Wow, this book is one of my favorite books of the year. It has spice, love, a fabulous ending. It is a book that I will be recommending to my book club, my friends, and random people I meet in the bookstore. It was a delightful romance.

Burgess is IT!!!! Every complaint I was going to have about this book, it went out the window every time because Tessa just wrapped up everything so beautifully, amazing “redemption arcs”/forgiveness done so thoughtfully, no just for the sake of coming back together.

This book had me from the beginning. I might be biased because I EAT THESE TROPES UP. Like age gap is EVERYTHING! There were moments I was so frustrated with the MMC and thought him UNFORGIVABLE but Tessa did a thorough job at showing the complexity and difficulty that comes with having a relationship with someone who has survived abuse and faces trust issues.

Burgess stepped up in huge ways. Giving Talullah confidence and space while being just close enough to give support while she worked through years of trauma. This book was immaculate.

What I loved:
- VERY deep and thoughtful plot for such a “short” romance book
- very tactfully discussed physical/emotional partner abuse
- extremely well-developed MMC and FMC personalities as individual
- such natural chemistry between the characters
- GUT WRENCHING third act break up
- hockey wasn’t just slapped on the book to call it sports romance but was a vital part of the MMCs personal character development
- perfected character development for both MMC and FMC


Would I recommend this book? A resounding YES!



Thank you to NetGalley for supplying this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

There isn't a book that Tessa Bailey writes that I would not dive head first into without a second thought. I live for her little synopsis ideas she posts occasionally, so a full book about an older single dad who falls first and hard for his au pair, I couldn't have opened this one faster.

Tallulah, a professional academic who struggles to connect with people and suffers from some PTSD, comes to work with Burgess. He's 10 years her senior and at the tail end of his very successful hockey career. Grumpy "mean daddy" Sir Savage is struggling with his aging body in an extreme sport and his intense and immediate attraction to his smart nanny. Tallulah is trying to venture back out into the world after a real scary experience. Who better to make her feel safe than a giant hockey god.

Seriously, this one was so good. Tessa knows how to write a love story. I can't wait for the third in this series. Cause Tessa loves to set up a sequel.

ARC received through NetGalley, Avon Books, Harper Voyager in exchange for an honest review.

I have been looking forward to this story. I loved the first Big Shots book and found Tallulah so engaging that I couldn't wait until she was the main character. So I am so glad to say how much I enjoyed this book. Tallulah remained smart, witty, and fun, but with the revelation of a part of her past, there was an added depth that was unexpected and welcomed. Now Burgess was just a giant marshmallow parading as a man(until he wasn't, but isn't that always the way!). I loved that he fell first and so hard, but still had room to grow as a partner in a relationship. I do wish they had communicated better, but I guess that is also part and parcel of a real relationship. Their story felt real and I came close to tears towards the end. On top of all this emotion and romance, this was a very steamy story, and the dirty talk was on point, Oh my! Much like the first book in this series, after borrowing from the library I had to go buy the book, I fear this book will be just the same, I will have to have a copy. I did receive an early copy of this book for an honest review.

I don't think I can accurately describe how excited I was to receive this eARC! Tessa is a definite favorite.

That being said, I don't usually seek out age gap or single-dad romances, but if I was going to go on that journey, I trusted Tessa to make it worth my while. She didn't disappoint.

After finishing Fangirl Down, we knew we were gearing up for this. Burgess is the epitome of "he falls first" and an MMC being all in.

We. Love. To. See. It.

Burgess is a dad trying to figure out how to raise his tween daughter. He understands hockey and certainly does not understand tween girls. Tallulah is a marine biology grad student and the au pair to Burgess' daughter. What could go wrong? Well, considering Tallulah and Burgess are immediately hot for each other? The answer is a lot.

I enjoyed reading about these 2 figuring it out and finding their forever. The 3rd act conflict took a bit of wind out of my sails, but I still loved it overall. The side characters were delightful, and I'm super curious about where things are going with Sig and Chloe because that's definitely a thing.

Thanks to Tessa, the publisher, and NetGalley for an eARC of this book for an honest review.

I have been eagerly awaiting Burgess and Tallulah's story and boy did it deliver! Bailey has done it again and this time with a memorable bang. I mean, who can resist a hockey daddy!

I loved this story so much. Along with Bailey's iconic steam we also get insecurities, family drama dynamics, and a whole hecka lot of vulnerability. I have read many of Bailey's work, if not all, and this is definitely going to be a treasure of rereads.

