Sweet with a little spice, best friends to lovers romance mixed with a single dad musician and nanny themes

The Nanny Arrangement is my first read by Rachel Harris and overall, I really enjoyed this relatively light-hearted, sweet, best friends to lovers romance mixed with a single dad musician and nanny themes. Despite being book two in the series, it can most definitely be read as a standalone without causing confusion. This is a bit of a slow burn romance but the sweet connection the two have and their shared past helps keep you intrigued as to how things will play out. Also, the book is relatively clean with just a small bit of spice as things heat up between the two but the chemistry between them still sizzles.

Hannah and Deacon, who alternate perspective, have a strong chemistry and friendship that helps set the foundations of the book. Hannah is a sweet but quietly strong woman and her relationship with Deacon’s son, Max, is such a sweet and heartwarming read but is also important in developing the characters. Deacon, a sexy dad with a tough past, is reluctant to see Hannah as more than a friend to avoid losing the woman who saved him as a teenager and became his best friend. However, with a little push in the right direction from some wonderful secondary characters, these two best friends might just find their own happily-ever-after.

If you are a sucker for sweet single parent romances like I am, definitely consider giving this book a read. I enjoyed it!

I loved it! It's a sweet, and touching romance. Two friends who have always been there for each other fall in love without even realizing it. Now they both feel as if they're the only one in love with the other so keep trying hiding their true feelings until those feelings can no longer be hidden.

Hannah was used to people being cruel to her. She didn't have many friends until she met Deacon. He changes her, taught her to be strong. For as long as she can remember he has always protected her, helped her, and been a good friend to her. But now she wants more. She is in love and somehow she needs Deacon to realise that she is the one for him. He is her family and she wants to be the same for him.

Deacon is having very inappropriate feelings for his childhood friend. It bothers him, he should not be thinking of her romantically. Will their friendship survive if they start wanting more?

Soon they realise that whatever happens they just need to follow their hearts. And their hearts belong with each other.

It's a lighthearted romantic novel. I think anyone who enjoys a good contemporary romance will love this book.

The Nanny Arrangement, by Rachel Harris is a contemporary romance book, which focuses on unrequited love eventually leading to best friends falling in love.

After returning from Paris, Hannah Fisher is determined that Deacon Latrell will see her as more than just his best friend. Even though their close friendship started as teenagers, Deacon always believed that Hannah was destined for more than him, while she only wanted a life with him.

When his famous country band goes on tour, Deacon needs a nanny for Max, his toddler son, and Hannah is his ideal choice. Along with some matchmaking help from her new friends on tour, Hannah pushes for more in their friendship, while Deacon tries to control his attraction and focus on the band. As this cute story unfolds, it's slightly awkward at times for this young couple, yet Max is simply adorable.

Since it's the second book in the Country Blues series, it's recommended to start with the first book with the same title as the books series, Hawks Mountain, yet it's not necessary to read the books in order.

The Nanny Arrangement is geared towards those who enjoy reading contemporary romances.


Note: I received this book from NetGalley, which is a program designed for bloggers to write book reviews in exchange for books, yet the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

He was her hero. She was his second chance. Bonded by loneliness these childhood outsiders created a friendship that could withstand anything. Except for maybe falling in love. Deacon and Hannah are magic together. They bring out the best in each other. Ms. Harris has created one of her finest works with The Nanny Arrangement. Friendship, sentiment, humor and heart are all subjects easy to relate to and made this story a resounding success.

2.5 stars.

This book was ok - the writing was good, but I felt like the story and characters were flat. It didn't stand out from the other books in this genre.

Also I was disappointed that we cut off at kissing - then 'the deed' was done 'off screen' and we read about the aftermath - I do enjoy some good smut in my books, so this was a big no-no in my mind.

Certainly not a bad book, just an average one.

I was surprised at how much I enjoyed The Nanny Arrangement. As much as I love the friends-to-lovers trope, there are a whole lot of other factors in this story that generally drive me crazy, and certainly did this time. And I liked the damn thing anyway!

The Nanny Arrangement is right on the cusp between New Adult and Contemporary Romance. The protagonists are both 20-somethings, and are still figuring out what they want out of life. They also fumble quite a bit along their way.

This is really Hannah’s story. She has come back from a year-long stay in Paris as an au pair to initiate Operation Find My Happy. It’s not that Hannah doesn’t know where her happy is, it’s that she isn’t sure she can manage to grab it. Because Hannah has been in love with Deacon Lattrell for ten years now, and he doesn’t seem to see her as anything more than a friend. Admittedly his best friend in the whole universe, but still, firmly and seemingly irrevocably, stuck in the dreaded friend zone.

