Format read: ebook provided by the author
Genre: Erotic/BDSM/Ménage/romance
Release Date: May 8th 2012
Number of pages: 177 pages
Publisher: Samhain Publishing, Ltd
Formats available: ebook
Purchasing Info: Goodreads, Author’s Website, Publisher’s Website, Amazon,

Book Blurb:
All fire and gunpowder need is a stray spark…

The Connaghers, Book 3

The day one of her old clients gunned down a cop, former defense attorney Vicki Connagher lost everything—her passion for justice, and her lover, Detective Elias Reyes. The dead cop’s partner.

Even though she’s following her dream to start her own fashion line, it’s tough with heartache as her only companion. Until she brings Jesse, a wandering street artist, in from a freak Texas snowstorm. His submissive flirting brings out dominant tendencies she never knew she possessed, yet she hesitates to let him take her as far and as hard as she wants to go.

Some homeless junkie in Vicki’s house? Not on Elias’s watch. Pride kept him away, but as long as Jesse is staying in Vicki’s downstairs shop, he’s staying with Vicki. On the couch, but it’s a start.

As the days go by, the three work out an uneasy alliance. But Vicki’s joy at having Elias back in her life is tempered with a growing desire to have it all. Elias in her bed, and Jesse under her command. The only question remaining is if her tough alpha cop is willing to embrace all that she is…

Product Warnings
Explicit sex, BDSM, a tough alpha cop, a reluctant Domme, and a smoldering submissive street artist willing to do anything to belong to her.

Our Thoughts:

Susi: Yours To Take is the third installment in Burkhart’s Connagher series. Even though we meet the previous leading characters in this book can be read as a standalone novel. Our leading character this time is Vicki, the third Connagher sibling. In the previous books her character was always kept a bit of secret. We never really knew what to expect of her so our curiosity and expectations were high.

Caro: I remember squeeeing about this book 2 years ago when Joely Sue Burkhart announced that Vicki’s book would be a ménage. We sure didn’t know anything else about her apart from the fact she was the sister. I have been waiting for this book for soooooooo long, maybe I was expecting too much.

Susi: Vicki just had a big change in her life. She worked as a lawyer in a big firm but when one of her client killed a cop? she decided to stop her current career and do what she always wanted to- starting her own fashion line. Vicki is a headstrong and determined person. She’s not without failure but she knows her strength and how to put them to good use.I admired her for her strength even what happened. I liked her as a person. She isn’t only a cold hearted lawyer. No she has a big heart and a compulsion to do all she can to help people in need. She’s a wonderful person I really could imagine to befriend.

Caro: I really liked the setting. Vicki is trying to realize her dream. I loved that she wasn’t a whiny and clingy heroine. She’s strong and vulnerable at the same time. She is trying to build herself a new life after the incident that lead to a breakdown. I was so excited about this fashion line idea. When the idea of making the line a BDSM friendly line of clothes I was hooked! I thought it was a fantastic idea and I was waiting to see how that would work out. BUT…It felt flat. The only BDSM part of the clothes were things to bind hands or use as collars. I don’t know what more I was expecting but I wanted to be surprised LOL. Also it felt unfinished.

Susi: What I really didn’t like about this whole fashion line thing is that first we never really found out why she wanted to do it and on the other hand when that BDSM part came in it felt as if she got robbed of her idea. Yes, it’s nice and kinky and I love the idea in general but well it wasn’t her idea. She let other people change her dream. I think this made even more not seem like HER dream to me. Elias on the other hand was really my kind of guy. I love these strong and no bullshit heroes. Yes, he was a bit of an asshole at times but he made up for it with being hot as hell. Now that I think of it he reminds me a bit of those guys who can’t say the big L word but rather say you smell good. LOL But it worked for me. He showed his affections for Vicki and that’s enough for me. He has a strong sense of right and wrong and I loved his dedication for his job.

