The Nanny is a contemporary romance about Cassie, a young woman finishing her master’s who needs a good job, and Aiden, the chef who hires her to look after his daughter. It’s a great job, well-paid, live-in, and Sophie, the daughter, is a fun kid. The only problem is that Cassie knows Aiden – he used to be her best client on her OnlyFans (a website where users can sell and/or purchase original content, but has become more widely known as somewhere people can buy and sell NSFW content).

When Cassie is laid off from the job she loves, she has to look for a new gig. The perfect one materializes when she sees an ad for a nanny and meets the charming father of her new would-be charge. Aiden is more than handsome, a busy chef at a Michelin starred restaurant who is grappling with the challenges of single fatherhood. Cassie is the best candidate he’s met, and she takes the job. It’s only after she’s moved in and started work that Cassie realizes Aiden used to watch her OnlyFans. Not only that, but their digital relationship was pretty intimate. When their relationship starts to steam up in real life, Cassie has to find a way not just to be honest, but to be brave.

I loved this book, and it’s a particularly impressive début. The story is tight and well-written, the protagonists feel anchored and don’t fall into archetypes, and the emotional stakes are high. I loved Cassie and Aiden, who are both dealing with a lot and have needs not being met. Aiden is emotionally vulnerable, due to being new to single fatherhood, and feeling like he doesn’t have anything to offer a partner. He feels insecure about being a good dad to Sophie, especially due to the fact that his job is incredibly demanding. Cassie came from a loveless home and she’s had to work to support herself since age eighteen, which makes it hard for her to be open with another person. She’s empathetic and caring, but has a hard time accepting love, which makes sense for her character.

The secondary characters are well-established, which I really appreciated. Sophie is a great kid, and I enjoy reading kids who are actually childlike, and Iris, Sophie’s aunt, is a great source of conflict in the story. Iris is the sister of Sophie’s late mother, and she feels displaced in Sophie’s life. She lashes out at Aiden, and while she’s not a likable character, she has an important place in the story. I also loved Wanda, Cassie’s former neighbor and surrogate family. She’s a snappy older lady, and I adore characters like that. She also pushes Cassie to be her best self and reminds her that life has to be lived.

The plot is a little unexpected, but it really works for the story. My expectations were actually exceeded, as what I expected to be the main conflict was defused before the climax of the book. In some ways the last act could come off as routine, but it works because of the emotional reality of the characters. I highly recommend The Nanny; I have a feeling it’s going to be one of my favorites for this year.