But as much as Hannah loves being Deke’s friend, as well as the surrogate mother to his young son Max, Hannah just plain loves Deke, and always has. But Hannah has always hidden herself away in baggy clothes and in the fringes of any group, and it is possible that Deke simply hasn’t seen her as she really is. And that he never got past spending high school defending Hannah from all the schoolyard cruelty inflicted on her as a red-headed girl with a stutter who wore slightly old-fashioned clothes. She was the class freak, and Deke was her lone defender.

There’s plenty of love there, but it isn’t exactly the kind of love that Hannah wants or needs. Running away to Paris didn’t cure her of her embarrassingly unrequited love for Deke, so putting herself out there and making him see her may not work either, but she has to try before she has a chance at moving on.

That’s where the fun begins. Deke is the latest member of the country rock group Blue. The band has been established for years, but they needed a new fiddle-player and Deke has turned out to be it. But Deke doesn’t travel without little Max, and that’s where Hannah steps in. The band needs a live-in nanny on tour, not just for Max but also for the lead singer’s little girl Stella. So just as Deke is on a trial contract as their fiddler for the length of their US tour, Hannah is on a trial contract as their nanny.

In the enforced intimacy of a small group on tour in not-nearly-big-enough buses, Hannah has the chance to open Deke’s eyes. It’s not her fault that as soon as he opens them, the idiot slams them shut again. He wants only the absolute best for Hannah, and he’s sure that’s not him. Not that he’s actually asked her what she wants. Of course not.

He’s an idiot, but while plumbing the vast depths of his idiocy he finally gets smart enough to put on some really excellent grovel to get back the girl he’s always loved.

Escape Rating B+: Throw the tropes New Adult Romance, Rock Star Romance, Friends-to-Lovers, I’m Not Worthy, and Misunderstandammit into a blender, mix with Operation Find My Happy, and come up with a story that in spite of its flaws still makes the reader finish with a big smile.

I say this because I find that I’m hit or miss with New Adult, and very much down on both I’m Not Worthy and the Misunderstandammit. Combining the trope where the hero kicks the heroine to the curb because he’s certain she’s too good for him, and mixing it with the trope where so many of their issues could be solved if they just talked with each other instead of past each other once in awhile does not make for this reader’s favorite frustration.

What redeemed a whole lot of these two issues was that, unusual for romance, Deke put on very good grovel to make up for his errors. Not that Hannah wasn’t going to take him back anyway, but not just Deke but all the guys in the story were conscious that Deke had screwed up big time and needed to make up for it even bigger time.

It was great not to see the guy get a hall pass on this.

But it was Hannah’s Operation Find My Happy that made the story for me. She’s not sure how to get what she wants, and she’s certainly not sure that she’ll get what she wants, but she has internalized the mantra about only getting a different result by taking a different action. Along with the realization that the whole unrequited longing thing just wasn’t working for her. She needed to get on or get over, and she hadn’t found a way to get over so it was time to get on with pursuing what she wanted, even if she lost.

I also loved the way that both the friendships among the women and the friendships among the men developed organically over the story. Expanding their respective circles was something that both Deke and Hannah desperately needed to do, even if neither of them saw it.

And we do see where Deke and Hannah came from, and just how and why they ended up in the pickle that they are in. And we’re thrilled when Hannah’s courage and Deke’s excellent grovel finally locate Hannah’s (and Deke’s and Max’s) happy.

Although this is the second book in the Country Blues series it can totally be read as a standlone, and I truly believe people would want to read this book because it's amazing!! A wonderful best friends to lovers romance.

I truly both of the main characters!! Hannah and Deacon had been childhood best friends, although neither one of them ever wanted to risk to cross that line, Hannah had been too shy, Deacon didn't want to ruin their friendship and he also had issues with his past. But that's all in the past; after a trip to Paris, Hannah decided to go after what she wants, or in this case after the one she wants; and so she takes a job as a nanny to Deacon's son, but that means joining the band on tour, since he's part of a famous country group. So of course, things are going to change.

I found the relationship between Hannah and Deacon to be really sweet and endearing, they honestly care about each other, like beyond wanting to be together they want the other to be happy and the whole book I was just rooting for them to be together. I also adored Deacon's relationship with his son, I mean you have a nice, caring guy also being a great ´parent? I'm sold! And Hannah was too very likable, she's sweet, still a bit shy but determined. I admit I would have loved to read more flashback scenes of Deacon and Hannah in the past, because while you know they were childhood friends, you don't really get to read much of it.