Thank you Avon for the advanced reader's copy! It was a gem. All thoughts are my own!

Super cute! Love Tessa Bailey. This one was no different and I flew through it in a day! Thank you NetGalley for this ARC

5/5 ⭐️
3.5/5 🌶️

My two thoughts as I was reading:

1. I am feral for this book 🥵.
2. Burgess is so god damn hot.

I think this may be my new favorite from Tessa Bailey book which is shocking (for myself) because I don’t normally like age gap/nanny romances but this one was so so good!

We first meet Burgess, a hockey player nearing retirement, and Tallulah, a marine biologist, in “Fangirl Down” where they have instant chemistry. Burgess offers Tallulah an au pair position. Moving forward into the current book, hesitant to move in with a complete stranger, Tallulah battles her past traumas with her intense desires. Burgess’ patience and understanding allows for Tallulah to start allowing the walls to fall meanwhile helping Burgess with his relationship with his daughter Lissa. The more time Burgess and Tallulah spend together, the more the lines start the blur.

My thoughts:
Holy moly, the chemistry between these two was absolutely insane. I was blushing and screaming out loud at Burgess. He is my fav MMC from Tessa B thus far - the way he knew exactly what Tallulah needed to make her feel safe and supported had me swooning!! It was almost (almost) borderline too much spice compared to plot but I found myself reading every single spice scene 🥵. I honestly don’t have much more to say about this. I think my brain is still mush after reading this. All I can say is read this book if your a T Bailey fan - YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED!

What to expect:
✨Dual POV
✨Sports Romance
✨Nanny/Boss
✨Age Gap (11 years)
✨He Falls First
✨Third Act Breakup

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Harper Collins/Avon for the eARC! Thoughts/opinions are my own.

Tessa is always an instant read for me. When I heard she was writing a hockey romance I was beside myself.

Who doesn't love a grouchy hockey defenseman who falls first? Burgess is smitten from the moment he meets Tallulah in California and will do whatever it takes to not only help her overcome her trauma, but show her that they were end game.

what a fantastic read! I loved the dynamic of Burgess and Tallulah. I’m not usually one for “Mean Daddy” but Burgess was on a different level and I love him so much. I love how the relationship progressed, I enjoyed how Tallulah impacted the solo dad and his daughter’s relationship. Tessa does an amazing job of making relationships feel real and I always enjoy her work!

The Au Pair Affair!
Tessa Bailey delivers on the smut and a good time - she makes readers devour those dirty lines and want more.
4 ⭐️
- He Falls First
- Grumpy (alpha)/ Sunshine
- Age Gap
- Hockey Girls Era
- Single Dad
- Who Did this to you vibes
- Groveling
- Character Cameos (Fan Girl Down)

Tessa delivers on the smut and a good time - she makes readers devour those dirty lines and want more.

Thanks Nalley & Avon and Harper Voyager for the ARC - Opinions are my own.

title: The Au Pair Affair

author: Tessa Bailey

publisher: Avon

publication date: July 16, 2024

pages: 384

peppers: 3 (on this scale)

warnings: broken nose and other hockey violence; traumatic past/stalker

summary: Tallulah is moving to Boston to work on her MA in Marine Biology. To be able to afford to live there, she takes a job as the Au Pair to Lissa, the twelve-year-old daughter of Burgess, better known as the rough defensemen of the Boston Bearcats (*Yes, I love that the team's mascot is the same as my school's!) pro hockey team. Despite her rough past and desire for fearlessness and adventure and his gruff exterior and homebody lifestyle, their chemistry and compatibility is undeniable. 

tropes:

professional sports hero
age-gap
she works for him
traumatic past
grumpy-sunshine
moody tween
destination wedding (not theirs)
doesn't care about anything except hockey
might not be able to come back from his injury

what I liked: 

he's alpha-protective of her
she's got more going on in her life than just pining for him
she gives good advice about communication
Bailey made the age-gap work

what I didn’t like: NA

overall rating: 5 (of 5 stars)

Thank you NetGalley for the eARC for an honest review!
Total Rating: 4.5/5
I read The Au Pair Affair straight after finishing Fangirl Down and I was ecstatic we get to now follow Josephine's best friend Tallulah who now becomes the Au Pair for Wells' best friend and hockey player Burgess. Burgess is as fierce off the ice as he is on, and he is still adjusting to find a relationship with his daughter, Lissa. He hires Tallulah to come live with him and assist with helping out Lissa while she continues working towards her degree as a Marine Biologist.

