little.
I liked the way the author weaved the historical information about the Jacobites into the story without coming across as lecturing in big info dumps. I find this time-period in Scottish history very interesting, so I loved all the references and facts thrown in.
Even though everything is wrapped up at the end, I don’t like how Iain’s brother doesn’t get in trouble for his mistakes. It’s obvious he’ll cause more problems in the future and that makes for a loose end when it comes to Iain and Cat’s HEA, in my opinion.
Overall, I enjoyed the romance and especially the mystery. I like the writing style, I didn’t find any typos, and would like to read more from the author.
3 Stars show less

This book was the tale of Cat who travels to the Highlands to solve the mystery of The Highand Hope a diamond necklace lost since the time of the Jacobite uprising. However it really didn't feel real to me and although pleasant enough I'm glad it was a free download as I wouldn't have paid for it. The sporadic use of 'Scots' language just feels clumsy and out of place, does anyone really think that we speak like that, I sincerely hope not!!

the romance aspect is too obvious and more akin to a show more Mills and Boon. Sorry but I would avoid her books in future show less

There was one saying and voice inside my head while reading Taken back. I heard Oprah saying: "Live your truth." There were many uncomfortable subjects faced in authors Julie Farrell and Cali McKay's latest romance. However the ability to be true to yourself was the biggest obstacle. Factor in murder, betrayal and Nathan and Jax's are not all that different from most couples. I received an ARC of Taken Back in exchange for an honest review. Though not my normal reading material, it lived up show more to the skill of each author. show less

A review of this book causes an interesting dilemma for me. I found the romantic scenes extremely exciting, yet the characters were not well developed. All the main characters were exceedingly stubborn to the point of being a little dim-witted.

The mystery, on the other hand, had me absolutely enthralled. I was sure I knew the killer and his motives (never the same) as each new piece of evidence was found. The true murderer and the true motives came as a bit of a shock!

I think Calista show more Taylor has the potential to take these characters to the next level, especially if she can find a way to make the characters as complex as her murder plot...

Other things I noticed:
1) lots of typos, missed words, etc.
2) All the important action happens near the end, leaving the reader with a slightly anticlimatic feeling.
3) that obnoxious Gaelic accent sounds aweful in my head, and wasn't pleasant... or necessary.

But I enjoyed it. show less