Title: His Sugar Baby
Author: Sarah Roberts
Publisher: Siren Publishing, Inc. (04 October 2011)
ISBN: 978-1619263956

I almost didn’t buy this book because of the title. I guess it’s the images and connotations that the terms ‘sugar baby’ and ‘sugar daddy’ inevitably conjure in my head – none of them particularly positive. (Yes, yes, I realise I’m being judgemental.) Thankfully, His Sugar Baby surprised me. It wasn’t a sickly sweet tale of an overly-indulged heroine who does nothing more than have sex with a man for superficial gain. Nor was it a boringly straightforward ‘destitute woman meets rich man and they fall instantly and unrealistically in lust’ story. Rather, it was an exploration of a mother’s unconditional love for her child and what she is prepared to sacrifice – physically and morally – to protect her offspring.

Cathy Somerset is a single parent in an awful situation. Her only child, Chloe, is suffering from cancer and when we meet her at the beginning of His Sugar Baby, she has reached breaking point – financially and emotionally. Her health insurance cover has reached an end, her job is no longer able to provide enough income to sustain her daughter’s treatments, and she barely has the cash to buy food and pay rent. Quite simply, Cathy is drowning beneath the relentless tide of her daughter’s mounting medical bills and crumbling with the stress of caring for a seriously ill child without the support of a partner. Desperate times call for desperate measures. To her own disbelief, she responds to an online personal advertisement:

 

‘Mature Sugar Baby wanted—I’m seeking a slender, attractive woman, 22-34, for a friends-with-benefits arrangement that will provide you with up to seven Benjamins per week or about three grand per month.’

 

When her initial email elicits a response, Cathy agrees to meet the advertiser and discovers that he is a man named Michael, an IT professional who wants sex and companionship with no strings attached in exchange for money. Cathy is desperate to ensure that Chloe gets the treatment she needs but is she willing to sacrifice everything to do so? Her morals? Her body? Her emotions?

First off, I want to say that Cathy is one amazing lady. From the very first line of His Sugar Baby it is clear that she is incredibly uncomfortable with selling her body, but she understands that her financial situation places her in the middle of a sticky moral quagmire that does not allow for sentimentality or pious ideals. The thought of prostituting herself is almost unbearable to Cathy, but her daughter means everything to her and doing whatever it takes to save Chloe’s life is, in her mind, more important than her belief that sleeping with a man for money is wrong. In no sense does Cathy take the decision to become Michael’s ‘sugar baby’ lightly. Despite her determination to give Chloe every chance of survival, she is absolutely conflicted about what she is doing:

 

‘Cathy felt herself start to shake, but it wasn’t the kind of trembling that could be seen. Instead, her entire insides were quivering like jelly. So…here it is. The moment of truth.
She stared at the fold-creased hundred-dollar bill. It blurred, and she blinked to bring it back into focus. In her mind’s eye, superimposed over the hundred dollar bill, was the balance in her check register, the bills that were scattered over the carpet beside her desk, her daughter’s pinched little face. A huge fist squeezed her chest. The familiar crushing sensation made it hard to draw in her breath. She forced her lungs to expand, dragging in some air.’

 

As the story progresses, Cathy’s attitude to her additional source of income becomes more and more complex, and, consequently, so does her relationship with Michael. To begin with, she is able to compartmentalise her life (she places her paid time with Michael into a very distinct box) but as the weeks pass, their arrangement – it’s purpose and the emotions it engenders – escapes the boundaries Cathy has set and it starts to provide more than just a financial lifeline. It gives succour and respite from her daily life – and, to her, Michael becomes more than a sugar daddy.

In contrast to Cathy, Michael lives a life of apparent ease and can afford to do pretty much whatever he wants – and that includes paying women to have sex with him at his convenience. When we first meet him, his initial detachment, arrogance and selfishness aren’t particularly endearing – to the point that I wondered whether I’d be able to warm to him at all – but as His Sugar Baby progresses and his curiosity and regard for Cathy increases, it’s easier to enjoy his presence. Despite himself, Michael becomes curious about the woman he is having sex with and he begins to wonder more and more about her ‘real’ life – something Cathy keeps very hidden from him. My one criticism (and it’s the only significant one I have of the book)? Michael is ultimately let down by his backstory. It lacked development and felt weak in comparison to the other much stronger character and story elements. I was expecting him to have good, complex reasons for the emotionally crippled behaviour he displays, but in the face of Cathy’s personal sacrifices and Chloe’s physical suffering, they seemed, to me, very superfluous and lightweight. I’m not saying that I disliked Michael – by the time I read the final page I was definitely more than tepid in my feelings towards him and could certainly appreciate some of his gestures towards Cathy – but I was hoping for a bit more depth.

If you’re a mother, you will absolutely be able to sympathise with Cathy’s situation and her desire to do anything for her child. I felt incredibly sorry for both her and Chloe and had everything crossed for them as I made my way through the book. The plot definitely threw up a surprise or two – especially towards the end – and kudos to Sarah Roberts for not taking the easy way out in her treatment of the one the unfolds in the last quarter of the book. The sadness of the event helped underscore the plot’s integrity and believability. (I’ll say no more on that least I reveal a spoiler.)

If you’re looking for a contemporary romance,  His Sugar Baby ticks all the right boxes but be aware that it definitely has a bias towards the realistic rather than the fanciful (read: it’s not all rainbows and kittens). An engaging story with some thought-provoking emotional and moral speed bumps.

Tickle your fancy? Click on the following links to buy this book from: Amazon.co.uk (Kindle ; Paperback), Amazon.com (Kindle ; Paperback).

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