Hehehehe I love a couple that uses bickering as foreplay, and that’s EXACTLY what you’ll get in Keep Me by Sara Cate.

Sylvie in all her neglectful past and shitty partners is desperate to make it on her own, so when a boon of 10 million dollars is dropped in her lap, she agrees to deceive the asshole of a man who chased her out of his home weeks ago. All she has to do? Marry him for a year then steal his house.
Too bad she loves sparing with him, and under that gruff hard exterior she she’s the hurt he’s hiding, and try as he might Killian wants to hate his new wife but when arguing with her makes him feel alive again, he keeps finding that harder to do than expected.

I found myself being so intrigued by these characters and the armor that they put on for the first half of the book. You could tell that they were defensive and wanted to be loved but had no idea how, but they were finally enjoying not being treated like glass. Then suddenly it was 50% in, Killian was very much in his “My Wife” phase and Sylvie was focused on what he had under his kilt and helping heal the hurts Killian was keeping in his past. From there on I DEVOURED the rest of this book in one sitting. Then part 5 had my heart in a VICE GRIP.

If you like Grumpy X Grumpy, nicknames, and light kink I’d pick this up.

*Thank you Hambright PR, Sourcebooks, and Sara Cate for the ARC.*

Sara has never done me wrong in any book that she has written, and this book was no exception. Killian and Sylvie leapt from the page and grabbed me from page one. Their relationship was fiery from the beginning, and I loved their banter together, loved seeing how things progressed between them, and especially loved seeing them both grow as people because of each other. It was so amazing to see the changes between them, and see where they were as people near the end of the story. I wish that I could read this book again and again and I most likely will because this is one story that I will never get tired of. Yet another masterpiece from Sara Cate.

I think it’s safe for me to say if I see Sara Cate’s name on it, I’m reading it. Add Scottish recluses and an age gap, and I’m in. But if you’ve been worried her work may be too forbidden, too taboo for you… this might be a good place to start, because Keep Me was tamer than her other books.

📕 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗜𝗻𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: Keep Me by Sara Cate

📙 𝗦𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀: Sinful Manor character series. Book 1.

📗 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗗𝗲𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘀: E-book ARC on Kindle. Courtesy of NetGalley.

📘 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗿𝗲: Contemporary romance

📔 𝗧𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲𝘀: Age gap, Scottish hero, broody and broken MMC, BDSM vibes, marriage of convenience, enemies-to-lovers.

📖 𝗦𝘆𝗻𝗼𝗽𝘀𝗶𝘀: Sylvie’s lost in life, and takes an offer to marry a recluse in Scotland for $10 million dollars. All she has to do is stay married for a year - but Killian Barclay turns her world upside down.

🌟 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄: Correct me if I’m wrong in the comments, but the Sinful Manor series is the first Sara Cate has published that’s STARTING as a trad published series. And it’s definitely a departure from her normal writing.

It’s got all of the elements of a Sara Cate book - super hot MMCs, a huge age gap, and a great story arc… but it’s a little less spicy and def felt more contemporary than her work usually is.

I loved the way the story was told - dual POV but in sections - and I especially loved the end of the book and how the characters came together (no spoilers!)… but there were some small misses that made me give this the rare four.

This series isn’t on KU to start, which is also a departure.

Overall - I think it’s a good start and I was super happy to get the ARC. I gave Praise a four-star review as well, and look how big the SPC series got. I’m interested to see where this series goes.

𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴: 4/5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐

𝗦𝗽𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗟𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹: 3.5/5 🌶🌶🌶

𝑰 𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒆𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒏 𝑨𝑹𝑪 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒃𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝒊𝒏 𝒆𝒙𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒂𝒏 𝒉𝒐𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒓𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒘.

I floundered between a 3 and 4 for Keep Me. Ultimately, the parts that stuck with me the most about this story, weren't great. This book was marketed as a girl stumbling into an old Scottish manor where the grumpy Scott that owns it fills his time with debauchery and kink. There are only 2 scenes of this nature, one of which was so cringy, I am shocked it's not on the triggers list. The book holds MAJOR other woman drama that goes too far and then is just...gone?

