4.5 Stars for this finale in Rachel’s Bachelors of Arizona series. I’ve so enjoyed each of these stories, but this one? I think Rachel saved it for last because she knew Brant needed his brothers, and he needed them to have found their happies in order to help him achieve his own. This second chance romance between Brant and Nikki was full of so many emotions. Laughter, anger, sadness and yeah the angst factor was high. Brant and Nikki really did a number on themselves because four years ago they experienced so much negative. So much so that they both stopped fighting, tried to numb the pain and move on; but that didn’t really work. Throw in the meddling of Grandma Nadine, the Wellington’s and Nikki’s work family; yeah it’s bound to be fun. I mentioned there being lots of angst, and a big part of that was the fear that both Brant and Nikki has. They want to be together, their love is still present but the fear keeps them from speaking their truths and the doubts. When they finally let go, it’s both beautiful and heart wrenching; but the happily ever after is all worth it!

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley for an honest review. This was the third book in the Bachelors of Arizona series.


This book focuses on Brant and his ex-wife Nikki. Brant and Nikki got married when they were young and after a few traumatic events they separated. Four years later Nikki ends up biding on Brant at the Bachelor auction (which happened in book 1) after having no contact since he left. In the past two books and the beginning of this one Brant has been showing his coping skills of drinking, being angry,  and having sex with random women. Brant refuses to go on his auction date and everyone's favorite Grandma comes in and gives Brant a challenge that will get him out of his funk.


The challenge ends up having Brant work together with his ex-wife. Both Nikki and Brant are angry with each other from what happened in their past, but remember there is a thin line between love and hate. Both Nikki and Brant toe that line throughout this book. This book made my heart ache for both characters and the pain and guilt they both felt for losing everything. The sexual tension was perfect and I loved seeing the other characters from the first book. I loved how in these books their grandfather apologizes for the role he played in for making his grandsons unhappiness and he's trying to fix it with his girlfriend, Grandma matchmaker Nadine. This book wasn't all angst. There was happy moments too and some jokes. I loved the glimpses of Brant and Nikki from the past and how they meet. I really enjoyed that at the end that Brant gave Nikki a choice. I really hope Rachel continues this series and Nikki's best friend Cole gets his own book. Overall, if you enjoy second chance romances, Rachel's writing, billionaire stories, and a little angst this book is for you. I'm going to end this review with one of my favorite quotes from this book. 

"Be brave," Grandma Nadine whispered.

"Brave," she repeated.

"You have it in you. All women do. Especially those of us who have lost."

This is the third book in this series by this author. You are always guaranteed a fantastic read by this author. Amazing characters, which you will fall in love with as you read. This book is the perfect mix of humor and the heavy stuff to keep you hooked till the very last page. I can't wait to read more in this series and by this author in the future.
Highly recommended
I voluntarily reviewed an advance reader copy of this book

The Bachelor Contract is full of sweetness and sass. It was just what I needed to break my book funk!

I'm a huge fan of the Bachelor Series from RVD and Brant's book was exactly what we needed and more! First let me say "I F'LOVE Grandma Nadine"! She is total awesomesauce wrapped up with a bow! I wish my Grandma was like her - even with all the meddling she does!

Both Brant and Nikki are living partially in the past and the present, if you could call it living. Their lives, separately - yet together, include reliving the past on a daily basis and questioning everything that happened and how they are living today. However with a bit of meddling, things come full circle and we get to see what second chances mean for these two.

Rachel Van Dyken writes with heart and soul in each of her books. The Bachelor Contract is no different. This book isn't full of sexy over the top situations, however it's sweet, real and takes us into the psyche and what recovery looks like for both men and women when tragedy strikes. The strength of both the characters seeped into my soul.

I just Love crazy grandma nadine!!!

The heartache of this story is so real and painful. The author did a wonderful job taking a tragedy and making it a beautiful love story.

Oh Brant, I knew you’d have the most heartbreaking tale of them all and I was right!

I think Cole and Grandma Nadine are exactly what Niki needs in her life just like Brant needs his brothers and Grandfather to get them to see they haven’t really lost everything.

I love second chance love stories and this one has it all. I mean it all! It’s has drama like no other but it has different degrees of drama that make it so good. I like that it’s a book I can read that is made to entertain. It’s not something that I need to have every detail in every book in the series memorized or I’ll be completely lost. I can just read and enjoy, lose myself for just a little while. Thanks Rachel for giving me that.

I loved this entire series. Each one a little more than the last. I absolutely fell in love with Brant and could not put this down once I started it. I love everything Rachel Van Dyken has written but this series is one of my favorites. You can't go wrong with anything by her

4 1/2 STARS

What a great story. I like how original it was. It was also a fairly quick read. Rachel Van Dyken is one of my go to authors and she never disappoints.

★★★★☆
It’s no secret that I love this author’s writing style and her characters, every time I read her books I feel like I’ve been transported to another world and I get so involved that more often than not I end up shouting at my Kindle and this time was no different.

