Wages of Sin · 2026
The AuctionSpice level, tropes & is it dark romance?
Spice 5/5 (Scorching) · Darkness 4/5 (Pitch) · 11 trigger warnings flagged · Series: Wages of Sin, book 1 of 2
Sadie Kincaid opens her Wages of Sin duet with Beauty and the Beast, if the Beast wore a mask. There's a crumbling mansion and a crime brotherhood that sells Imogen Demotta to the highest bidder. Lincoln Knight pays. She starts planning her way out. Neither of them is telling the whole truth. This note is ours. It is not a publisher blurb.
First published: 14 April 2026 (MIRA / Harlequin). Book 1 of Wages of Sin.
The Auction tropes
On this shelf, The Auction is filed under Mafia dark romance, Captive romance, Masked hero romance, Gothic romance, Morally grey heroes, Dark billionaire and Forbidden romance. Each tag opens more books with that trope.
The Auction spice level
Is The Auction dark romance?
Yes, firmly. The Auction scores 4 of 5 on our darkness scale (Pitch).
Spice and darkness are separate scores. More pitch books. How we rate.
The Auction trigger warnings
Warnings not yet verified. We could not find the author's own content warning list for this book, so the flags here are only what the publisher's description makes clear. Check the author's note before you start.
Graphic (5) — open before you read
Open this before you read. These are the flags most likely to be a hard stop.
Moderate (6)
Harm, control, or obsession that is common in this lane.
Minor (0)
Present, and usually not the reason someone puts the book down.
None flagged in this band.
Full The Auction trigger warnings
Wages of Sin reading order
The Auction is book 1 of 2 in Sadie Kincaid's Wages of Sin series. Start here.
- Book 1 The Auction (this book) · 2026
- Book 2 The Game · 2026 upcoming
Order checked against the Harlequin product page for The Auction (Wages of Sin #1) on 14 October 2026. The Wages of Sin series in order.
Who it's for
Shelf note written for this site. We do not copy reviews or publisher blurbs. Outbound links are search pages, not quoted ratings. Kindle Unlimited and endings are only flagged when we were willing to mark them. How we rate.
Missing a book? Suggest it.
Books like The Auction
Matched on shared tropes, then the closest spice and darkness scores. Other books in the same series are listed above, not here.
- Heavy
Heavy
M.L. Burns
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●●
Shared: Mafia dark romance, Captive romance
- Malevolent King
Malevolent King
Mila Kane
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●●
Shared: Mafia dark romance, Captive romance
- Queen and the Kingsmen
Queen and the Kingsmen
Zoe Blake
Spice ●●●●●Dark ●●●●○
Shared: Mafia dark romance, Captive romance
- Absolution
Absolution
LP Lovell
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●○
Shared: Mafia dark romance, Captive romance
- Boy Next Door
Boy Next Door
Stevie J. Cole
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●○
Shared: Mafia dark romance, Captive romance
- Darkest Before Dawn
Darkest Before Dawn
Stevie J Cole
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●○
Shared: Mafia dark romance, Captive romance
- Have Me
Have Me
LP Lovell
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●○
Shared: Mafia dark romance, Captive romance
- Wrong
Wrong
K. Webster
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●○
Shared: Mafia dark romance, Captive romance
Books like The Auction, with a reason for each
Questions readers actually ask
What is the spice level of The Auction?
The Auction spice level is 5 of 5 (Scorching). Frequent, graphic, the point of many chapters. Darkness is a separate score: 4 of 5 (Pitch).
What are the The Auction trigger warnings?
Graphic: Trafficking, Captivity, Kidnapping, Violence, Death. Moderate: Dubious consent, Abuse, Organised crime, Power imbalance, Grief, Trauma. Minor: none flagged. Warnings not yet verified against the author's own list. Check it before you start.
Is The Auction dark romance?
Yes, firmly. The Auction scores 4 of 5 on our darkness scale (Pitch). Bleak on purpose. Comfort is not the job.
What tropes are in The Auction?
On this shelf The Auction is filed under Mafia dark romance, Captive romance, Masked hero romance, Gothic romance, Morally grey heroes, Dark billionaire and Forbidden romance.
Who is The Auction for?
If you loved Dante, this is Kincaid going gothic: dark mafia with a masked man at the centre. The spice is scorching and the darkness runs high. We haven't checked the warnings against the author's own page yet.
What are some books like The Auction?
Matched on shared tropes and similar spice and darkness: Heavy by M.L. Burns; Malevolent King by Mila Kane; Queen and the Kingsmen by Zoe Blake; Absolution by LP Lovell; Boy Next Door by Stevie J. Cole; Darkest Before Dawn by Stevie J Cole. More read-alikes, each with a reason, are on zademasked.com/like/the-auction.
Is The Auction a standalone?
No. The Auction is book 1 of 2 in the Wages of Sin series by Sadie Kincaid.
What order should I read the Wages of Sin series in?
1. The Auction; 2. The Game.
How many books are in the Wages of Sin series?
The Wages of Sin series by Sadie Kincaid has 2 main books. Still to come: The Game.
What is the The Auction age rating?
We'd say 18+. Spice sits at 5/5 (scorching) and darkness at 4/5 (pitch). That's our recommendation, not an official rating, so read the trigger warnings as well.
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