Our heroine is described as "tough as nails" but I just wasn't getting that anywhere. On multiple occasions she was more of a spoiled rich girl than someone who is "tough". ie: she gets cut off from her parents and instead of getting a job, blows through what little savings she had and then calls her parents and whines...WHINES.

Killian and Sylvie don't just throw insults at each other (for no apparent reason), but he calls her a see you next Tuesday and a cow right up until the very end. There just weren't enough lovable moments to make up for that unless it's assumed it happened in the large time gaps.

Overall, there's good world building and the scenes are set very well. The spice is low but that's too be expected with a publisher.

Keep Me was a good, but average book, until the last quarter. The last quarter put it solidly in five star! Killian and Sylvie are pretty harsh to each other in the beginning. I appreciated that it took so long (time wise) for them to connect with each other. They both have their own mental health struggles that they need to work through and they support each other through that. (Once they've worked through some of their snark and sexual tension of course.) Sara Cate writes excellent spice and this was no exception. Reading this one definitely had me itching to go through her backlist. A solid addition to the Sara Cate books. Highly recommend to any fans of sexy scots and sassy FMC's.
Thank you Sourcebooks Casablanca and Netgalley for the ARC!

I have been a Sara Cate fan for a while now, this book is no exception. Sylvie and Killian are 🔥 Grumpy meets grumpy in this beautiful story about 2 different hearts that help mend each other in a way neither of them expected. I loved that the dominant aspect of the book was lightly touched on but not the main focus, gave it just the right about of extra spice (which the spice was 🤌 absolutely on point.

I loved this book so much 🩵

Killian and Sylvie have my entire heart. Their story was so beautiful, a little heartbreaking, but they both come out so much stronger at the end. Their HEA was hard fought for, and so well deserved.

I cannot wait for book 2 in the next book in this series 🩵

Keep Me was not what I had been expecting from Sara Cate. It was dislike to lovers, grumpy x grumpy and while the kink was there it wasn’t in her typical style. I absolutely loved it. I loved Killian and his brute mentality, I want a Killian in my life haha. Sylvie is adorable and reminds me of a tortie cat - all sass but the moment you offer some praise they melt. I can’t wait to see how the rest of the series plays out.

A book with hate to love, a Scottish hero in a manor with some spicy secrets… sign me up. “Keep Me” is a steamy, emotional and healing romance that has me wanting more from this series.

Killian Barclay wants one thing… to be left alone in his manor and for his family to stay away. He wants his infamous parties to continue but his family wants it to end. Sylvie Devereaux is a New Yorker who is often left on her own and forgotten by her parents who are too wrapped up in their own art world. But she ends up sneaking into the manor when on vacation with her current boyfriend, seeing the brute of a highlander was the last thing she was expecting. And weeks later, his sister comes to her with a proposition. Marry Killian for one year, turn his playboy reputation around and walk away with ten million dollars. Seems easy enough but not everything is as it seems.

I was so excited for this book when it was announced and I wasn’t disappointed. A grumpy Scottish hero with all the spice Sara Cate is known for. I loved how this book was set up into parts and each part was either from Killian or Sylvie’s POV. Sylvie goes through a lot in this book with her parents and how unsupportive they are of her to her finding her way back to writing. She’s smart, fiery and passionate and that shines throughout the book. Killian has a broken soul after losing his parents in an accident and shutting down is the only way he knows how to deal with it. My heart broke for him as we learned about his past and what demons he was dealing with. These two were a true hate to love couple and the banter and insults they threw at each other had me cracking up. Despite the front they put on, you could feel the chemistry and connection they had for each other. And when they finally give into the attraction, it was great. The growth these two do emotionally had me cheering them on as they worked through their personal issues so they could be a real couple. The ending for them was perfect and I can’t wait to read the next book in the series.