I loved both of our main characters and how they brought out the best in each other. Tallulah warming up Burgess and showing him all those who look up to him and him giving her the confidence and protection to let go of her past inflictions.

This book does have a third-act break-up but it is still an HEA (though I am knocking .5 off the total because I was hoping for a longer resolvement and more closure in the end). I hope we do get to see more of Burgess and Tallulah in the future but I am also hoping for more light on Sig and Chloe!

Another sweet and sexy story by Tessa Bailey!

I LOVED Fangirl Down and was excited to explore Talulah and Burgess ( I adore grumpy men). The spice as usual was great! I wish we had some more Talula and Lissa bonding moments but the ones we had were lovely. I thought Lissa was a sweet and relatable kid. Burgess seemed like such a loving dad and he felt relatable. ( I too cannot braid hair). I struggled to relate to Talulah, not because of her trauma, but because of her personality. I just felt other than her trauma she lacked a little depth. However, she grew throughout the book regarding trusting herself and gaining confidence which made her a little more interesting.

I am a Tessa Bailey stan. She has a knack for writing wonderfully diverse characters and storylines. This is a book worth picking up!

Thank you, NetGalley for this e-arc!

Omfg
Love love. Burned thru this as soon as I started.
Talulah & Burgess are end goal vibes
I didn’t know I was into mean daddy either. But Tessa girl you have taught me so much and kept me on the hook
This was fantastic
I can’t wait to have a physical copy of this one & to tell my book group. Ahhh I was so sad to see that percentage go higher with their story. Thank you for this arc on NetGalley

I really liked this book! This is my second hockey romance (first being Same Time Next Year by Tessa Bailey also) and I do think I enjoyed this one more.

It has an age gap, single dad, grumpy/sunshine, he falls first, and all the “touch her and die” you could ask for. It was hot and steamy, but also heartfelt and made me cry a couple times.

I loved the mmc’s struggle with his self-image and his willingness to grow and learn to be a better teammate/father. I wish there was a little more father/daughter bonding moments. His outburst that was the whole conflict setup for the second half of the book seemed a little dramatic and out of character.

I did not love how many times the mmc was described as ‘making a gruff sound’ or how often ‘orange and basil’ was used. The sequencing/timing of things also seemed a little off to me? At one point the season opener game was the next day and then it was two weeks later and we were at the season opener. Or a steamy scene happened and the next chapter was said to be a week and a half later but then the steamy scene was later referred to as happening ‘last night’.

Overall, it was a fun romance that I’m happy with and glad I got the chance to read! I HAVE to read Sig and Chloe’s book!!

Tessa Bailey can do no wrong. I loved these two. There was a moment there where I thought it was going to be just another boring romance. She had me riding the waves of Burgess and Tallulah’s love story and I am so glad I didn’t give up because it ended on the best kind of high. I wish men like this existed in real life. What a great addition to Wells and Josie’s world.

Definitely not my favorite by Tessa Bailey. I didn't feel like the characters or their actions made a ton of sense, the com of rom-com was missing, and there were too many ick-factor moments for me. That said, I will absolutely be reading the next book in this series because I think the setup (at least I hope it's the setup! I mean... it HAS to be) laid out in this book sounds like it'll be wild and probably very funny!

Oh, ouch. Burgess is a lot. He’s a contradiction. He’s utterly in love with Tallulah. He’s determined to have her and keep her…or is he? Because sometimes the pain of something totally unrelated leads to the meanest of words. Even if they’re not meant and the pain is running the mouth. But they’re said and they shatter what is. Have no fear, though. This man knows how to grovel. And love. And do whatever it takes.

Tallulah is a conundrum herself. She’s scared but trying to live. Sure she’s lacking but feels so safe and secure with Burgess. And she doesn’t want to admit she’s in love until she’s ready. Too bad there are other hearts at stake, because once the secret is out, things get painful. And then the tough work starts.

These two are meant for each other, even if they try to fight it at first. One more than the other, because Mr Walking Contradiction is so worried about safety for the woman who is now afraid that he will do anything to help her. Even if it means being a little underhanded about how he helps. But it’s all done in love, so I had to adore him. Even the pain they both go through is worth the love they finally admit to. I can promise you that.

Thank you NetGalley for the arc

I enjoyed this book quite a lot. It was cute and I liked the characters it was fun! I love Tessa Bailey