I LOVE the Wellington brothers especially the twins and Brant’s story always intrigued me so I cannot even begin to explain how excited I was for this book! Brant is.. well to put it nicely a total hot mess at the beginning, honestly I wasn’t sure what was going to knock some sense into him but boy am I glad that Grandma Nadine was around ;). I found Nikki to be a really refreshing character, I loved the twists she added to the story and just her in generally really!

The Bachelor Contract is a beautiful story about second chances, true love and hope, I seriously loved every minute of this book.

I've been looking forward to Brant's story since the first book and it didn't disappoint. It was probably the most emotional of the Rachel Van Dyken books I have read so far and definitely makes me want to go check out the rest of her books (I've only read two other books from her).

Brant was all over the place emotionally and as we see more of why he is the way he is your heart kind of breaks for both he and Nikki. My heart was rooting for them to overcome their tragic pasts and find their love again. The story is helped along by a wonderful cast of supporting characters. We see Brant's brothers again along with their grandfather and Nadine but Cole was the supporting character who stole the show for me. I loved him so much and while I felt bad because you know he's never going to win Nikki I really want him to find his happily ever after. I'm definitely hoping he gets his own book.

This was a great read but be ready for it to tug at those heart strings.

You know it's going to be a good time when Nadine Titus is involved. Nik and B are incredibly complex characters with a past that will blow you away. I did not expect what this book had to offer and that made me love it even more. Rachel always knows how to deliver a book that pulls so much emotion from the reader and this was no exception. I got the "are you crazy" looks from people as I was laughing so hard a may have snorted and then the tears stained my pillow as the back story was revealed. I did not want to like Brant at first but once the cheesy was laid out and the truth behind the relationship was unleashed I was rooting for him so hard. This whole series involves such strong women that have a uniqueness to them and really shows you that love is a powerful thing. Of course it helps when you have the Sassy Nadine, a protective best friend (Cole) and the Wellington family helping things along. I can't wait to see what is next. Devour this story the way I did and you won't regret a single missed hour of sleep. Thank you Rachel!!!

href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34523590-the-bachelor-contract" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img border="0" alt="The Bachelor Contract (The Bachelors of Arizona, #3)" src="https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1498977844m/34523590.jpg" /></a><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34523590-the-bachelor-contract">The Bachelor Contract</a> by <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4882127.Rachel_Van_Dyken">Rachel Van Dyken</a><br/>
My rating: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2184789816">5 of 5 stars</a><br /><br />
I love this series!! This is Brants and Nikkis book and it's filled with angst, drama, lots of love and Grandma Nadine. I cried reading some of the book it was written beautifully. Rachel Van Dyken I take my hat of to you. Brant is stuck in a vicious circle and doesn't know how to get out and needs Nikki to pull him out and in return he can make her whole again. A little intervention from the amazing Nadine (that woman knows what she is doing) always does the trick 😜❤️❤️
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/15651793-caroline">View all my reviews</a>

4.5 stars

Im kind of speechless at the whole drama, emotional moments and funny parts in this story. This is the third book in the series and Brant and Nikki's story.
Brant and Nikki married young and through certain circumstances drifted apart. We learn why, we come to know how each of them felt and truths come out. This is a story with so many feels and then you add Grandma Nadine into the mix and well, as they say the rest is history..lol. Her zest and funny ideas as well as pushing people to do things really make the story. I really enjoyed reading it. You will no doubt as well.

This review has been giving me some trouble for awhile now. There were some aspects of this story that I really enjoyed, some that had me shaking my head, and others that just simply made me mad. But before I get into the reasons why, let my start off by saying that yes this is book three in a series, yes characters from those books do appear in this one as well, but no, you do not have to have read the others in order for this one to make sense. I read the first one, but not the second, and still had no trouble putting things together.

One of the biggest problems I had with this story is that it seems as though a lot of authors, Rachel included, have as of late fallen into the trap of making their lead male characters complete and utter jerks. I seriously spent half of this story wanting to smack him in the head with the nearest blunt object, and the other half wishing Niki would just wash her hands of him and be done with it. I understand that they were young when they married, and that they went through some traumatic things together, but after four years of being separated the way Brant treats her is abhorrent. He is prone to bouts of irrational, and often misplaced anger, usually directed at Niki. I've honestly lost count of the number of times he made her cry, or otherwise acted like the lowest of scum towards her.

Speaking of Niki, as far as I'm concerned, she is weak and deserves to be fired from her job. No, she doesn't deserve to lose her job because she allows Brant to treat her horribly, but because during one session with Brant (during which the lights were off) this supposedly professional masseuse not only allowed her client (whom at the time she not only did NOT know it was Brant, but also thought he was a married man) to kiss her, but also engaged in other completely unprofessional and inappropriate behavior. It wasn't cute, or funny.

And while I am on the subject of completely unprofessional behavior, after Brant once again treats Niki in the worst of ways, probably the worst way of all, the staff of the resort starts treating him poorly. While it was much deserved, the fact that they did so in front of the OWNER's of the resort reflects badly on them and not Brant. If I were the owner, I would have been tempted to fire the lot of them. Regardless of how much someone deserves what happens to them, when you are in a professional setting, you need to act professional. What happens the next time an employee gets their heart broken?

