Review: Theirs to Keep by Maya Banks

Theirs to Keep (Tangled Hearts Trilogy, #3) by Maya Banks
Published on October 22, 2013

About the book
When Cade Winslow and Merrick Sullivan find Elle hiding in the cabinet of a gun store, they know they can’t just walk away from the fragile woman with no memory of who she is or who tried to kill her. Merrick is training for the title shot in the heavyweight division as a mixed martial artist and can’t afford distractions, but neither can he turn his back on the woman who tugs at his heartstrings.

Elle feels safe with her two protectors, and the longer she spends with them, the more she realizes that she has no desire to remember her past. Not when it could compromise her future with Cade and Merrick.

Cade has his own set of concerns when it comes to Elle, and it quickly becomes clear to the two men that for the first time in their friendship, a woman is coming between them. But what if they just kept her there? Between them. Where she belongs.

My Thoughts:
I have a love/hate relationship with Maya Banks so I was a little scared to pick up her newest trilogy.  While this wasn't exactly what I was hoping for it was interesting and I am left wondering how certain things will play out with the addition of new characters in the sequel.  So yes I am in it for the long haul.

Theirs to Keep isn't a simple story.  This first book in the trilogy introduces us to Cade, Merrick, and Elle.  Three people whose lives are turned upside down after just one night.  Elle wakes up beaten and shot and knows she has to go somewhere safe.  She does the only thing she can think of an breaks into a store to hopefully get some sleep.  This particular store is monitored by Cade and Merrick and when they go to check out why the alarm tripped they find Elle hidden in a cabinet trying to stay safe.  This is the night that changes everything.  Both men want to make her safe, they don't care what happened in her past, they just want to make sure her future is a safe one so they take her home.  Things get interesting as you can guess after that.

The flow of the story was a little slow I won't lie. Nothing much happens other than what you would expect.  Yes they all three want each other in more ways than one and yes they do find a way to become a unit.  What makes the story grab you is Elle's background.  I am very curious about her and I want to know what her history is.  If the summary of the sequel is any indication we are in for a very bumpy ride.  I have no idea how Ms. Banks plans to iron everything out and honestly I am a little scared.  

My favorite character was Merrick.  He is the MMA fighter and well I have a soft spot for any guy who is a fighter.  Cade was a great character too, but Merrick would have been the one for me.  I was glad to see him step up and not let his emotions get the better of him.  He needed to fight and I was happy that he did.

Elle needs to grow a little bit more of a backbone though.  I know that these two strong men want to take care of her, but she needs to grow up and learn to take care of herself.  Yes she has been through a very tough time, but I want her to learn from it and be stronger for herself.  I think the whole "Me man I take over" scenario is going to turn off some readers, but if you can get past that then this might work for you.  I have learned that with this authors works this is usually the case with the characters so you have to let it go.

This trilogy promises to be all kinds of craziness and I honestly wouldn't expect anything less from Maya Banks. Theirs to Keep is a good start to what I think will be an interesting series.

3 Suns