A young woman takes a job as a nanny for an impossibly wealthy family, thinking she’s found her entre into a better life–only to discover instead she’s walked into a world of deception and dark secrets.
Nanny needed. Discretion is of the utmost importance. Special conditions apply.
When Sarah Larsen finds the notice, posted on creamy card stock in her building’s lobby, one glance at the exclusive address tells her she’s found her ticket out of a dead-end job–and life.
At the interview, the job seems like a dream come true: a glamorous penthouse apartment on the Upper West Side of NYC; a salary that adds several zeroes to her current income; the beautiful, worldly mother of her charge, who feels more like a friend than a potential boss. She’s overjoyed when they offer her the position and signs the NDA without a second thought.
In retrospect, the notice in her lobby was less an engraved invitation than a waving red flag. For there is something very strange about the Bird family. Why does the beautiful Mrs. Bird never leave the apartment alone? And what happened to the nanny before her? It soon becomes clear that the Birds’ odd behaviors are more than the eccentricities of the wealthy.
But by then it’s too late for Sarah to seek help. After all, discretion is of the utmost importance.
First Line:
The children are chattering.
Nanny needed by georgina cross
I love psychological thrillers. So when I read the blurb for Nanny Needed, I knew that this would be a book that I would enjoy.
Nanny Needed is a story about Sarah. Sarah is living with her boyfriend in New York City and barely making ends meet when she finds a flyer in the lobby of her building. The flyer is for a nanny position in a very affluent area of NYC. Throwing caution to the wind, Sarah decides to apply and gets hired, much to her surprise. But she soon regrets her decision when she finds out her nannying position isn’t what it seems. What is going on in the Bird house? What secrets is Mr. Bird trying to keep from coming out? And how does Sarah figure into everything?
Nanny Needed is a fast-paced book, but it does start slow. There is some lag towards the middle of the book, but it was expected. With what happened and Sarah’s state of mind, I wasn’t surprised by it at all.
I liked Sarah. She started the book as overwhelmed but happy. When she saw the flyer for the nanny position in her lobby, she thought it was a sign, and she was thrilled that she hit it off with Collette. After signing NDA’s and agreeing to a 3-month trial, she realizes what her job would be. Then everything hits the fan. I don’t think that I would have dealt with everything as well as Sarah did. She had some fantastic coping skills (in hindsight, I am not surprised).
The thriller angle was interwoven with the mystery angle, and they were both very well written. There were a few twists in the plotline. One twist I saw coming and called it the minute that Sarah interviewed for the job.
The other major twist, I didn’t see coming, and I was floored. I had to take a break to process what I read. That is how insane the twist was!!
The end of Nanny Needed was almost anti-climatic but perfect. I enjoyed that it not only ended the way it did but there was practically no resolve when the twist was revealed. I will say, without getting into spoilers, that I understand why Stephen did what he did. I would have wanted to know too, but what it cost everyone was almost too much. And poor Sarah!!!
I would recommend Nanny Needed to anyone over the age of 21. There is language and mild violence.
What are you currently reading? What did you recently finish reading? What do you think you’ll read next?
Personal
After a hectic past two weeks, I am enjoying a quiet week. Only one appointment and plenty of time to sit on the couch and relax while the kids are at school – well minus the housework and laundry.
Miss B has learned her lesson with her retainers and is wearing them every night. What might help is that I watch her put them in and take them out in the morning…lol. She had her pre-ACT’s (like SAT’s) yesterday and thinks that she did well in everything except math.
Mr. Z had an accident that broke the charger for his Chromebook (he needs it for school andhomework). He dropped the Chromebook while it was charging and it snapped the charger off (thankfully, it didn’t harm the Chromebook). He got a new one from school and we are out $37…pfft.
Miss R has been having some issues with a girl in her class. It is borderline bullying and I am keeping an eye on it. The girl told a couple of other girls not to talk to Miss R and to mock her if she came near them. I told Miss R that she needs to leave them alone but she wants to be friends with them. If it escalates, then I will talk to her teacher. Thankfully, Miss R is very open about what happens at school and tells me everything.