And because I like to end things whenever possible on a positive note, let me end this review by saying two words. GRANDMA NADINE. Yes, everyone's favorite wine drinking, matchmaking, take-no-prisoners Grandma is not only back, but up to her old tricks! She will forever be one of my favorite Rachel characters.

Overall, I do believe this story will still appeal to those who enjoy romantic comedies. I would read more from this author!

DISCLAIMER: I received a complimentary copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review. This has not affected my review in any way. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are 100% my own.

I cannot tell you how much I enjoy reading a Rachel Vandyken books.. I enjoyed the story between Brant and Nikki because of the sadness that they endured through their marriage through their divorce it was just a really well come together story of how your past really does define you and what it makes you today. Of course throughout the story you get to see the Titus clan and grandfather and the crazy quirky family fun this is a laugh a cry and just an amazing story. And of course I cannot waitme to see what Cole's story and how grandma Nadine will orchestrate the next matchmaking plot.

it was amazing

**spoiler free review**
I will never be able to do this book justice and for a lot of reasons. I have read all 3 books in this series and this book has had a huge effect on me on a very personal level. Again Rachel has taken a huge subject and handled it with class. She never ceases to amaze me
I promised no spoilers, so just want to give a warning. The reader will truly love this book BUT better hold on for one hell of a ride. For me the shining star was not Brandt or Nikki. It was Nadine, I truly hope when I get to her age that I am as big of a spit fire as she is.
Did I cry reading this book? YES! Did I laugh? YES! Were there a few AHA moments? Hell yes. I loved it all

A HUMAN’S CAPACITY FOR PAIN WAS LIMITLESS.

Brant and Nikki once had everything they could ever need with each other. After several tragic events, Brant walks away and Nikki lets him. Four years later, the two are unknowingly thrown back into each other’s lives. Several encounters later, and the two have found their chance at a HEA. But will either one be able to forgive themselves in order to give their “storybook” romance a second chance.

This is the best kind of second chance romance from such an amazing author. Rachel van Dyken knocks it out of the park with all of the feels that are present in this book. With the involvement of Grandma Nadine, you never know what to expect. Brant and Nikki have so many obstacles to overcome, yet you find yourself getting lost in their journey.

There are some unanswered questions regarding their past, but the story still reads well. The author also gives us several new characters - Annie, Carol, Cole and George - who I’m anticipating reading more about in future books.

All in all, this was a great read. I just felt like I was missing a vital part of Brant and Nikki’s past.

I finished reading The Bachelor Contract by Rachel Van Dyken at 2 A.M because it was even more than I had hoped it could be and then some. I had a soft spot for Brant after reading both The Bachelor Auction and The Playboy Bachelor and knowing that there had to be something big that happened in the past to make him the way that he was now. I didn't know how much their story would hurt, or how much I would love both Nikki and Brant by the end of the book.

The Bachelor Contract isn't a Rom-Com, although there are moments of levity brought forth by the ever-present Grandma Nadine. This second-chance romance is filled with so much feeling and depth, sweetness, love, and heartfelt moments. Yes, there is some humor because honestly would it be an RVD book without it? She knows how to get you right to your emotional breaking point and bring you back, only to keep you hooked and hanging on to read the next scene.

The Bachelor Contract is my favorite book in the series, with Brant and Nikki becoming my favorite couple. I have to tell you who I want to see get their own book though - Cole. Nikki's best friend deserves happiness, love, and I totally see him as RVD's next swoon-worthy hero.

Brant and Nikki were married until a series of tragic events tore the two apart. Four years passes and when their paths cross again they have to come to terms with the past and find the closure that neither of them received upon their divorce.

I loved how strong Nikki was despite the hand she was dealt and I love that Brant wasn’t willing to give up on her. Their story was heartbreaking, but seeing the love that still existed between the two made me want to root for them from the very beginning. I liked the dual point of view, especially Nikki, “seeing” things through her eyes. The story was engaging and one that I didn’t want to put down.

I wish there had been a little more development of Nikki and Brant’s past, it may have made me connect a little more and feel a little more empathetic to their story. I did like the family dynamic, the three brothers were a lot of fun and the addition of Cole as a surrogate frenemy brother made for some lol-worthy moments.

I haven’t read the first two books in the series however I don’t feel as though I missed too much, but I will definitely go back and read the others. The Wellington family is nuts and I loved every minute of it!

This book is another reminder why Rachel Van Dyken is one of my favorite authors. This book made my feel so much. It made me laugh, cry and get angry with the characters. This one is my favorite in this series. Brant and Nikki were so broken, I needed a lot of tissues to read this book. I loved the comic relief of Grandma Nadine, she is always one of my favorite characters. I'm glad to see her in so many books. Rachel Van Dyken is one of my go to authors, can't wait to see what she comes up with next.