Description
Former teacher Meredith Cardwell thought everything was going to plan…until suddenly it wasn’t. Strapped and stranded alone in Austria on what was supposed to be a romantic trip for two, Meredith signs on for a short-term nannying gig. Unbeknownst to her, it’s for royalty. But with no money and no other options to get home, Meredith takes a leap of faith that children are children…regardless of where they grow up.
In over her head from day one, Meredith does her best to connect to and help the two children, but the transition from childcare in the jungle of the South Pacific to a royal household is anything but straightforward. Yearning for a mother-figure, the young prince of Rotslavia clings to Meredith, while his tween sister acts with the bossiness of her future role as queen.
All the while, questions abound. Where is their father? Why does he seem to neglect them? And what will she do when they return to their homeland? Of course, she gets to know the prince, and to love his children, but an everyday American girl can never really fit into the royal world…can she?
Tracie Heskett –
Melody Carlson’s The Royal Nanny is a well-developed, realistic light romance. The main character kept her eyes on her goal, yet was willing to consider new ideas and directions as the story unfolded. I liked that Meri was brave enough to talk with the queen. The novel’s engaging, strong characters navigated opposition to a satisfying ending. Highly recommend this enjoyable read. I received a complimentary copy of this book. All opinions expressed are mine alone.
lanabobana –
A fun and charming story filled with comedy, learning, romance, and finding yourself where you least expect to. With Vienna as the setting for this light hearted story, the reader is taken on a wonderful trip to a beautiful city. Melody Carlson transports the reader with amazing details of both scenery and architecture. You can almost taste the delicious food described. The characters are so easy to relate to. They feel like friends sending letters home to share what’s going on. Their interactions with each other are realistic and relatable. Watching them learn and grow is so fun as the the reader. Adding crowns to this story makes it even more fun.
I wanted to both rush and savor this story. Always wondering what was going to happen and how it would be resolved. I wanted the answers, now! But also enjoying it all and not wanting to finish the journey just yet. This is a wonderful and light hearted read, with just enough romance to pull out a sigh now and then. A great addition to your TBR pile. Grab a copy and get comfy to enjoy every step. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
LeAnn –
This was a charming, sweet story. I would recommend this story to anyone that loves a fairytale ending, but especially young adults. This story has a lot of of wonderful and sound learning lessons for young teenagers. Meredith is an American school teacher who finds herself abroad in Vienna, alone, robbed of all her possessions, and no way to contact anyone. When she lands a temporary nanny job with a royal family. The relationship she is able to build with the two children is very tender and inspiring.
I would say there’s similarities to the sound of music story but also Cinderella. I thought it was a beautiful story. If you’re looking for more romance, there was some, but not as swoony as I enjoy. Again, if you are a young adult reader, I think it’s perfect. There is some light Christian influence, which I thought added depth to the story. It is a clean story with no foul language, which I greatly appreciate.
Candide –
The Royal Nanny by Melody Carlson was an amazing read !
I really enjoyed reading this book! It was light and deep at the same time.
I was a little scared at first because of what happens to Meri at the start of the book, but Melody did a great job at showing us what Meri felt and how she calmed herself.
I really enjoy royal themed books and this one was sweet and funny and the characters were well developped and easy to get attached to 😉
— I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publishers. I was not required to provide a positive review. All opinions expressed are mine alone. —
Margaret Nelson –
I really enjoyed reading this story of an American teacher stranded in Austria who gets hired as a nanny for royal children from a tiny fictional European country. The characters are great, the interactions are very realistic, and the characters grow and develop during the story. I stayed up late to finish it and find out how everything worked out.
I received a complimentary copy this book from the publishers. I was not required to provide a positive review. All opinions expressed are mine alone.
Talita –
This was an enjoyable read that didn’t follow the normal pattern. In fact, there was a point where I wondered whether any romance was going to happen at all. (Don’t worry, it does have a HEA.)
What this story really highlights to me is the relationship between siblings and guardians and how we sometimes just need to dig a little deeper and really care about people who might seem a bit prickly. I really cared about the characters and wanted to know what happened next. I also loved the references to The Sound of Music and the setting of Austria.
If you want something sweet, but with a bit of depth that is different from the norm, then I highly recommend reading The Royal Nanny.
I was given a complimentary copy of this book, but the views and opinions are completely my own.
Heather Byrd –
Melody Carlson has a gift for writing heroines you root for! Meri is pretty, smart, and athletic, but she is also someone who’s had a lot of hardship in her life and you really want her to have love and a family. Mishka is my favorite character, such a precious little boy! I liked Kat too, but he stole my heart. I wish we had gotten a little more romance between the couple and that we the readers could have known Spencer better. He seems like a good dad who is trying hard, but I wanted to know more about him. That’s the only part of this story I feel could be improved. Overall, this was a fun, sweet read, full of heart, and I greatly enjoyed it! I was given an advance copy of the book, but all opinions are my own.
Karen Waide –
The Royal Nanny by Melody Carlson was a sweet story.
Not my first book by this author, but my first that wasn’t a Christmas book. So I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect.
The romance part was actually just a small part of the story. It was mainly about Meredith and her relationship with two royal children who she ended up becoming a nanny/governess for after being scammed and losing all her belongings on the start of her summer vacation in Europe.
I love the relationship that developed between Meredith and Kat, or Princess Katerina and Mishka, or Prince George. Kat is the heir to the throne of a small fictional European kingdom. She’s also a stubborn pre-teen who of course doesn’t need a nanny. So Meredith has her work cut out for her in that relationship. But Mishka took to her pretty quickly. Of course, Meredith also needed to deal with their sibling shenanigans plus doubts on whether she was up to this task. There were other issues to deal with, but I think those would be too spoilerish.
Through it all Meredith sought God’s will. I love that she was sharing her faith in small ways throughout the story.
I really hope there is a sequel planned, because I’d love to see more of these characters. I would have loved more from the relationship between Spenser and Meredith.
I also loved the little nods to The Sound of Music and Cinderella.
I received a copy of this book as a member of the review team and was not required to write a favorable review. These are my own honest thoughts.