So you have well written and believable characters, a captivating story, romance, what more do you need? Great book by Rachel Harris.

the latest book in the country blues series, the nanny arrangement, follows newest member deacon latrell and his best friend, hannah fisher. since they first met, years ago when deacon was new in town and hannah summed up the courage to say hello to him in spite of her stutter, they've been connected at the hip. and while hannah values his friendship, she is also in love with him and always has been.

the problem is that deacon doesn't see her as a woman, or at least she thinks that is the problem. it's a little more complicated though. deacon sees her as a woman all right, he just believes that he has no business lusting after his best friend. his experience with love is that people leave. and he never wants hannah to not be a part of his life.

and he's thrilled when for his first tour with the band, he'll have hannah with him. she's agreed to join the tour as a nanny, watching his young son max, and the lead singer's daughter. they'll be sharing a tour bus, and at first deacon doesn't think anything of the forced proximity. but as the sexual tension rachets up between them, it's finally time for them to talk about things openly.

the truth is, they both want the same things. they want to spend a life with each other. they want to raise his son together. all deacon needs to do is believe that he is worthy of the love hannah has for him. all hannah has to do is tell him unequivocally that she loves him. this is a sweet, emotional story, and the character's rich history adds to the depth of feeling in their romance.

Friends to lovers has always been one of my favorite tropes and when I saw that Rachel Harris had a new book coming out I jumped at the chance to read it.

Hannah and Deacon have been best friends for 10 years. Hannah has always loved Deacon as more than a friend, but never revealed her feelings.
After returning from a year in Paris to heal some wounds from a broken heart and work as an Au pair, she vows to change things in her life, including getting Deacon to see her as more than just a friend and start "Operation Find My Happy" She takes a job as a nanny for Deacon's son who she adores, while the band he's in is on tour. His son's mom (and ex-friend of Hannah's) ran off right after the baby was born a few years prior. Traveling with them on the tour bus, it's the perfect opportunity to see if there could be more between them.
Hannah is a strong, sweet and honest person and has always been there for him. Deacon has always cherished their friendship and can't imagine his life without her in it. Can she show him they could be so much more than just friends? Will he take the chance?

I loved their story. Sweet, swoony and just the right amount of angst. I even got a little emotional at the end.

While there are characters from past books [Accidentally Married on Purpose (Love and Games #3) / You're Still the One (Country Blues #1)], this can be read as a stand-alone. I highly recommend this and the other books! Love these characters!

**Thank you to Entangled Publishing for providing an ARC through Net Galley for an honest review**

Very sweet book. Both of the main characters, Deacon and Hannah, were very likable people. I even enjoyed the other characters a lot as well. The story of boy bands do not usually interest me since most of the time they are about young and very rough, dirty guys, with a lot of foul language. But this book wasn't like that. Very little foul language in this book. All of the intimate scenes were hot but left a lot to the imagination, which I like in a book. This was my first book by Rachel Harris, but I will be sure and check out more of her books in the near future.

Hannah has been in love with her friend Deacon since they met as teenagers but fears he never saw her as a romantic option. Determined to change that, she returns from a year abroad with some frilly French underwear and a plan to seduce him while serving as a nanny on tour with the band he just joined. We switch perspectives but never really get into Deacon's head despite the makings of a fascinating character: alcoholic mother, abandoned by the mother of his child as soon as she could leave the hospital, pathological belief that he's not good enough... but we really just see him wrestle with his growing attraction for his friend.
This book was a light, breezy read but I found myself growing frustrated with the couple because despite a decade of friendship they were determined not to talk to each other. When combined with their sincere beliefs that they each knew what was better for the other - despite never honestly discussing their feelings - this story basically consisted of two perfectly nice people who needed to have their heads knocked together.
Deacon even turns controlling and officious toward the end, deciding hurting Hannah is what she needs and I nearly hurled my e-reader across the room because a hero who undermines the agency of the heroine is not my cup of tea. Obviously, everything works out in the end, but nothing about this book makes me want to read others in the series or come back to this well. I'd call it frustrating and forgettable.

Another good read from author Rachel Harris. A friends to lover's story which pulls at the heartstrings and entertains from one page to the next.
Review copy received from Entangled Publishing via Netgalley

Ranked 3.5 stars, rounded up.

Hannah was a shy, quiet, withdrawn child. The bullies & mean girls at school loved tormenting her because of her stutter & home made clothes. She felt so alone until he moved in next door. She finally got the nerve up to go introduce herself to him & a friendship was formed. Deacon protected her throughout school but never realized her feelings were so deep. Deacon ended up with one of her supposed friends & Hannah took off to Paris to grieve. Now she's back, Deacon is single with a young son & a touring contract with a top band. Hannah agrees to be the nanny for Deacon's son & another band member's daughter. She's determined to make Deacon see that her feelings are not just friendship. Can she make him see her in a different light? Will she back out on the conversation again?

Deacon doesn't want to lose Hannah again. It about killed him when she was in Paris & he couldn't see & talk to her everyday. Her friendship & her family met more to him than anything & he wouldn't do anything to jeopardize it. So why is he having these different feelings? Why is he looking at Hannah differently?