This book was really fun. Even though they could sometimes be really unhinged, I really loved Sylvie and Killian as a couple. This book is definitely very spicy but it didn't bother me. I saw the third act conflict coming from a mile away, but it was fitting and made sense. I don't know if this story will stick with me, but it was super enjoyable and I'd recommend it. I will definitely read the next one in this series.

I wish I had seen the content warnings before I read this book. It is more erotica than romance. There were several chapters where I was skimming . Not for me!

I was looking forward to this one a lot. Sadly it did not deliver. Where to start?
The characters were incredibly unlikeable for the most part. Sylvie was a selfish, uncaring FMC, who suddenly realized she loved Killian, basically out of nowhere. Killian was so bad, like technically not redeemable. If it wasn‘t for…. the huge time jumps between scenes, where these characters started caring for one another, OFF PAGE. It feels elementary to give a mutli-published author the advice of „show don‘t tell“ but it was really necessary here.
(Wasn’t this advertised as having kink? Did I miss that??)
I also have a problem with the character names. It seems like the author set this up to play in Ireland, and thus gave everyone Irish names (Killian, Declan, Liam, Lachlan), only to then re-locate the book to Scotland, but not change the names. If there was one name, it would be fine, but essentially everyone? Kind of unbelievable.

That was overly negative, there were some nice parts. Sadly they did not convince me. Won‘t be recommending this.

Ce livre ne sort que le 3 décembre mais j'ai eu l'opportunité de le lire en avance et comment vous dire que j'ai adoré!

Sylvie Devereaux est en voyage en Ecosse et elle va rentrer par effraction au Barclay Manor. Elle se fait malheureusement attrapée par le propriétaire des lieux : Killian. Celui-ci lui fiche la trouille de sa vie et elle va repartir vivre sa vie new yorkaise... Quelques semaines après, la famille de Killian lui propose un marché : épouser Killian, vivre avec lui pendant un an et un gros chèque arrivera... Alors arrivera-t-elle à tenir un an avec cet homme?

Sara Cate est une de ces autrices dont je lis automatiquement chaque livre. Autant dire que quand j'ai vu qu'elle allait sortir un livre qui se déroulait en Ecosse, j'étais plus qu'impatiente! J'ai adoré cette histoire qui est terriblement addictive et très bien menée du début à la fin! J'ai adoré les personnages, leur évolution et même leur combat! La tension entre eux est juste parfaite! Maintenant, j'ai hâte d'avoir le second tome de cette série!

Keep Me may not follow Sara Cate’s typical story style, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing! There’s a lot to find enjoyment in, especially with the grumpy Scottish MMC’s and a strong-willed FMC that may (or may not) enjoy letting go of control very once in a while. There are fewer of them than her other books, but the steamy scenes are still quintessential Sara Cate.
The premise is full of some favorite tropes: a wealthy, reclusive Scottish man hasn't left his family manor in years, which he has turned into a personal sex club, and his family decides to intervene to force him out of the house with a bride (apparently once married for a year, she will have the deed to the house and be able to give it to the family).
Sylvia, the selected bride, agrees to this contract because she will receive $10million at the end. However, this is where the plot has a few holes that are harder to buy into.
Her reason for agreeing to this is clear, but his reason for agreeing feels a bit weak—he thinks marriage will get his family off his back, but somehow doesn’t realize the family trust rule about the deed. It was hard to believe he wouldn’t look into this before marrying a stranger, something he does knowing it will end in a year but doesn’t question why.
Additionally, his reluctance to leave the house due to trauma doesn’t fully align with the timeline; his parents died 20 years ago, and he goes go onto attend college, sport events, and traveling. Yet 8 years ago he stops leaving the house due to the trauma off their death. The math didn’t quite add up here.
All of that aside, I wouldn’t dismiss Keep Me. If you can look past these few sticky details and enjoy the story for what it is - a spicy romance about two people working through their trauma and family issues, ultimately growing both individually and together. There’s real chemistry and a depth to the characters’ journeys that makes it worth the read.

