Having stayed in with Lizzy Barber here on Linda’s Book Bag to celebrate her previous novel, Out of Her Depth, I’d have loved to participate in the blog tour for Lizzy’s latest book, Nanny Wanted, but I’m taking time out from blogging for most of August to celebrate my husband’s birthday, for the family celebrations for my Mum’s 90th birthday and to celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary.

However, slightly earlier than might have been planned, I’m delighted to share my review of Nanny Wanted today.

Nanny Wanted is published by Pan Macmillan on 17th August 2023 and is available for purchase through the links here.

Nanny Wanted

A remote Cornish mansion. The perfect couple. And the deadly secrets that bind them.

When Lily finally leaves her toxic relationship, a job as a nanny at Kewney Manor seems like the perfect solution. There, she can cut herself off from her old life, and never have to see him again.

The Rowes seem like a model family, and Lily falls instantly in love with her new home. But she can’t help feeling that something isn’t quite right. Why will nobody tell her about the nanny who came before her? Where does Laurie go at night? And what does Charles really want?

As Lily becomes increasingly entangled in the Rowes’s lives, she realizes that the perfect family may not be all that they seem. And as much as she fears the past she is running from, perhaps the present is where the real danger lies . . .

My Review of Nanny Wanted

Lily needs a new job.

Nanny Wanted is a cracking read that delves deeply into the psychology of who we are and what we are capable of doing, wrapped into an entertaining domestic noir thriller that grips the reader. It reminded me of a modern day Daphne du Maurier with a similar underlying darkness that I found captivating.

The plot is so well balanced as Lily finds herself inserted into life in Kewney Manor. Lizzy Barber depicts her settings both beautifully and vividly so that Nina’s ordinary life of looking after Bess and William contrasts perfectly with the unsettling, volatile sections relating to her interactions with Laurie and Charles. This creates tension and drama so that I found myself suspecting even the most innocent comment or action. 

Indeed, there’s an atmosphere of claustrophobia and threat in Nanny Wanted that leaves the reader on edge the whole time they are reading – a sense that something dark and wicked is approaching inexorably. I thought the title was brilliant because there is a vacancy for a nanny, but similarly it’s as if there’s something left uncovered or unsaid, as in nanny wanted to… which makes the reader’s imagination run riot! 

I loved the characterisation. Lily is by no means an innocent bystander and some of her actions made me rail against her and yet Lizzy Barber still managed to make me fascinated by what happened to her and to ensure I was on Lily’s side throughout – not least because her relationship with Nick prior to arriving in Cornwall throws light on her behaviour. 

The themes of Nanny Wanted are dark and compelling. Lizzy Barbour looks at nature and nurture, at coercive and toxic relationships, at identity and mental health, all woven into a narrative that feels intelligent and plausible. 

Nanny Wanted is deliciously dark and disturbing. It’s the kind of story that makes you want to read just one more page, and then another… I thoroughly enjoyed it. 

About Lizzy Barber

Lizzy Barber studied English at Corpus Christ College, Cambridge University. After ‘previous lives’ acting and working in film development, she is now the Head of Brand and Marketing for a restaurant group, working with her brother, a restaurateur.

Her debut novel, My Name is Anna / A Girl Named Anna (US), is the winner of the Daily Mail First Novel Competition. Out Of Her Depth was published in the UK and US in 2022 and was a Richard and Judy Book Club pick. TV & Film Rights have been optioned by Sony Pictures. Nanny Wanted will be published in August 2023.

Lizzy lives in London with her husband, George, food writer and strategy consultant, and their son, Marlowe.

You can follow Lizzy on Twitter @ByLizzyBarber and Instagram or visit her website for further information.