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midnightrose_reads's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Highest Bidder is the fifth book in the Salacious Players Club series. It’s about the richest man that attends the club, 56 year old Ronan Kade, who we’ve met in previous installments. Daisy is a 21 year old drinks server at Salacious, who is more connected to Ronan than he knows. After he wins a date with Daisy (who lost a bet with her friend the bartender Geo to get up on the auction block) they begin an intense amount of time together with him inviting her to live with him in his penthouse, a trip to Paris, and him helping her discover her kinky side.
This is another winning addition in this series! Sara always infuses these books with emotion, big heart, and steam, and this one was no exception. Ronan and Daisy are two people with hidden grief, who find understanding with each other which was beautiful to read.
This is another winning addition in this series! Sara always infuses these books with emotion, big heart, and steam, and this one was no exception. Ronan and Daisy are two people with hidden grief, who find understanding with each other which was beautiful to read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Grief, Medical content, Death of parent, and Cursing
Moderate: Child death and Death
Minor: Child abuse
_charliesbookshelf's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Firstly I want to say that it’s so good to be back in the world of SPC and I LOVED how the Sara (author) included a recap for the previous books. This was such a small detail but it was so thoughtful and awesome to read!!!!
Now that’s out of the way let’s get to talking about the actual story. After a bet goes wrong Fmc Daisy finds herself on the auction block at SPC. Not expecting any interest Daisy is surprised when there’s a bidding war between to men for an hour date with her.
Ultimately billionaire Ronan Kade wins the auction. Interesting because he’s the reason she’s working at the club. Daisy goes looking for answers and gets so much more. Once getting to know Ronan, Daisy finds out he’s not what she expected.
As with all the SPC books I throughly enjoyed this book too. Sara Cate has an amazing ability of merging spice, drama and whirlwind emotions/situations together in a way that’s not only entertaining, seamless but it’s leaves you wanting more. I really enjoyed exploring the new side of kinks within this series, loving when “Daddy” Ronan helps Daisy to explore her sexuality and how Daisy gets a taste of the extremely sought after pleasure dom.
While I find most SPC books can be read as individual books this one does have spoilers about the previous books so I’d definitely recommend reading the others first. That being said I adored reading this book and I’d certainly recommend reading it and the series if you like taboo romance. 🔥
🔞 Warning this book contains explicit content and tropes not everyone may like. My page is a no-hate zone. Don’t ick someone’s yum.
Tropes include but aren’t limited to:
- Age gap (30+ Years)
- Daddy kink
- Insta-love/attraction
Now that’s out of the way let’s get to talking about the actual story. After a bet goes wrong Fmc Daisy finds herself on the auction block at SPC. Not expecting any interest Daisy is surprised when there’s a bidding war between to men for an hour date with her.
Ultimately billionaire Ronan Kade wins the auction. Interesting because he’s the reason she’s working at the club. Daisy goes looking for answers and gets so much more. Once getting to know Ronan, Daisy finds out he’s not what she expected.
As with all the SPC books I throughly enjoyed this book too. Sara Cate has an amazing ability of merging spice, drama and whirlwind emotions/situations together in a way that’s not only entertaining, seamless but it’s leaves you wanting more. I really enjoyed exploring the new side of kinks within this series, loving when “Daddy” Ronan helps Daisy to explore her sexuality and how Daisy gets a taste of the extremely sought after pleasure dom.
While I find most SPC books can be read as individual books this one does have spoilers about the previous books so I’d definitely recommend reading the others first. That being said I adored reading this book and I’d certainly recommend reading it and the series if you like taboo romance. 🔥
🔞 Warning this book contains explicit content and tropes not everyone may like. My page is a no-hate zone. Don’t ick someone’s yum.
Tropes include but aren’t limited to:
- Age gap (30+ Years)
- Daddy kink
- Insta-love/attraction
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Minor: Pregnancy, Cancer, Death, Cursing, and Medical content
literarylily's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Death of parent and Child death
Minor: Medical content
andeng's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Death of parent, Medical content, and Sexual content
Moderate: Pregnancy
jessiereads98's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Sara Cate’s writing just isn’t very strong. Daisy is a basic two dimensional main character who I found incredibly cringey. I had to read far too much about her songs that weren’t good. Ronan was likeable enough as a main character, but again very surface level with not a lot going on. Everything that happened was predictable. Last, but certainly not least, surprise pregnancy trope is tired, never really a surprise to the reader, and just plain sucks. Authors should retire that one. Let alone surprise breeding kink.
This all could’ve been done without the weird detail that he had previously been in a relationship with her mother. The story realistically would’ve been the same if it was about two people working through their grief and unhealthy coping mechanisms.It ultimately doesn’t end up being why they break up. They break up due to their individual issues they need to work through. (Which I guess Ronan just never does? We never see him work through any issues, and he himself says that he hasn’t.) The line at the end about Daisy picking up where her mother left off and their hearts beating for the same man is also just weird, and squicks me out.
Additionally, I don’t understand why Daisy’s musical aspirations are made such a big deal of. Ultimately, she doesn’t go to music school like she dreamed, and it seems like nothing really comes of any music career for her. The impression I got was that she gave it up to be a mother to Ronan’s kids; which really makes Ronan’s comment about bringing a strong woman to her knees for him look bad.
