Top positive review
5.0 out of 5 stars“His eyes cut to mine, and I swear, I’ve never felt so damn beautiful”
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on October 14, 2018
That line above says it all. And Toni Aleo has written a book that is the total package: romantic, heart-breaking and wittingly funny.
Vera is going through a messy divorce, and her normally rambunctious but well behaved boys are now out-of-control. Their father has left the family home after getting their nanny of six years, pregnant. Their eldest boy knows what’s going on, and is the ring-leader for bad behaviour. Now, after they’ve driven off the ninth nanny in a short period of time, she’s at her wits end.
Lincoln’s initial intention was to teach. Somehow he fell into the role of a full-time nanny and home-school teacher for families, the last with whom he’s been for 6 years. He thought he had longer, until they were moving to Germany, and weren’t taking him with them, because their mother decided to be home full time. Having loved the kids and spent more time with them than even their parents, he’s not only misses them, he’s looking for work.
Although they’ve never met, Vera and Lincoln have two people in common. Vera’s sister, Riana is married to Lincoln’s best friend, so Riana believes that Lincoln is just who Vera and the boys need. They know him and like him already, and she thinks he’d be a great influence on them.
I loved Vera as a character. She was strong and gracious, and, she loved her boys above all else. She is so many women who have been treated badly by a husband who had promised love and loyalty, yet dished out only guilt and betrayal. Her only fault was to stay with a husband for the benefit of her boys, and I have my own issues on that. He was a disgusting pig, and didn’t deserved her.
Lincoln is an amazing man in his own right, and I loved that his values aligned so closely with Vera’s – kids first. He is seriously a unicorn in the literary world of book boyfriends. He cooks, cleans, runs taxi-duty for the kids and is a basically a teacher. Add to that, he is all kinds of hot and sexy, and built where it matters! When I came across the most cringe-worthy of moments that I’ve ever read, I choked on my mouthful of wine in shocked hilarity. Almost a case of death-by-laughter and wine! I loved it, and couldn’t believe how quickly I got to the end.
Secondary characters can enhance or detract from a book, and Vera’s sister and brother-in-law are also best friends with Lincoln. They love them, and their worry for our characters, individually, ramps up the tension surrounding their relationship. Then, when Lincoln’s nanny-family want him to join them Germany, he as to decide if this opportunity of a lifetime is what he wants after-all.
All up, this is everything I recommend as great reading in a rom-com. 4.5 Stars.
