This review may contain spoilers, so fair warning, upon reading the review.
About The Book
He calls me perfect.
His flawless pet.
His good girl.
Broken down and wounded by my emotionally neglectful ex, I wanted someone to tell me I was good enough.
Then, I stumbled into a new job with a boss who brings me to my knees—literally. He has me do things a real secretary would never do.
Emerson Grant tells me I’m more than just good enough.
I’m worthy of his praise.
There are a million reasons why I should stay away. The owner of the Salacious Players’ Club is not just my new boss, he’s twice my age.
And my ex-boyfriend’s father.
With him, I am treasured. I am adored. I am his.
I’m a good girl, but I’m falling for the wrong man.
Emerson Grant knows what he wants—
And he wants me.
So how far will I go to hear his approval?
You made me very proud today. And you are more than enough. You are perfect.
My Review
First Impressions
Praise is the first book in the Salacious Player’s Club by Sara Cate, and I will admit that I picked this up as a random pick. I have seen this book everywhere all over bookstagram and booktube and I knew that I needed to grab it and I finally caved and decided to read it and I definitely had a blast with this one. I didn’t know much about this book other than it had “praise” kink in it and I was so curious to see how this would be implemented, I do know that there are elements of forbidden and taboo. I wouldn’t call this a dark romance, but a edgier contemporary romance. This set up is quite interesting, as it features a boss and employee type of set up, with an age gap and elements of forbidden themes. It has a level of intensity that will immediately draw the reader into the story and you definitely won’t want to put this one down. It did have a more slow build to the romance than I personally expected, but this method allowed the story to have more depth and growth to it. Its going to be a story that will captivate many especially if these types of themes work for you.
He’s just soft enough to be cozy and strong enough to be chiseled. I seriously don’t think a man’s arms have ever been so inviting.
Summary
Charlotte is recovering from her breakup with her ex, when she moves out of their apartment, she insists on her share of the deposit, which his father has, and as he hasn’t spoken to his father in months, he insists that she go and get it herself. When she goes to her ex’s father’s home, she doesn’t expect such a lavish home or to be surprised by his commanding presence or to find herself kneeling at his command and enjoying the praise that he gives her, in a way she has never felt so satisfied or warmed by. Emerson is the CEO of a new BDSM club, and he has a certain kink where he likes to give praise to his submissives, and not knowing who Charlie is, he doesn’t realize that she isn’t one of the women that his friends send his way, but is in fact his son’s ex-girlfriend. But before Charlie knows it, Emerson is offering her an official job as his secretary, and even though she tries to maintain a professional relationship with Emerson, she can’t deny how she feels around him or learning more about this kink where she is starting to see a new side of herself that is awakening around Emerson. But as tensions and chemistry rise between Emerson and Charlotte, and the taste of forbidden is too tempting, they will have to learn to fight for the love that share in each other no matter how forbidden it may seem to the outside world..,..
She’s too perfect to ignore and too forbidden to be mine.
What I Loved
There was something so unique about this book and I was on the edge all the way through. There was such a fresh feel to this BDSM romance that really worked so well. Sara Cate has written a brilliant story here that I couldn’t resist and I just wanted more of. I was so curious to see how this story would be built. I really liked the set up of seeing the Salacious Player’s Club, and being introduced to so many fun characters and I can’t wait for their stories. We also see such a solid winning romance between Emerson and Charlotte. There is an age gap as Charlotte is 21 and Emerson is 40. There is also the taboo as Charlotte was in a relationship with Emerson’s son. Now there is no cheating at all in this one, as Charlotte has ended the relationship with Emerson’s son and they don’t get intimate for a while through the story. It does take some time for the sexual play to actually happen. Which I felt was needed to see the slower built in their relationship. I did really love the praise kink and I NEED more of this in BDSM. There were so many tender sweet moments between these two. I was really intrigued to see how it would be played out in their relationship. I liked that it was sexual play for them and that there were plenty of moments of normalcy in their relationship. We get some fun scenes at the club and I was intrigued by the side characters we get introduced to and what may be in the next books ahead.
“You’re such a good girl, Charlotte.” My shoulders relax, seeming to melt down at my sides as I gaze up at him, those beautiful words washing over me like warm water. Suddenly, I’m all gooey and compliant, like that one little phrase put me in a trance. He could literally do anything to me in this state.
What I Struggled With
There wasn’t really much, it did have some slower moments in the beginning, but it built up pace very quickly
Overall View
Praise is a delectable BDSM romance that has a fresh flair of classy sensuality and deep driven emotion which will pull the reader instantly in, its a story that will capture your senses and stun your heart into beautiful submission!
“And while there are a hundred things to say, there is also nothing left to say, no words that will make this situation make sense beyond I want you, I need you, I love you. And that’s all that matters to me.
Title: Praise
Author: Sara Cate
Genre: BDSM Contemporary Romance
Format: eBook
Source: Kindle Unlimited
Length: 341 Pages
Book Links
Amazon| Barnes and Noble| Goodreads| LibraryThing| StoryGraph| Literal Club
Book Evaluation
Storytelling Quality: 4.5
Story Itself: 4.5
Character Development: 5
Writing Style: 4.5
World Building 4.5
Feels + The Romantic Heart 5
Pacing 4
Plot 5
Cover Art 5
Ending 5
Book Ratings
Overall Rating of the Book
Steam Level
Simmering—soft warm touches and light intimacy
Warm- a medium level of sexual tension, a balance of sexual and emotional intimacy, lighter on the details in the sexual moments.
Steamin’ up the room -the sexual content is more explicit in the language and tone, heavier amount of sexual scenes.
Blazing fire to the building-The prime focus is the sex scenes, scorching hot, and could burn one. Less focus on the emotional intimacy to the relationship.
Series Order
Salacious Players Club
Praise-Pub 2022 #1 in the Series
Eyes on Me-Pub 2022 #2 in the Series
Give Me More-Pub 2022 #3 in the Series
About The Author
Sara Cate is a USA Today best-selling author of steamy romance and sexy book boyfriends. Although she writes a wide range of tropes, Sara is best known for her age gap and taboo romances. One thing you can expect from her entire collection is heaps of steam and plenty of angst.
Living in Arizona with her husband and kids, Sara spends most of her time reading, writing, or baking.
I adored this so much. We need to see more Of this. Loved everything about it, including how BDSM can function with sex, but still be intimate and sexy.