**You can see this full review and more at Book Briefs: https://bookbriefs.net**

Breaking Cage is a lot of things rolled into one book. First and foremost it is a standalone contemporary sports romance by author A.J. Pryor. But it is also a mystery and suspense story. I think this will have crossover appeal to lots of people. I think both fans of new adult as well as adult romances will enjoy Breaking Cage. I also think that fans of both mysteries and sports romances will enjoy this story, even if you only consider yourself a fan of one or the other. This is my first book by A.J. Pryor and I think she does an excellent job blending the genres together to make a really great story.

Breaking Cage is Hannah and Derek's story. I have really been into reporter stories this year. I think this is a new thing in 2016 because I have been reading tons of new adult newbie reporter stories, where hte main character is trying to land a job or trying to get their first big break of their career, and I have to say I have enjoyed them all. (some others I have read lately are: Lessons In Gravity by Megan Westfield, and Playing By Her Rules by Amy Andrews) There is just something special about Breaking Cage and about Hannah and Derek. They drew me in right from the very first page.

What I really liked about Hannah and Derek is that they put their cards out on the table for everyone to see. They weren't keeping a bunch of secrets or hiding the ball as to what their end game was. Derek knew Hannah was trying to put a story together, and I really liked that. So many times I see people keeping this secret that just snowballs and always caused more problems than were necessary. What was a surprise was the mystery/suspense element thrown in. I really enjoyed that in this sports romance. I am not sure I have ever read that genre combo in a story, and I really dug it. I thought it was super well done and it has made me want to come back and grab another AJ Pryor book. I did notice a few sports related discrepancies throughout the book, but they didn't bother me too much. (I can see this being a bigger problem for a die hard sports fan that is picky about team matchups, rivalries and things like that.)

Bottom line: I loved that this was a character driven story. If you are a fan of character driven sports romances with a little mystery and suspense thrown in to keep things extra interesting, Breaking Cage is a great book for you to add to your TBR list. I really enjoyed this one.

This review was originally posted on Book Briefs