Review: Surrender to Me by Shayla Black

Title: Surrender to Me
Author: Shayla Black
Genre: Contemporary Erotica, BDSM elements
Publisher: Berkley
Series: Wicked Lovers, #4

~ Blurb ~

A secret fantasy.

Hunter had everything until a bullet put his career as a Navy SEAL on hold. Restless and in need of distraction, he accepts an intriguing proposition. Restless and uncertain about his future, he accepts an intriguing proposition: share an acquaintance's girlfriend and fulfill her fantasy of a ménage. It should have been just a night of sexual adventure between three consenting adults. But Kata is like no other girl Hunter has ever met. By turns audacious and sexy, then vulnerable and aloof, she's a heartbreaker he's determined to master. But he needs more than one night. And he wants to do it alone.

An uncontrollable obsession.

Kata never expected to leave her comfortable relationship and explore something so dangerously forbidden with a stranger. Hard as she tries to resist, the guilty pleasure overwhelms her, and she surrenders herself, inch by inch, to the hardcore man who wants her for himself. Consumed by blazing desire, they're soon threatened by the shadows of the past. And now to keep Kata safe, Hunter makes her a bold proposition of his own. Saying yes will destroy her heart. But saying no could cost Kata her life.

Shayla Black has given readers of the Wicked Lovers series a book that ups the bar in a sexy D/s romance. I, personally, really enjoyed this new addition, but if you don't like over-the-top Dominants, you may be at the different end of the spectrum than me.

Book four of the Wicked Lovers series continues with giving us many of the elements that we've come to love and expect such as action-packed plots suspense, dynamic characters, strong woman and alpha men (ie. hot military men), and of course, some ultra delicious sex scenes! And I mean de-lic-ous. But it also delivers an edgier feel to the character dynamics.

Ms. Black brings a different feel, more intense and maybe more angsty?, to this book in terms of some societal connotations of BDSM and D/s relationships. For readers who have been following the series, like I had mentioned, Black brings a more intense feel to the relationship in this D/s dynamic. To give a comparison,  Hunter makes Jack Cole (Wicked Ties, book #1) look more compromising -- if that's possible. If readers were looking for Black to up the ante in Domination and submission, and you're a fan of a more intense relationship, you'll get it and love it.  

Surrender to Me also brings to the table a couple of new elements outside of the BDSM, D/s story. Themes incorporated in Surrender to Me, include woman self-conscious of their body image, the idea of 'love at first sight', on-the-whim weddings which lead to learning about their spouse after the altar, the idea that if you hold something too tight you may loose it, and the understanding of what BDSM really is when one of the people comes from a very emotionally abusive home.

Kata (Katalina) Munoz is one sassy heroine who has a naughty little secret. She confides in her male friend-with-benefits that she's always harbored a fantasy of being with two men. So, for her birthday, Ben surprises Kata with a party in Vegas and another man willing to be the second man in Kata's fantasy: Hunter Edington (Decadent, book 2, and Delicious, book 3). 

Immediately there is an enormous attraction between Kata and Hunter. For Kata, it's a strong desire and attraction. For Hunter, it's love at first site. Kata is like no other woman Hunter has ever met -- and he's been searching for quite some time, which makes this Dominant alpha male even more so. After a night out on the Vegas strip, Kata and Hunter find themselves husband and wife. The question is .. was it really meant to be? Was it fate to find one another then end up inexplicably bound to each other? Or was it a disaster in the making?

"You know this marriage thing is a train wreck waiting to happen?"

He laughed. "Or the adventure of our lives."

And an adventure it is! During the delicate time of trying to figure things out and what to do about their hasty marriage, Kata finds herself the target of an assassin. Hunter, being the possessive and protective Navy SEAL military man that he is, does everything in his power to keep her safe. But, Kata's issues of watching her mom in a controlling and emotionally and verbally abusive relationship blurs the line for her between domination in the bedroom and abuse. Despite the fact that she is a submissive!! (Many reviews out there are NOT letting readers know this fact! If you understand and/or read power exchange or D/s, or BDSM genres, you will pick up on this!)

Hunter and Kata have a lot to figure out, all while trying to keep out of the sight of an assassin. But in the end, it's a matter of if Kata is willing to accept her husband's possessive, dominant ways, no matter how much both are in love with one another.

As always, Ms. Black knows how to really show us the characters through words. From body language, dialogue, interactions with others, and clothing -- each character has their own space in the pages that seem to come to life through description.

