The Book:
The Bodyguard by Katherine Center
Published July 19th 2022 by St. Martin’s Press
Date read: July 2, 2022
The Characters:
Hannah
Jack
Buy it on Bookshop.org | Amazon
The Plot (from Goodreads):
She’s got his back.
Hannah Brooks looks more like a kindergarten teacher than somebody who could kill you with a wine bottle opener. Or a ballpoint pen. Or a dinner napkin. But the truth is, she’s an Executive Protection Agent (aka “bodyguard”), and she just got hired to protect superstar actor Jack Stapleton from his middle-aged, corgi-breeding stalker.
He’s got her heart.
Jack Stapleton’s a household name—captured by paparazzi on beaches the world over, famous for, among other things, rising out of the waves in all manner of clingy board shorts and glistening like a Roman deity. But a few years back, in the wake of a family tragedy, he dropped from the public eye and went off the grid.
They’ve got a secret.
When Jack’s mom gets sick, he comes home to the family’s Texas ranch to help out. Only one catch: He doesn’t want his family to know about his stalker. Or the bodyguard thing. And so Hannah—against her will and her better judgment—finds herself pretending to be Jack’s girlfriend as a cover. Even though her ex, like a jerk, says no one will believe it.
What could possibly go wrong???
Hannah hardly believes it, herself. But the more time she spends with Jack, the more real it all starts to seem. And there lies the heartbreak. Because it’s easy for Hannah to protect Jack. But protecting her own, long-neglected heart? That’s the hardest thing she’s ever done.
The Review:
It’s been a long time since I read a KC book, but The Bodyguard made it worth the wait! I adored everything about this book.
Katherine Center always writes about such strong, badass women. I really loved Hannah’s character. While she is strong and capable on the outside, her inner voice shows us her vulnerability. She had great character growth throughout the book.
Jack is a successful, well-loved actor hiding some familial strain from the world. His family blamed him for his younger brother’s death, but his mom wanted her remaining sons to forgive each other and be a family again. I do wish we got to see more of Jack’s POV, just because he was such a good male lead. I adored his sweet meddling mother, too!
Even the villains in this book were great. Hannah’s ex Robbie seriously sucked, but I loved that we had an enemy to rally against. Whenever Robbie showed up I knew he was about to do something absurd, and I loved how Hannah was able to stand up to him and put him in his place. The corgi-breeding stalker and Wilbur were both such manageable villains, and I loved that we got updates about them in the epilogue.
The Bodyguard was probably the most lighthearted of all the KC books I’ve read. While I love her usual voice, I was in the perfect mood for this fun, summery read. This is a great book to start with if you’ve never read anything by her before!
Audio Review: Patti Murin is a narrator I’ve listened to many times. She always does a fantastic job, and this audiobook was very well-produced. It was easy to speed up and fly through, although I do wish I made the story last longer!
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