4.5 stars. I really enjoyed this and tore through it so quickly. It felt a little different from Sara Cate's indie books but not in a bad way, maybe just a little bit tamer. I loved Killian and Sylvie, and their story felt a little Beauty and the Beast-ish which was fun. Maybe I'm a glutton for punishment but I actually really liked the third act break up, it was emotional and I had a lump in my throat the whole time.

Not me looking at flights to Scotland to find my own Killian 🫠

Killian and Silvie story had me on a choke hold from the first page. I could feel the tension coming off the pages.in the beginning I knew that this book was have alot of character growth, based on how the two MC were behaving in the beginning, familiar with how Sara writes I knew the character development and growth was going to be blow my mind. I was not disappointed. No spoilers but I definitely recommend to just read Keep Me, I am already very invested in this series and waiting for the next one.

Thank you Sara SourceBook Casablanca for the honor of reading

THIS TALE WAS A DELIGHTFUL SURPRISE, TOTALLY NOT WHAT I EXPECTED FROM A SARA CATE BOOK— IT WAS SURPRISINGLY TAMED! IT DANCES AROUND THE CLASSIC DISLIKE-TO-LOVERS TROPE, WHERE BOTH OUR LEADING LADY AND GENTLEMAN START OFF BEING A BIT OF A HANOFUL ANO NOT IN A CUTE WAY.
SYLVIE'S LIFE IS A WHIRLWINO OF CHAOS; HER ARTSY PARENTS HAVE CHOSTED HER, A GRUMPY SCOTSMAN WRECKED HER PHONE AFTER AN ACCIDENTAL HOME INVASION, ANO HER LONG-TERM BOYFRIEND DECIDED TO PLAY KISSY-FACE WITH HER BESTIE. SO WHEN THAT SURLY SCOTSMAN'S SISTER WALTZES INTO NYC WITH A JAW-DROPPING OFFER OF 10 MILLION BUCKS TO MARRY KILLIAN AND STAY HITCHED FOR A YEAR, SYLVIE THINKS, "WHY NOT? WHAT'S THE WORST THAT COULD HAPPEN?"
MEET KILLIAN BARCLAY, THE RECLUSE OF A SCOTTISH MANOR, HIDING AWAY FROM THE WORLO WHILE HIS FAMILY IS PRACTICALLY THROWING A "GET A LIFE" PARTY. HIS AUNT IS EVEN READY TO SNATCH THE HOUSE BACK BECAUSE OF HIS WILO RAGER REPUTATION! SURPRISINGLY, KILLIAN IS ON BOARD WITH THE MARRIAGE OF CONVENIENCE, THINKING IT MIGHT JUST BE THE TICKET TO FIX HIS FAMILY'S REPUTATION WHILE GIVING HIM A BREAK FROM THEIR RELENTLESS NAGGING.

A true enemies to lovers in the sense that literally even 50% through the book, you are not sure you are pulling for the couple to get together. Both are hot messes, and often really cutting to the other person. But both grow, in spite of themselves, toward healing in ways that read as believable and deeply loving and generous. Ended up being totally romantic, totally complex about family, and charmingly about living in Scotland.

This is my new favourite Sara Cate book and I will take absolutely no criticism.

Keep Me is quite literally my dream rolled into a book - grumpy billionaire Scotsman that hates my guts, and throw in a marriage contract? SOLD.

This was peak grumpy x grumpy and the smut was smut-ing. The chemistry and tension was so hot it was tangible and I’m obsessed

But aside from the obvious, there was such a deep and meaningful discussion around grief and mental healer that I was quite literally in tears towards the end. Bravo Sara.

I just love Sara Cate books so much and this was no different!! I loved Sylvie and Killian's story so much honestly might be one of my favorite books and romances from her. It was a little different but in the best way I thought. And ooo the spice just top tier as always. Will never stop hyping up Sara Cate books! Adding to our library for sure!