Wages of Sin · 2026
The GameSpice level, tropes & is it dark romance?
Spice 5/5 (Scorching) · Darkness 4/5 (Pitch) · 7 trigger warnings flagged · Series: Wages of Sin, book 2 of 2
Wages of Sin ends here. Imogen uncovers Lincoln's darkest secret, gets dragged back to the Brotherhood that raised her, and has to work out who's lying about her parents' deaths. The mansion's still gothic, the man's still masked, and the slow burn stops being slow. This note is ours. It is not a publisher blurb.
First published: 3 November 2026 (MIRA / Harlequin). Book 2 of Wages of Sin.
The Game tropes
On this shelf, The Game is filed under Mafia dark romance, Masked hero romance, Gothic romance, Morally grey heroes, Forbidden romance and Revenge romance. Each tag opens more books with that trope.
The Game spice level
Is The Game dark romance?
Yes, firmly. The Game scores 4 of 5 on our darkness scale (Pitch).
Spice and darkness are separate scores. More pitch books. How we rate.
The Game 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.
Minor (0)
Present, and usually not the reason someone puts the book down.
None flagged in this band.
Full The Game trigger warnings
Wages of Sin reading order
The Game is book 2 of 2 in Sadie Kincaid's Wages of Sin series. Start with The Auction.
- Book 1 The Auction · 2026
- Book 2 The Game (this book) · 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 Game
Matched on shared tropes, then the closest spice and darkness scores. Other books in the same series are listed above, not here.
- American King
American King
Sierra Simone
Spice ●●●●●Dark ●●●○○
Shared: Forbidden romance, Gothic romance
- Beast
Beast
A. Zavarelli
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●○
Shared: Mafia dark romance, Morally grey heroes
- Confess
Confess
A. Zavarelli
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●○
Shared: Mafia dark romance, Morally grey heroes
- Scarred
Scarred
Emily McIntire
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●○
Shared: Morally grey heroes, Forbidden romance
- Burn With Me
Burn With Me
Lucy Smoke
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●○
Shared: Mafia dark romance, Forbidden romance
- Destroy Me
Destroy Me
Michelle Heard
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●○
Shared: Mafia dark romance, Morally grey heroes
- Keres
Keres
Sadie Kincaid
Spice ●●●●●Dark ●●●●●
Shared: Mafia dark romance, Revenge romance
- The Serpent's Bride
The Serpent's Bride
Kathryn Ann Kingsley
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●○
Shared: Mafia dark romance, Revenge romance
Books like The Game, with a reason for each
Questions readers actually ask
What is the spice level of The Game?
The Game 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 Game trigger warnings?
Graphic: Murder, Death, Captivity, Violence, Organised crime. Moderate: Power imbalance, Obsession. Minor: none flagged. Warnings not yet verified against the author's own list. Check it before you start.
Is The Game dark romance?
Yes, firmly. The Game scores 4 of 5 on our darkness scale (Pitch). Bleak on purpose. Comfort is not the job.
What tropes are in The Game?
On this shelf The Game is filed under Mafia dark romance, Masked hero romance, Gothic romance, Morally grey heroes, Forbidden romance and Revenge romance.
Who is The Game for?
Read The Auction first. This one is for anyone who needs to know how Imogen and Lincoln end. The spice is scorching and the darkness high. It's out 3 November 2026, and the cover, blurb and date are all confirmed.
What are some books like The Game?
Matched on shared tropes and similar spice and darkness: American King by Sierra Simone; Beast by A. Zavarelli; Confess by A. Zavarelli; Scarred by Emily McIntire; Burn With Me by Lucy Smoke; Destroy Me by Michelle Heard. More read-alikes, each with a reason, are on zademasked.com/like/the-game.
Is The Game a standalone?
No. The Game is book 2 of 2 in the Wages of Sin series by Sadie Kincaid. The series starts with The Auction.
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 Game 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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