The Au Pair Affair

Tessa Bailey books and I have a complicated relationship. I love her humour, enjoy her characters and I'm okay(ish) with her spice level, but find her spicy talk almost always cringey. As a person she's absolutely awesome, hilarious and down-to-earth and when I met her in 2023, I thought she was a stellar human with a wicked sense of humour and someone I'd totally have a beer with.

But this second book in the Hot Shots series, was a miss for me. If I knew hockey better, I'd use a hockey analogy but this Canadian doesn't 'do hockey'.

What I liked: Burgess' bond with his daughter and his positive relationship with his ex were wonderful. I also loved the Boston setting and the forced proximity trope.

What I didn't like: This book had a weak plot and uneven pacing but it's Burgess who made this a hard read for me. I liked that he falls first but he falls like a boulder off a cliff. Zero to sixty. There's no subtlety at all here, folks.  

The third act break-up felt forced and Burgess acting like a petulant man-baby as soon as his life takes a dumpster dive was not a good look for a leading man. I am so over the over-protective guys who 'show their interest' by dominating and manipulating a female partner. That's not romance - it's Caveman 101.

Finally, while I appreciate that Bailey includes an emotional backstory for Tallulah, it was far too traumatic and heavy for a RomCom. But what surprised me the most was that its impact on Tallulah was mentioned but never dealt with.

My Final Thoughts:

Liked: Age gap, single dad trope, father-daughter bond, Boston setting

Didn't Like: Third act break-up, cave-man protectiveness, cringey spicy talk, traumatic backstory that's ignored

Verdict: Not for me

My Rating: 2.5 stars

Author: Tessa Bailey

Genre: Romance, RomCom

Type and Source: Trade paperback from public library

Publisher: Avon

First Published: July 16, 2024

Read: November 1 - 4, 2024

Book Description from GoodReads: A sports rom-com about a burly, surly, single dad who falls head-over-hockey-stick for his quirky live-in nanny...

Tallulah is smart, vivacious, and studying to be a marine biologist. She’s also twenty-six and broke. So when Burgess, a battle-scarred hockey veteran and newly single dad, offers her a job as his live-in nanny, she jumps at the opportunity to get paid while living in a super fancy neighborhood and being around Lissa, his cool but introverted tween.

Her tween charge isn’t the only one who could use some help fitting in, though. According to…well, everyone except Burgess, he needs to get back on the dating scene, and adventurous Tallulah is just the girl to show him how. But as boundaries are slowly crossed and Burgess finds himself pulled between his daughter, who wants her parents back together, and his insane chemistry with Tallulah, a huge rift is formed, and Tallulah does the “right” thing—breaks her own heart and walks away.

Though Burgess knows it’s for the best—he’s too jaded, with too much baggage—a chance meeting, and a new push from his daughter, forces him to put everything on the line and fight to prove he learned his lessons well and is worthy of a happily ever after with Tallulah.