The Rule of Three is book 2 of the Salacious Legacy series, sequel to the Salacious Players series. I enjoyed this a little bit more than I did the first book, but some of the things I missed in that book continued to be absent in this one.

First, I loved how this was such a realistic, slow figuring out of how to be in an polyamorous relationship. Their internal struggle with the fear of being left behind, and their individual backstory was also something I loved.

The romance was incredibly cute. I loved how Archer kept getting under Julien’s skin, and how unapologetic he was about his attraction to both of them.

The found family was a little more present in this one, but it still felt like scraps. The most we got, was actually the throuple that kinda started to feel like a little mini family. And for a second gen story, I just wished to see the original characters and the rest of their children a little more.

The character’s, mainly the MMC that was part of the original 6 now in charge of the Paris sexclub, felt immature once more. I don’t mind reading imperfect characters, because it can often lead to beautiful stories around the character as an individual and not just the romance. I did think there was a satisfying character growth in the end, and the 3rd act was actually done very nicely. There was just something about the way the inner monologue was written of Julien, that didn’t quite work for me.

A little side note, Archer’s friend also gave me the ick, I didn’t understand that arc at all.

There were a lot of time skips in this one timelinewise, and some scene transitions didn’t even have breaks between them, and those two things together made the read a little less fluid. With the missing breaks I sometimes had to go back a paragraph or two, thinking hang on, did I miss a scene change? Only to find it was just not there in the formatting.

In the end, did I enjoy myself? Yes, despite my hangups, I’d give this a 4 stars. Will I reread this? Not very likely. Will I continue the series? Yes, going straight into book 3 and hoping that one will hit the mark because the tropes are just 👌.

However, I think at this point I simply need to accept that even though Sara Cate her books are entertaining—and I love the representation across the board for kinks, mental health, and romantic relationships she brings to the book community—her books won’t ever be a favorite read. We set up for rich characters, but it lacks sufficient follow through for me to really hit the mark. Like with the sibling and parental relationships. We touch it, but it’s barely resolved, if at all. We’re to trust after the 3th act is resolved, that the characters will continue to work on themselves, as much of the things that cause the 3th act don't magically disappear. By the end of the book, it to me sometimes feels more like a happy-for-now ending, more so than an actual full arc. It makes it so that when I’m done reading the book, I always feel like I’m missing something to fully enjoy the story.

The Sara Cate I knew and loved from the Salacious Players Club series is back with this one. After being so annoyed with The Good Girl Effet, book 1 in this new generation series, I'm happy to say, this one was so much better.

The characters are kind of immature, full of insecurities and personal issues that make their relationship sometimes difficult to navigate. But the spice was hot, the chemistry was great, and the messiness actually made it more realistic for three people in their 20s entering their first committed relationship, much less a throuple.

Side note: Can we stop referring to sex only as penetration? They kept saying they weren't having "sex" because there was no penis/vagina or penis/anus penetration. Penetration is not the end all be all of "sex". Meanwhile they were sucking, licking, swallowing, eating, frotting, fingering, at every opportunity 😅 I understand some situations require the distinction, including theirs at some point, but come on. Some people never include penile penetration in their sex lives, it doesn't mean they're not "having sex".

This was another fun read from Sara Cate. I really loved their dynamic and seeing the relationship between all three of them slowly develop. The way they opened up to each other bit by bit felt very natural and relatable, especially with all of them occasionally feeling insecure about being the third wheel while it was also painfully obvious that they were all completely into each other. There was a bit of drama towards the end, but thankfully it never got too over the top and was resolved fairly quickly, which I appreciated. And of course, in true Sara Cate fashion, the spice was hot. But honestly… I wouldn’t have minded even more scenes at the club 🤭 My only small issue was that sometimes the transitions between scenes felt a little abrupt, almost like page breaks were missing, but it didn’t take away from my enjoyment too much.

Once upon a time there was a negligent father and his stalker turned Nanny. They had no chemistry but they fucked anyway and somehow became a couple.

The greatest aspect of the OG series was always the found family and the side characters. And here no one seems to like each other. Real siblings don’t talk the parents are absent, the faux cousins are fighting constantly. It’s also not about the club or BDSM really. The family scenes tried to save it at the end but they felt dishonest and lacked emotion.

Two thirds of this book Jack doesn’t act like a human being. I think it’s supposed to be excused by grieving but the emotional side to that are never worked on, Camille is just reason enough. He has a kid who needed him but he only can get his ass up when a woman shows up?

I’m very disappointed in this book because I just expected more coming to this as a fan of the OG series.