Caro: Yessss Elias!! Seriously the best part of the book. I loved him to pieces. Big Alpha guy who makes Vicki submit to him. I loved that he wanted her to fight him for dominance. The scenes between them were just the best. Best smex too! Oh my so hot! He sometimes acted like a jerk but his reactions were not without reasons. He is afraid of commitment because he is a cop and he doesn’t want to make the woman he loves suffer. He really thinks that not making their relationship more official would keep her from getting hurt. I admit that I have some trouble imagining him being so open to the whole Jesse thing. It didn’t feel completely realistic.

Susi: I do agree about that. Those scenes just took my breath away. I loved how they struggled. Jesse, on teh other hand was a whole different man. He’s cute and I wanted to cuddle him really bad- but well he probably would have prefered a spanking. I loved his character- a guy who cares with all his heart and is so just nice that you are scared someone will hurt him. He awakens the savior in you and well I do approve.

Caro: Jesse didn’t work for me. I liked him and yes I wanted to save him but I kept thinking he was going to kill her in her sleep LOL. I think it’s just that I prefer my men dominant and his complete submissiveness left me cold.

Susi: The problem I had with the Jesse factor is that his troubled past made everything so complicated. It’s a nice twist but it never got really solved. I would have loved to see more of the actually counselling on how to handle the situation. It felt like Vicki was reluctant to do something, then we are told there is counseling and bam she is now actually doing it. It didn’t really work that way. I wanted to SEE how they worked through it to believe the connection between them.

Caro: Exactly! It felt rushed and like scenes were missing. I wanted more of this Sub/dominant relationship. Vicki IS a reluctant dominant she doesn’t know what she’s doing and like you said, BAM she’s doing it. Jesse kept saying he wanted all she could give him. He sounded so needy I was hoping for some serious BDSM but it all felt so tamed in the end. Once again I think I was expecting too much.

Susi: If there would have been more BDSM action with him it wouldn’t have worked either because the reader missed the part where he works through his past and they both accept their sexual role as it is. Would really have loved some more insight there.

Caro: Ok I have to say what really disappointed me. I thought this would be a ménage story. I mean a real ménage. But all we get is a woman with 2 lovers nearly not sharing anything the 3 of them together. The last scene was a good start for this relationship but BAM the end!

Susi: I did feel like you about that but again with Elias position on this matter it would have been awkward. There were those scenes where they all three were in the same room and I have to say it made me pretty uncomfortable. Not because it wasn’t hot- it definitely was- but more because I didn’t feel like it would do much for Elias. It wasn’t balanced out enough in the relationship between them.

Caro: It did feel awkward. Both men had trouble sharing this woman and I was hoping they would work through this.

Susi: Yeah the resolution was what I missed too. The end made it feel so rushed and sneaky me wanted to see more of how this would actually work.

Caro: Yep same here. I just wanted more!

Verdict:
Susi: First I have to say how much I loved the previous books in this series and perhaps that is why my expectations were so high for this one. Vicki, Elias and Jesse have a complicated relationship which I could easily imagine to create enough tension and intrigue to fill this book. But for me there wasn’t enough focus on the characters and their relationship to each other. The emotional connection to them wasn’t explored to the extent I wished for. I would have loved to see more of the behind-the-scenes action. Yours To Take is not a bad book at all- I actually breathed it in but I always kept waiting for more.

I give Yours To Take 3 stars.

Caro: I had too high expectations and it left me wanting. I LOVED the previous books in this series. I really liked the setting of Yours to Take and it had a lot of potential but I needed MORE. It’s still very sexy and has loveable characters but I just needed more.

I give Yours to Take 3 Stars.

About Caro The HEA Lover

Caroline is a HEA loving, yarn addicted French who's desperately hoping to get a HEA of her own. If she's not reading then she can be found knitting while listening to Audiobooks or watching Tv shows. Her secret addiction is reading websites that make fun at other people's expense (DYAC, Failbook)! Caroline also blogs at the Secret HEA Society with Susi.

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