Review of "Praise"

Welcome to Sinful Sunday!

I know I said I would wait to read this because I just got it, but I couldn't help myself. It was watching me on my shelf, and Wild Love was beyond boring (which I did DNF) and I just needed to start it. And a warning to everyone (and those that know me) this review will include talks and descriptions of sexual acts, specifically within a BDSM standpoint, and of course spoilers, as always.

Praise by Sara Cate is the first book of a series within the Salacious Players' Club, a sex club that allows members to explore sexual fantasies in a safe and healthy way. This one follows the owner and CEO of the club Emerson Grant, and Charlie Underwood, his son's ex-girlfriend who he mistakes as his new sub. From the moment these two meet, their chemistry is undeniable. I love how Charlie immediately follows his instruction, even though she's completely unaware he thinks she's there for other reasons, not just to collect a check from her ex-boyfriend's dad, someone he doesn't speak to.

From there, Emerson hires Charlie as his secretary. Nothing more. Sure. Like we believe that. It's found out from his point of view, he hires her for a deeper reason, and I will get more into that when I talk about the negatives of the book (spoiler, there aren't many). Anyway, of course it transforms into them entering a Dom/Sub relationship, and taking her to the club and allowing her to see that it's totally normal for people to explore what they're into. I love how clueless she goes into it all, asking people their kinks and Emerson being all "you can't just ask people what they're into", it adds to the whole dynamic of her being inexperienced but willing to learn. 

The spice in this book??? Insanely hot. I can't even find the words to describe it. When the club opens and Charlie is exploring the voyeur hall and stumbles upon a threesome, and Emerson comes up behind her and encourages her to get off while watching the scene in the throne room? Holy shit. I had to take MULTIPLE pauses. That scene has stuck with me.

But the one scene I absolutely loved was when they return to the room with all of the whips and handcuffs and silk bed after he pays seventy-five grand (!!!) for an hour of her time in the auction within the club. That scene opened something up inside of me. Cuffing her to the bed, blindfolding her, threatening to gag her UGH. AND NOT TO MENTION THE WAX PLAY??? I LOVE the way he does this to encourage her and empower her rather than fully punish her, while also keeping in mind she doesn't like strong punishment, but having the wax be the little bit of pain without actually hurting her, per se, was HOT.

The way he immediately clocks her having a praise kink in the beginning and how he continues to praise her throughout while also not telling her and wanting her to discover it for herself just reinstates the way this man has so much respect for those that enter into this scene and that he also doesn't push her into anything, letting her fall on her own and figure out what she likes and doesn't like. 

Not to mention the sweet moments of this book. From showing up at her sister's birthday party out of nowhere, buying her the tickets to Anime Fest, showing up when Sophie called him when their father showed up. Also...THE ENDING??? CAN WE TALK ABOUT THAT?? My heart just about burst in my chest. For the most part, he calls her Charlotte through the entire book, but when proposing to her, HE CALLS HER CHARLIE!!! It made me swoon so bad. Plus, with them being in the throne room, the room where everything started, on his knees for her instead of the opposite, which is how they first met, was the absolute perfect ending and had me reeling for hours after.

I don't have much downsides to this book, in all honesty. However, there are a few plot points that make make me pause. For one, like I mentioned, Emerson says he hires Charlie to try and get his son, Beau, Charlie's ex-boyfriend, back into his life. From his point of view, we find out Emerson only hired Charlie to try and see if he would speak to him again, and that she'd be no use to him when or if that happens. Kind of rude if you ask me. 

Also on that point, seeing as this is an ex-boyfriend's dad story, it's a constant reminder throughout, and while I understand the use of repetitiveness, to prove just how wrong their relationship and dynamic would be, it's a lot to be reminded every single chapter as if we don't know.

Another thing that got me is the constant ridicule and shame from other characters towards Emerson and what he does. Sex is normal, kinks are normal, but the shaming he gets for running a so-called "prostitution ring" and acting like he's some disgusting sex-crazed monster who takes advantage of women when that's not at all what he does. 

The last thing that got me has to do with Beau. As we know, he is the MMC in the fourth book of the series, which I was excited to read. However, in the beginning, when it's revealed that he cheated on Charlie and was incredibly rude to her when it came to just respecting her, I wasn't sure how I was going to be able to read that book, seeing as he is not a good character, especially when it's stated he doesn't talk to his dad because of what he does.

But...he redeemed himself for me in the end. Standing up for Charlie, realizing that the world does not in fact revolve around him and he can't control who people fall in love with. And especially standing up for Emerson against Charlie's dad!!! I loved that so so much and was literally kicking my feet and giggling when he showed up. So yeah, I am now excited for his book, especially knowing that he's the one going to be dominated, I cannot wait to see that happen.

Oh, how I wish I could read this book over and over again for the first time! It was my first introduction into the BDSM trope and it's something I very much enjoyed. Sara Cate will remain on my TBR and I'm looking forward to reading more from her!

Below is my overall rating.