This writer does a good job setting the scene & feeling of the story in the beginning & growing it from there. Though this is book 2, it can be read as a stand alone. Some characters flow between the books but the storyline for the specific story begins & ends in the book. I was able to form a connection with the characters although it took a little longer than usual. Personally, I would have liked a few more flashbacks to scenes from them growing up & how he became her hero instead of just alluding to it. This was a sweet entertaining friends to lovers story.

The Nanny Arrangement by Rachel Harris is Book 2 of the Country Blues Series and is of the best-friends-to-lovers and single dads troupe. While this is part of a series, it can be read as a standalone.

This is a sweet and sexy read that incorporates a good mixing of chemistry, characters, and a titter of drama. There are some areas that need some tightening up and more explanation of how we progressed to this moment as those times it was unclear and no explanation was given as to how we went from there to here.

Please note that an ARC was generously provided in exchange for an honest review of which this is both honest and completely voluntary.

Hannah has been best friends with Deacon for years, ever since she befriended him and he became her protector. Now she's been asked to be the nanny for Deacon's son, while he's embarking on a tour with a famous country band. Hannah has loved him for years, and she's determined to make him see her as more than a best friend. Do her tactics work? Does Deacon's upbringing (absent dad, alcoholic mother) prevent him from being able to maintain a relationship?

I loved the interaction that Hannah had with Deacon, as well as his band-mates wives and girlfriends. First book I've read by Harris, and I enjoyed it so much that I need to go back and read You're Still The One, the first book in the series.

I don't know, it was well written, but it just didn't quite do it for me. He was just too down on himself. I like more of an alpha male , not a sad sack. Both of them were downers really. Cute story, but I just didn't like either of them.

My thoughts:

I'm a sucker for the best friends to lovers story. The love between Deacon and Hannah is obvious from the very beginning of the book, but Deacon doesn't notice Hannah in that way. Or does he? I loved Deacon's slow realization that he feels more than just platonic love for Hannah.

I loved the connection between Deacon and Hannah. Their friendship that had evolved through their teenage years to their mid-twenties.

The secondary characters, including Deacon's sweet son Max, are an important part of the story. Deacon is worried about being a good father to Max and a good member of his new band. He knows that Hannah is necessary to both working out. His son is in love with her and his band mates and their wives instantly bring her into the group. Deacon is afraid that if he crosses a line with Hannah, that is getting harder and harder not to cross, then everything in his world could go to hell.

The Nanny Arrangement is the perfect book to read while sitting out by the pool.

Rating:

the book girl gives The Nanny Arrangement a 5/5

Sugar sweet and cute are the keywords in The Nanny Arrangement. If you like books with girlie-crushes-on-the-bad-boy-next-door you are in for a treat! Rachel Harris' second book in the Country Blues series takes you to Hannah Fisher and her neighbour bad boy Deke - Deacon - Latrell.

Hannah is a shy girl, being bullied in her school years for stuttering, having red hair and wear-me-down clothes. Deke was the famous bad boy, being the Knight in Shining Armor for Hannah, by beating the bullies into pulp. So, an unlikely friendship grew. But, whereas Hannah developed a "Lois-is-swooning-over-Superman-crush", Deke seemed to consider her only as his best friend and sister. Even when Deke's girlfriend takes off, after leaving him their son and Hannah steps in to help him out, he still doesn't treat her as anything else than his BFF.

So Hannah takes of to Paris, to rethink her life. She comes up with Operation Find My Happy and she is determined to persuade Deke to see her not only as a good friend, but as HIS girlfriend. And what better way to convince him while being stuck together on the tourbus? But Hannah didn't take into account the other team members and their very nosy girlfriends, who are also travelling on the bus. Can she (and her girl posse) convince Deacon that he is worthy of her love? Or will they crash and burn?

A great read. You can easily read this book, without reading the first part of this series. Four out of five stars from me. With a special thanks to Netgalley and Entangled Publishing for providing the ARC.

LOVED it!! This is an absolutely fantastic friends to lovers story that had my emotions all over the place. Deacon Latrell and Hannah Fisher have been friends since childhood. Two misfits that worked perfectly together. Deacon had a tough family life and was considered a bad boy. Hannah had a loving family but was shy and held back because of a stutter. Now all grown up these two have remained close but not as close as Hannah would like them to be. Will Deacon ever see her as more than the shy girl next door?? Now he has the opportunity to go on tour and he wants Hannah to go along as a nanny for his son. Could this be Hannah's chance to show Deacon how good they can be together?

A fantastic read that I highly recommend to everyone.

Great addition to the Country Blues series! I adore Deacon & Hannah and the rest of the Blue 'family'. The ending made me tear up, it was so sweet.

I'm already highly anticipating the 3rd book in the series!