Separated twin sisters are reunited at Christmas in these two connected novellas
One Silent Night
Framed for murder and on the run from her kidnappers, Vanessa Jackson secretly hides her infant son in a safe place and flees for a wooded cabin. There she finds her childhood friend Eric Tomlin—a man she must trust with her life…and her family's future.
The Danger in the Manger
Alyssa Jackson is shocked to find a baby in her Christmas manger. But the message on the infant's T-shirt tells Alyssa the child must be her nephew. Alyssa believes her twin sister, presumed dead for years, is still alive. With the help of handsome police officer Chris Jensen, Alyssa goes on a dangerous search for the truth to reunite her family for Christmas.
4.5 stars Loved the stories of two sisters, separated for eight years by kidnappers. My favorite sister was Vanessa, but my favorite moment was tennis balls as weapons! I really enjoyed the figuring out the criminals and how the two stories tied together.
One Silent Night: she was kidnapped from work 8 years previously. Most everyone assumed she was probably dead. Vanessa appears one night out of nowhere. Eric was in love with her in high school but had trouble admitting it to her. After she disappeared he felt horrible for never telling her his true feelings. Now she's back and needs his help bringing about some justice. This was a great story.
The Danger in the Manger:
Alyssa threw herself into her statue business after her sister disappeared 8 years ago. Now she's enjoying her success although sometimes there are more bills than money. Their Grandfather passed away and left everything to the two sisters, so she lives in the little family cottage and has a workshop where she pours her statues into their molds. There's also a secret behind a locked door. When she finds a baby in her Manger, she isn't quite sure what to think, especially since the T-shirt he is wearing says he's DNA will prove he belongs to her. That could only mean that her sister is still alive, but why would she leave her baby in Alyssa's care? She has no clue how to care for a baby, that was Vanessa's area of expertise.
Enter Chris Jensen. He's a police office who's been watching Alyssa for a while, trying to determine if she is involved in a drug smuggling ring. When she calls in the strange sounds in her yard, Chris comes to the rescue. And when she can't figure out how to make the baby stop crying, he's there to help her out. Together they work on the mystery of the baby in the manger and what it could all mean. Then someone breaks into her workshop and everything changes.
Loved this great set of stories by Rachelle McCalla.
I love the concept of these companion novellas about twin sisters Vanessa and Alyssa, which dealt with kidnapping, human trafficking, and drug smuggling. I like how the storylines intertwined, and the Biblical sparrow reference was a nice motif. However, I wanted to spend more time with these characters, and the ending came off as being really abrupt. Two novels would have been a better choice.
This is my first time reading this type of 'Suspenful Loved Inspired' book. It was very impressive, intensely heart-pounding scary. Packed with high energy scenes, actions and near death situations.
Rachelle McCalla I really enjoyed these two stories.Mystery,Suspense and thrills.With a really good romance thrown in..and faith.What more could anyone ask for.
Twin Threat Christmas is two stories in one book by Rachelle McCalla. Both stories are suspense. One Silent Night is about the one twin named Vanessa. Eight years ago she was kidnapped. This group kidnapped women and sold them. A guy UNDER the head guy in charge wanted to keep Vanessa for himself. He kept her in the basement. They ended up having three kids. She finally escaped with the three children. At the same time the head guy killed the guy who kept Vanessa. They were also into drugs. Vanessa left her baby in the manager of her twin sister, Alyssa's yard. She watched to make sure her twin found the baby. Vanessa then went off to a cabin in the woods her grandfather owned. When Vanessa and the two older children arrived they found a old high school friend living there. With his help and police they get the BIG boss. Danger In The Manger is about the other twin Alyssa. Drug dealers are hiding drugs in lamb statues that Alyssa makes. They do it at night and Alyssa doesn't know about it. Police are watching Alyssa. A police office helps her when she finds the baby. He believes she has nothing to do with the drugs and help catch the drug dealers. This book held my interest. Very good.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
SPOILER WARNING!!!!!!! There is no way this book could be reviewed otherwise. This book has two stories. The first, "One Silent Night" is a great, tight mystery. The second, with the all-so-cute title, "Danger in the Manger," is probably the stupidest thing I have read in all the years of reading these "Love Inspired Suspense stories. It is improbable enough that twins who have not seen each other for eight years would both have criminals after them and also find their soul mates, but this story heaps improbability upon improbability [though each, by itself, is possible, if not probable] - the most improbable being a high speed overland chase between an ATV and a Jeep, and a woman who is so timid and so inept she does not know how to burp a baby suddenly turning into Lara Croft, and launching herself out the window of a moving Jeep - not to mention her trying to stop a fleeing "bad guy" by throwing tennis balls at him. There are more, but who cares. If this book is to be read, limit reading to the first story.
From the cover: Separated twin sisters are reunited at Christmas in these two connected novellas
One Silent Night
Framed for murder and on the run from her kidnappers, Vanessa Jackson secretly hides her infant son in a safe place and flees for a wooded cabin. There she finds her childhood friend Eric Tomlin—a man she must trust with her life…and her family's future.
The Danger in the Manger
Alyssa Jackson is shocked to find a baby in her Christmas manger. But the message on the infant's T-shirt tells Alyssa the child must be her nephew. Alyssa believes her twin sister, presumed dead for years, is still alive. With the help of handsome police officer Chris Jensen, Alyssa goes on a dangerous search for the truth to reunite her family for Christmas
I found the short novellas easy and fast to read. I really wish though that the books were longer and had more content. It was unbelievable that so much happened in 24 hours.
Twin sisters - one framed for murder, the other suspected of smuggling drugs. Both women must learn to trust someone new in order to be reunited and to protect the family they each love. Will they be able prove their innocence and help put away the men responsible?
These exciting stories had me hooked from page one, and they tie together beautifully. My only complaint is the book ended much too soon.
"McCalla delivers two related holiday-themed novellas that draw you in with their fast, consistent pace. The characters remind the reader about the importance of holding on to hope" (RT Book Reviews, 4 stars).
I enjoyed this book. It was two stories in one and a quick read. I was also pleasantly surprised to find it was spiritual. I was not expecting to find scripture in this book but they presented it all in a lovely way. I am glad my local library had a copy!
Twin sisters, Vanessa and Alyssa, were separated eight years ago when Vanessa was kidnapped. Twin Threat Christmas is two stories in one. The first story is from Vanessa's perspective and the second from Alyssa's perspective all in one chaotic day. Sorry, but not my favorite from Ms. McCalla.