I have finished my Thanksgiving shopping (yay)!!! All I need to get are apples, potatoes, and asparagus. We are having ham and turkey breast, potatoes, asparagus, stuffing, and for dessert: apple pie, pumpkin pie, and a couple of store-bought pies.
I have also finished my Christmas shopping. All I need to get is stocking stuffers and I am done. Of course, if I see any last-minute gifts, I am picking them up.
Reading/Blog
I have really amped up my reading over the past week. I have finished maybe 3 books since Friday and I have written the reviews for them.
Nothing new with the blog. I still need to update posts. I plan on doing that soon.
What I Recently Finished Reading:
I just finished this book last night and oh my goodness, was it good!! I couldn’t put it down and stayed up past my bedtime to finish it. My review won’t be live until December 21st, so look for it then
What I am currently reading:
I haven’t technically started this book yet but I plan on starting it today. I am looking forward to it. I haven’t read too many romances based in New Zealand. Plus, from the blurb, it seems like it is going to be a nice, easy read.
What books I think I’ll read next:
I still have a ton of books on this list. I added all of the NetGalley books that are past their publication date and it expanded the list. Like last week, I am hoping to read at least 3 of them before next week’s WWW Wednesday. The 3 books after Storms have been on my TBR for months and they are my top priority.
Just like October 2021 TBR, I have a ton of books to read before the end of the month. But, unlike October, I am not overbooked with appointments. So, I will have plenty of time to catch up with what I am behind on and read the TBR’s for this month.
So, here’s my list. Let me know if you are reading or have read these books. I will put next to them if they are part of the backlog from last month.
Nanny Needed by Georgina Cross (part of the backlog from October)
I have a ton of books to read and review this month. Like appointments, I tend to overbook myself and then go “How am I going to do this?” In this particular case, I asked myself “How am I going to read all of these books?“
Easy, I am going to stop playing on my phone before bed and I am going to read while watching my shows.
Wish me luck and let me know if you have read any of these books!!
What are you currently reading? What did you recently finish reading? What do you think you’ll read next?
Personal:
Miss B
As I mentioned last week, Miss B is getting her wisdom teeth removed next week. She is a combination of nervous/excited about it. What I didn’t mention in the post from last week is that we have to pay out of pocket for the surgery. Not going to say how much but it is sizable. I was a little pissed about that because hello, insurance. But, since her teeth are not impacted, insurance doesn’t cover the extraction or the anesthetic. BK says I shouldn’t be grumpy about it but why do we have insurance if all its good for is covering cleanings?
Miss B is getting my current laptop next month. Why, you ask? Well, she dumped soda on her laptop and it shorted out (this is on top of her Windexing her keys a couple of months back). So, after talking to BK, I went to Dell, got approved for financing, and ordered myself a new gaming desktop. The tower will not be here until the end of October, so she has to wait until then. She also learned a valuable lesson about drinks and laptops. With this laptop, she’s getting a stand, so at least I don’t have to worry about her spilling her drink on it (knock on wood).
She is doing well in school. She is running a booth at lunch for Beta Club on Friday (talking tofreshman and sophmores). She also earned her fatigues in ROTC and should be getting them within the next couple of weeks.
Mr. Z
Mr. Z is having some issues adjusting to being back in school. Not behaviour wise but academically. He decided that his Math 1 teacher’s way of having them turn in homework is stupid and is refusing to do it. I know I mentioned this last week and I thought I had nipped it in the bud. Nope, he is still refusing to do it. I talked to him again last night about it and told him, again, that if he can’t turn his homework in, then he’s grounded. He didn’t like it and pushed back saying “Well Miss Blank’s way of doing it is stupid and takes up too much time.” While I agree, I told him he had to follow her rules.
Other than that, he’s doing pretty well. He is into anime (Seven Deadly Sins is his favorite), Minecraft, and Worldbox.
Miss R
Miss R hurt herself over the weekend. She was attempting to do a headstand on my bed, fell, and pulled a muscle in her neck/upper back. She refuses to take pills (any sort of pills) so managing her pain was interesting. I ended cutting up an Ibuprofen into tiny pieces and had her take them individually.