This all could’ve been done without the weird detail that he had previously been in a relationship with her mother. The story realistically would’ve been the same if it was about two people working through their grief and unhealthy coping mechanisms.
Additionally, I don’t understand why Daisy’s musical aspirations are made such a big deal of.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Grief, Pregnancy, Cancer, and Death of parent
Moderate: Chronic illness
Minor: Alcohol, Child death, Car accident, and Medical content
thecajunbookworm's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Sexual content, and Cursing
Moderate: Alcohol and Medical content
Minor: Child death
weelasswithabook's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
*** ARC received in exchange for an honest review ***
CW: graphic sexual content, cancer, grief, death of loved ones, deception, homelessness
⭐️ Age Gap romance
⭐️ BDSM erotic romance
🌶 Daddy kink
🌶 Impact play
🌶 Pleasure dom
🌶 Restraints
Okay this one surprised me...
The SPC series is widely known for it's extremely spicy scenes and having a true emotional connection. They are notoriously wonderful romance novels.
However, the whole tone of Highest Bidder felt extremely different (not in a bad way, just generally). This was much softer and emotionally driven with the themes of grief and loss pushing the characters through the story.
This didn't detract from the erotic content of the book whatsoever (for those who follow the SPC series more for the spicy aspects) in fact, with the softer tone, it created a more startling contrast when it came to the erotic content. There was plenty of spice and kink in there to 110% categorise is as an erotic romance 👀
My only criticism was the instalove (or more just a really speedily falling in love would be a fairer description) vibe I got. And this is simply a me issue, not a reflection on the standard of the book itself. I think had there been a little slower of a burn, the emotional connection between the two might have been a little more impactful in the long run.
The conflict in itself was pretty solidified right at the start, but there was that anxious anticipation of not knowing when it was going to crop up. So it saved it from being predictable. I liked that it appeared when it did and how it did because it really propelled the character's relationship into a flux. And it's not a petty miscommunication trope either, it's a biggie.
One thing I really appreciated was the fact that the heroine wasn't saved or left needing to be saved by the hero. She healed and grew on her own to come to terms with her grief and take care of herself.
I cannot wait to see what's to come next.
CW: graphic sexual content, cancer, grief, death of loved ones, deception, homelessness
⭐️ Age Gap romance
⭐️ BDSM erotic romance
🌶 Daddy kink
🌶 Impact play
🌶 Pleasure dom
🌶 Restraints
Okay this one surprised me...
The SPC series is widely known for it's extremely spicy scenes and having a true emotional connection. They are notoriously wonderful romance novels.
However, the whole tone of Highest Bidder felt extremely different (not in a bad way, just generally). This was much softer and emotionally driven with the themes of grief and loss pushing the characters through the story.
This didn't detract from the erotic content of the book whatsoever (for those who follow the SPC series more for the spicy aspects) in fact, with the softer tone, it created a more startling contrast when it came to the erotic content. There was plenty of spice and kink in there to 110% categorise is as an erotic romance 👀
My only criticism was the instalove (or more just a really speedily falling in love would be a fairer description) vibe I got. And this is simply a me issue, not a reflection on the standard of the book itself. I think had there been a little slower of a burn, the emotional connection between the two might have been a little more impactful in the long run.
The conflict in itself was pretty solidified right at the start, but there was that anxious anticipation of not knowing when it was going to crop up. So it saved it from being predictable. I liked that it appeared when it did and how it did because it really propelled the character's relationship into a flux. And it's not a petty miscommunication trope either, it's a biggie.
One thing I really appreciated was the fact that the heroine wasn't saved or left needing to be saved by the hero. She healed and grew on her own to come to terms with her grief and take care of herself.
I cannot wait to see what's to come next.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Death, Cursing, Cancer, Terminal illness, Sexual content, and Grief
Moderate: Medical content, Pregnancy, Car accident, and Child death
chelsearose's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Death of parent, and Grief
Moderate: Death and Child death
Minor: Car accident and Medical content
kristynpittman's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
SPC is one of my favorite romance series and I have eagerly been anticipating Ronan's book. He made such memorable appearances in the first 4, that I had high hopes when we eventually got his own story.
While this book was fun and steamy, the main reason it fell a bit short of the main series was the lack of backstory. Ronan is such a mysterious man, and unfortunately that mystery is never really solved. As a 56 year old billionaire I just know he had a wild life, but so much of this book focused on Daisy. Daisy...the 2o year old stalker. (Can you tell Daisy wasn't my favorite?)
I still think fans of Sara Cate and The Salacious Players Club will still enjoy this one! Especially if tropes like age gap, sugar daddy, mom's ex-bf, etc, are your cup of tea.
*Thank you to the author for providing me with an advanced copy for review
While this book was fun and steamy, the main reason it fell a bit short of the main series was the lack of backstory. Ronan is such a mysterious man, and unfortunately that mystery is never really solved. As a 56 year old billionaire I just know he had a wild life, but so much of this book focused on Daisy. Daisy...the 2o year old stalker. (Can you tell Daisy wasn't my favorite?)
I still think fans of Sara Cate and The Salacious Players Club will still enjoy this one! Especially if tropes like age gap, sugar daddy, mom's ex-bf, etc, are your cup of tea.
*Thank you to the author for providing me with an advanced copy for review
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Abandonment, Stalking, Death of parent, Medical content, Grief, and Pregnancy
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
sarahsbookstacks's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Sexual content, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Alcohol and Medical content
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