As a second book in a romance series, The Au Pair Affair did well combining the world Tessa Bailey set in FanGirl Down, and a new bubble for Burgess and Tallulah's relationship to exist. Tallulah And Burgess' conflicts felt real and not contrived which is a breath of fresh air for this genre. I have an affinity for hockey romances and would have liked a bit more of the sport but the spice was just right. I would give it a 3.5/5 on my spice chart.

Thank you to both Netgalley and the publishers for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars, rounded up.

This was a fun read! After reading Fangirl Down earlier this year, I was frothing at the mouth for Tallulah's book. I'm a die-hard lover of hockey romance, and the idea of a romance between a player and his au pair? I was hooked.

The romance between Tallulah and Bergress was amazing. Tessa Bailey never fails to write a romance where the male falls first and falls harder. We love to see it. And while I really loved the way the romance unfolds, I do feel like it happened a bit fast. Apart from that, it was sweet, sexy, and an overall fun time.

The characters themselves I found to be complex and intriguing, especially Tallulah. She was such a well written character that I found myself often feeling the emotions she was feeling. It was like her anxiety or elation jumped straight off the page. Her and Burgress together I found complimentary. Her softness to his roughness, his calm to her storm. They worked very well together, and I loved watching the characters come together.

I think my biggest critique would be the lack of relationship between Tallulah and Lissa. I found myself wanting more by the end of the book. I loved them so much in the scenes they were in together and it would've been so much better if we just got a few more crumbs of them in this book.

Overall some rough bits but a lovely addition to my Tessa Bailey addiction. I can't wait to grab my physical copy on release day!

The Au Pair Affair was a great read and it was just as good as the first book, if not better. Tessa Bailey is a master of romantic comedies and this is a prime example. If you want a hockey romance that has a protective MMC, a sassy FMC, and a preteen trying to figure out the world, this is for you. Definitely spicy and lots of tension.

Tessa has done a fine job with this sports romance. Always a fun read with spice that is on point. Always glad for the HEA!

We met Tallulah and Brugess in book one, and now you get to fall in love with them in book two. As Tallulah gets to Boston to become Burgesses live-in nanny she starts second-guessing herself, mostly from her traumatic past but the mans nickname is Sir Savage. Burgess, ever the gentlemen and not exactly Sir Savage off the ice. He tries to help Tallualh feel comfortable in his home while trying not to fall in love with the nanny.

Only Tessa Bailey can come through with the pure magic of Burgess and Talullah after blowing our minds with Fangirl Down. Round. Of. Applause. 👏👏👏

I am so glad I found out this is going to be a series before I started reading because the way I felt about Burgess and Talullah in the first book is how I now feel about Sig and Chloe.

I really tried to wait closer to publication date to read in hopes I would for sure know the status of the third book, but I couldn’t wait any longer and now I will be crossing my fingers until Sig and Chloe are confirmed!

The Au Pair Affair does need a TW: stalking, harassing, kidnapping (prior to start of book), ptsd, chronic pain, and injury.
(I am glad I came across a review with this information because I know I needed it to be in the right mindset to read)

But don’t let that take away from this being a romantic comedy because you better believe there is a whole lot of romance and many a laugh out loud moment 🥰💕😂💕🤗

There is also talk of penguins and 500 pound sea turtles, a revenge dress, Wells and Josephine’s wedding, athlete intervention, memories of being a 12 year old girl, $75 sweatshirts turning into a heart-melting moment, banter for days, rookies who are precious like misbehaving puppies, personal growth, groveling, and a happy ever after!


5 stars and a book I highly recommend!!!!!


Dual POV
Sports romance
Single dad
Live-in nanny
Grumpy x sunshine
He falls first
“Touch her and die”
Age gap
FUN 🤩

Grad student Tallulah agreed to be the live-in au pair for professional hockey player Burgess’s tween daughter, but the idea of living with the imposing player with a brutal reputation makes her nervous. Both have been attracted to each other since they were introduced by their best friends Wells and Josephine (the couple from Fangirl Down), and their newly found proximity only allows the attraction to grow. Burgess knows he needs to start dating again, but the only woman he can focus on is the one living in his house. They have a fling that ends in disaster and must work out their issues to come together in the end.