She is doing very well in school. Her school work (sent home every Tuesday) are all S+’s and 100s. She did get 3 wrong on last week’s spelling test but they were words she had problems with. She got her 3 week progress report home and it was blank. I got a laugh out of that and she told me everyone in her class had blank papers. The teacher had an issue printing them. I figure if anything was wrong, the teacher would let me know.
Skittles, Snickers, Loki, Jesper, and Tincan
The girls are still not liking that the kittens are in the house and they do not hesitate to put the boys in their place. Mainly by smacking them on the head and hissing at them. You would think that the boys would leave them alone but nope, they don’t learn…smh.
Who is Tincan? Well, he is the stray kitten that I feed on my back porch. My girls have named him Tincan because he is the color of one. I am working on getting him close to me. He will now hide behind one of my pots and watch me put out his food and water. I want to get him used to me so I can get him to the vet (for vaccines and hopefully to get neutered). I strongly believe that he is Jesper and Loki’s brother and if that’s the case, then he was handled as a baby and he isn’t 100% feral.
Me
Nothing has really changed from last week. I am almost to the end of season 2 in Cold Case. I watched an episode last night where I bawled. It took place in 1963 and it covered racism. There is a very graphic lynching scene at the end of the episode that shook me. The episode I am watching now is centered around The Rocky Horror Picture Show. It took me a few minutes to realize who the serial killer was and I got a little laugh over that.
I am still playing ESO. I am in Western Skyrim, trying to beat a coven and bad vampires….lol. And yes, it is as fun as it sounds.
Reading
I read 2 books since last week. I have been super busy this week (with BK being gone) and have been exhausted at night. I am hoping to read some of the book I am currently reading tonight.
It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? a place to meet up and share what you have been, and are about to be reading over the week. It’s a great post to organize yourself. It’s an opportunity to visit and comment and er… add to your groaning TBR pile! So welcome in everyone. This meme started on J Kaye’s blog and then was hosted by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at The Book Date.
Jen Vincent, Teach Mentor Texts, and Kellee of Unleashing Readers decided to give It’s Monday! a kid-litfocus. If you read and review books in children’s literature – picture books, chapter books, middle-grade novels, young adult novels, or anything in those genres – join them.
What are you currently reading? What did you recently finish reading? What do you think you’ll read next?
Personal:
Miss B is getting her wisdom teeth removed in a couple of weeks. She had the appointment with the oral surgeon earlier today (which is why this post is late). She is nervous but I think she is more nervous about taking the Valium than the surgery (go figure).
Mr. Z had a bumpy week at school last. He was caught not turning any of his math work/homework in, which resulted with him having a grade of 40 (F). Whelp, momma got involved and he turned everything in. That bumped his grade up to a 90 and he was told not to do it again or he would lose his phone/computer.
Miss R is doing good. She did get caught lying to me about her spelling words. But, a quick message to the teacher cleared everything up. When I asked her why she would lie about them, she told me “I don’t need to do them and they’re stupid.” She had library today and brought home The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein and What a Day It Was at School by Jack Prelutsky.
The kittens had their vet appointment today. Jesper weighs 7lbs and Loki weighs 6lbs. The vet also told me that they are older than what we thought. They are 5 months old (we figured 4 months). I got the go ahead to make the appointment through our local Humane Society to neuter them also.
Blog
Another week of not doing anything on the blog. But, in my defense, I did have a lot going on since last Wednesday. I am planning on updating posts this coming week.
Reading
I am out of my reading slump. I have read 4 books (almost 5 but I was exhausted last night and crashed) since last Wednesday. I have written zero reviews. When BK is home, I cannot sit and write reviews. He is very distracting….lol.
Watching/Playing
I am almost done with Season 2 of Cold Case. BK and I have also been watching Head and Miracle Workers (very funny) on HBO Max. The kids and I watched the live action Cinderella on Saturday (loved it btw).
I am still playing ESO. Right now, I am questing/leveling in Blackwood. Not sure where I am going to go from there.