One of the aspects of this particular story that I enjoyed was how the author explored the dynamics of a Dominant/submissive relationship, and the different 'shades' that a D/s relationship can be found in. It's really brought to life in the fact that Kata comes from a very emotional and verbally abusive home, and even though she is submissive to the core, she doesn't understand her natural tendencies which often leave her confused, hurt, and running from herself -- and Hunter.

As much as it pained her to admit that Hunter was right, in her deepest, darkest fantasies Kata had imagined being overpowered and restrained. Imagining him dominating her, securing his ropes around her wrists and taking her at will, only turned her ache into an unrelenting throb.

Hunter is unrelenting and persistent. He's unapologetic towards who and what he is. He knows what he's been searching for -- and Kata is it. While some readers may feel as though Hunter acts too quickly in his feelings and marriage, I feel that in real life, these type of situations seem plausible to me due to the time constraints with military deployment and being away from home so often. 

In case you hadn’t guessed yet, I’m generally a relentless guy. You have to be, in my line of work.

It's here that Ms. Black delivers a more edgier erotic story with an alpha hero who puts the Dom in dominant! Despite Kata's fear of her submission, Hunter is not willing to let her run!

Hunter grabbed her hips and waited. His little spitfire wanted to give in -- he could feel her need -- but that independent mind of hers, riddles with whatever scars she carried, kept asserting itself, shutting off trust before she could truly grant it. He understood; she was having difficulty reconciling what she wanted with what she though she should want. Hunter planned to get to the bottom of that contradiction ASAP.

However, despite his possessive ways, Hunter is protective, caring, loving, and utterly devoted to Kata. 

“You’re so beautiful,” he whispered.

Hunter made her feel that way, like a goddess. She loved the way he seemed crazy with desire for her. 

He takes care of not only Kata, but everything that she loves as well, including her mother stuck in that horrible emotionally abusive marriage. He shows Kata that he's multi-faceted, and not as controlling as she had originally thought. In fact, in the end, Hunter puts Kata in front of his own desires, wants, and needs and makes the ultimate sacrifice for her. Something that will pull at the heart-strings of readers who haven't given up on the Hunter/Kata relationship by the end. 

While, for me, sometimes Kata does seem to get a little too 'scared', constantly hiding her true feelings behind a wall of 'sass', and whishy-washy in her feelings of submitting to Hunter, her personality lines up perfectly with her feelings and misunderstandings of herself and the situations she finds herself in. And, if the reader really pays attention, Ms. Black slowly reveals her total submission to Hunter in a way that shows that the two characters really are meant for one another.

As for the chemistry between the two -- definitely hot when Kata and Hunter aren't having their arguments about submission, and Kata finally submits. The scenes keep true to form of the erotic romance that Ms. Black is known for delivering! Readers will get a smorgasbord of sex acts -- spanking, bondage, sex toys, anal sex, and a whole lot of domination. The fact that this book is written with BDSM elements missing from the last two books of the series, makes it that much better for me, personally.

The ending was completely unexpected and great! The only complaint I have with it was that it wasn't long enough! It worked. I felt the total feel of closure. It's just that I wanted ... more. More dialogue maybe? 

Readers who have been following the series will see all our favs from previous books make cameo (and some longer) appearances: Deke and Kimber, Jack and Morgan, Tyler, Luc, and even Logan! And, OMG!! I can NOT freaking wait for Logan's book!!! If I have any foretelling skills in me, I see one hot, and serious BDSM book in our future!! Please?? :)

In conclusion, Surrender to Me is another great addition to the Wicked Lovers series, but brings with it a whole new feel that some readers will enjoy and others will not. I feel as though Ms. Black has given us an edgier installment filled with the submission of a scared -- and scarred -- sub to one unrelenting, possessive Dom, and the journey they find in learning about and caring for one another after a hasty marriage. There's ups-and-downs, twists-and-turns, and a whole lot of delicious and intense erotic intimacy found between the covers of Surrender to Me. 


While I enjoyed this book, I would recommend readers who are not familiar with this series to not start with it. For one, this is edgier than the other books in the series which, like I stated earlier, may not be the right 'fit' for some readers. Secondly, a lot of secondary characters from previous books make appearances that may not give readers the 'connection' and 'family-feel' if you're not familiar with them.


In addition, while I personally enjoyed this installment (Wicked Ties, book #1, still remains my favorite), readers who are not fans of over-the-top dominant heroes will more-than-likely not. Also, if you're reading this bottom part of the review without having read the first part, I would recommend you scroll to the top and do so, so you know what to expect to find between the covers of Surrender to Me.