Tessa Bailey books are the perfect palette cleanser for me. I needed something fun and steamy and this was exactly that. The book is not perfect and I don’t care because it was fun. The connection between Tallulah and Burgess was palpable from the beginning and they still managed to form an emotional connection that was believable. I love that while this was an age-gap and boss/employee book it never felt gross and it was clear the two saw each other as equals and respected one another. I don’t typically like books that involve children but Burgess’s daughter didn’t bug me. I enjoyed the side characters and I do desperately want Sig and Chloe’s book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon for the digital ARC and Avon for the paperback ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Holy hell man this book was the best. I’m a whore for Tessa honestly. If she writes it, I’ll read it. The first book in this series, Fangirl Down, was probably my favorite book of hers to date. But this one…was also just so freaking good, it might be a tie 🫢

This is a nanny/boss, age gap romance with a sprinkle of grumpy/sunshine because my man Burgess is a grump only for everyone else but is a teddy bear for Tallulah. Tallulah is a hot, smart, marine biology grad student, who takes a job as Burgess’s live-in au pair. She’s got some trauma and is understandably restrained around a large man who happens to be 11 years her senior and is unsettlingly good at breaking noses on the ice, but they work together to navigate each other’s boundaries. My favorite thing about both Fangirl Down and the Au Pair Affair is the amount of respect that the MCs have for each other (I know respect should be a bare minimum but it rarely is in this world). There are constant check-ins, accommodations, and efforts to communicate, for both parties and you can tell there is a sense of comfort that doesn’t feel manufactured.

The smut was so perfectly smutty, the romance was a punch in the heart, and the characters had so much personality, I couldn’t stop laughing. I can’t wait to read about Sig and Chloe 🥰

This book needed more edits, but overall a solid Tessa Bailey. The kidnapping sub-plot was completely unnecessary and should have included a content warning!

Extremely thankful to have received an ARC for this summer release! A highly anticipated continuation of this Tessa Bailey universe and I will take 12! Never in my life have I been this invested in these little sportsmen! Or not so little in this MMC’s case 🤣!

Tallulah & Burgess are going to take the hockey romance fanatics by storm with this heartwarming & deeply emotional love story!

They say Sarah J Maas is the queen of fantasy but Tessa Bailey is the QUEEN of romance.

I’m honestly so obsessed with Tallulah & Burgess, although I loved them at the end of Fangirl Down. Which is book 1 of big Shots. Although you do not need to read it to be able to read The Au Pair Affair. I highly suggest it because it’s an amazing read as well!

I loved reading their relationship bloom, and watching Tallulah heal and fall back in love with life was like taking a breath of fresh hair after a northeastern. Which also brings about, this is set in Boston, Ma. I live an hour away. It was so well written. From the weather, to the Boston landmarks, to watching a baseball game outside of Fenway. This will honestly become my new comfort read.

Thank you NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for the e-arc!

Tessa Bailey is still an insta-buy author for me and to add my weak spot of a grumpy hockey player just made this book all the better. I liked the first book Fangirl Down more, but this one was still really good!

I absolutely loved the first sixty percent of this book, but the break up just fell a bit flat for me. I already have some issues with third act break ups in general, but this one felt like it came out of nowhere pretty quickly. Burgess really redeemed himself in the end. The last thirty percent was equally heartbreaking and heartwarming which made up for it!

I do hope we get to see Sig’s and Chloe’s story!

Tallulah, a marine biology grad student, is finishing up her degree in Boston and needs a job and a place to stay. Enter Burgess Abraham, aka Sir Savage, a surly hockey player and father to a tween. All things in the Bailey-verse align, and Tallulah ends up moving in and working as the au pair.
Tallulah and Burgess try to deny their attraction to each other, but no one can resist a 'mean daddy' for long.
Full of snappy and sassy dialogue, Bailey hits the right balance of sweet and steamy in the second book of her Big Shots series.

thank you soso much to netgalley for a free ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!!

this is my first ARC and for that i’m so grateful - i just wish i was leaving a higher review. i’m the biggest tessa bailey fan: i’ve been reading her books for forever and it happened one summer is on my favorites shelf. i absolutely adored fangirl down and could not wait for july to read burgess and tallulahs story - that brings us here. in hopes of keeping this review spoiler free, i think i can sum it all up by saying this book was trying too hard to be so many conflicting things at once and no one trope (or plot line) was flushed out enough to be enjoyable. it was all over the place and gave me whiplash.

this being said, i’ll still read whatever tessa puts out there and i know that not every book for me will be someone’s cup of tea and vice versa!!! there are certainly readers out there that will eat this book up; unfortunately this time, it wasn’t me.

I rated this book a 2.5/5 stars. This is the first Tessa Bailey book I've ever read, and I understand the hype! Her writing style is very fun and easy to read, this book actually got me out of a rather long reading slump, in fact. I really enjoyed the beginning of the book, and thought the relationship between Burgess and Tallulah (and between Lissa and Tallulah) a lot! There was a fun dynamic, and plenty of drama to keep a reader hooked. It was a fun read, but also covered serious topics like Tallulah's past experience with men. However, the one thing I didn't love was actually Burgess' possessiveness. I found it to be a little much at times, especially when he would make comments about her being his 'entire life' and the only reason he existed. It just came on a little bit strong, and paired with Tallulah's past trauma and need to break out of her shell again, it just didn't sit right with me. All in all, I did enjoy reading this book, but some parts just felt unbelievable and unnerving. Tessa Bailey has a very obvious talent, and this won't be the last time I pick up something by her.

I am generally a huge fan of Tessa Baileys work. However, and comparing this book to her latest release Fangirl Down, it fell a little short for me. The romance felt a little forced, and it felt rushed. I however did enjoy the book and had a fun time reading it!

I blasted right through this new Tessa Bailey book, and I really enjoyed the ride. I couldn't help but compare it to Jenny Holiday's Canadian Boyfriend, because there's a pretty similar initial setup - a professional hockey player and single dad (Burgess, known to hockey fans as Sir Savage) hires a nanny (Tallulah, a marine biology grad student) for his tween daughter (Lissa) who he is struggling to connect with and fully understand, and he happens to be very attracted to the nanny, who is a smart and accomplished woman with some big time past trauma. There are lots of differences - in this case, the female main character's trauma was even more intense, the male main character is a divorcee and not a widower, there's an age gap of 11 years, and this one is - at least in my recollection - way spicier than the Jenny Holiday. I found myself really liking Burgess and Tallulah's grumpy sunshine dynamic, and I really enjoyed the dynamic with Lissa. I also appreciated that Burgess was not only not dismissive of Tallulah's past trauma and her ongoing mistrust based on that trauma, but that he actively respected her boundaries and her instincts. I have to admit, though, that I was slightly distracted by two side characters - Burgess's teammate Sig and his not quite stepsister Chloe, who I VERY MUCH hope get their own book. I liked seeing Burgess, Tallulah, and Lissa all grow and change, and while I wasn't a huge fan of the third act breakup here, it did make sense in the context of the story. Also, again, very spicy.

The Au Pair Affair may just be this summer's hottest new book. The Au Pair Affair follows Tallulah, a graduate student who has accepted a job as an Au Pair for a professional hockey player, Burgess. Tallulah is tasked at being Burgess's“translator” for his pre-teen daughter, Lissa. Where Burgess is failing to understand and help with every teen girl related, Tallulah knows how to fill in those gaps.
Burgess quickly falls for Tallulah, but when Tallulah is haunted by her past, it makes it hard for their relationship to get off the ground. What starts as an innocent job, it quickly turns into a steamy, passionate, and somewhat forbidden love. Forbidden because Burgesses daughter believes that her mom and him will be getting back together. This conflict creates for some interesting situations.
This book is definitely spicey. If you don’t like spice, I don’t think you will enjoy this one. But, I think it is done in a tasteful way that leaves the reader wanting more. It's somewhat of a slow burn in that area. The sexual tension just keeps building and building until the reader can not put the book down because they have to see the magic Burgess and Tallulah will create once they finally give into their desires. The book is not all spice and has quite a bit of plot.
The beginning of this book was a tad slow. However, once it picked up about 15% to 20% away, I was hooked. I live for a book that gets me in trouble in the morning. I stay up wayyy past my bedtime just to see if they finally give into their feelings.
Overall, I would give this book a 4.20/5.00. I really loved the forbidden attraction between them. The only complaints I have is the beginning is just a tad slow, it didn’t capture my attention real well. And, sometimes there was too much focus on physical attraction. Almost any time the characters talked about the other, it was about sex too much. I would’ve liked to see a little more emotional attraction compared to so much physical attraction. However, I did really like the smut in this book and the way it was executed. I loved the plot and thought it was a super cute book!

This series is def my favorite by Tessa Bailey thus far, she writes a top tier sports romance. The angst and tension was def her best yet and i adored both of these characters from the very beginning.

I was laughing, crying and swooning with them both and found them both very relatable.

My only dislikes are the third act breakup. I really hate when they drag on and never end. I do understand why Tellulah left when his daughter saw them because he needed to diffuse the situation but i don’t believe it needed to be a breakup. It didn’t feel believable when they finally were in the same space again and i felt like it hurt the overall book!

Still really enjoyed the book, the characters and the story very much!

Thank you NetGalley and Avon for sending me an early copy. All thoughts are my own.

Once again Tessa Bailey made me fall for another made up couple. I’m a huge hockey romance reader and when I found out Tessa was writing her own, I just knew it was going to be good.

Obviously I was right because Burgess and Tallulah were so much fun. The banter was hilarious, their story was sweet, and of course the spice was SPICY!!!

I’ve said this once and I’ll say this over and over again, Tessa could write down her grocery list and I’d be the first person in line to buy it.

5 stars!!

Tropes:
-grumpy/sunshine
-nanny
-funny banter
-trust issues
-he falls first
-Spice