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ju_harue's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Adorei a leitura, sem expectativas, achei que foi uma história bem construída, com personagens sólidos e um enredo que prende. Nada de grandes emoções ou viradas extraordinária, mas cumpriu muitíssimo bem a função de um romance excelente pra engatar as leituras novamente.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident, Sexism, Death of parent, Alcohol, Blood, Cancer, Death, Toxic relationship, Alcoholism, Grief, Hate crime, Medical content, and Stalking
lawoodworth's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gaslighting, Sexism, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Abandonment, Grief, and Gun violence
madanxiety's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
3.25
Overall a sweet novel. There were a couple things I didn't like. Firstly, Kennedy Monroe's character was so flat in such a cliché way, it was disappointing. It's just so uninteresting when women are pitted against each other in this way. She was just ridiculously vapid, and the closest we get to seeing any depth in her is a brief comment form Jack about how she's super insecure. The stalker/attempted murderer had more depth than her! I suppose he's a more significant character, but I still don't think there's much justification for such lazy writing. It's the bimbo vs. the pick me; have we not, by the 2020s, evolved beyond that? Have we not determined that actually, the real women that exist who like attention and are conventionally attractive, are still multifaceted people with histories and interests like anyone else? I can tolerate tropes like fake dating that simply move the plot forward, but I cannot tolerate tropes that work solely to demonize women.
The second thing I didn't like all that much was the twist at the end. This isn't a major gripe tho. I was just so caught off guard because it seemed to so clearly be a nightmare that would never end, which seemed logical because Jack struggled with nightmares, and I was like oh he'll be able to return the favor and comfort her. Like when she was walking back to the car and it took a million years, that seemed to obviously signal to how slow you are in your dreams. I think I wouldn't have minded the twist too much if it had been revealed a little sooner. Because by the time she was watching the footage (which is when I finally became convinced it wasn't a dream - probably later than most, I'll admit lol), I had to replay the whole last like 30m I feel like lol bc I'd spent most of it impatiently grumbling, waiting for the supposed dream sequence to end already. Am I an idiot for this lol? Maybe, but it was a little too Twlight Breaking Dawn for me.
I also wished there'd been a little more romance between Hannah and Jack. We only really got two scenes of them together communicating/acting in their feelings. Obviously the whole book was them like developing the feelings, and that in itself isrl romance, but I'd have liked if they got more time actually together. Which is funny bc I saw a similar comment under a different book I recently read and thought they were crazy. So it's probably a to each their own kind of situation.
I know this has been a mostly critical review, but I really didn't hate the book. The style of narration was interesting; it reminded me of voice-over narrators in film and TV, both humorous and personal. I think it's just one of those books you can breeze through quickly, needing to know the resolution, but that won't really stick with you all that much.
The second thing I didn't like all that much was the twist at the end. This isn't a major gripe tho. I was just so caught off guard because it seemed to so clearly be a nightmare that would never end, which seemed logical because Jack struggled with nightmares, and I was like oh he'll be able to return the favor and comfort her. Like when she was walking back to the car and it took a million years, that seemed to obviously signal to how slow you are in your dreams. I think I wouldn't have minded the twist too much if it had been revealed a little sooner. Because by the time she was watching the footage (which is when I finally became convinced it wasn't a dream - probably later than most, I'll admit lol), I had to replay the whole last like 30m I feel like lol bc I'd spent most of it impatiently grumbling, waiting for the supposed dream sequence to end already. Am I an idiot for this lol? Maybe, but it was a little too Twlight Breaking Dawn for me.
I also wished there'd been a little more romance between Hannah and Jack. We only really got two scenes of them together communicating/acting in their feelings. Obviously the whole book was them like developing the feelings, and that in itself isrl romance, but I'd have liked if they got more time actually together. Which is funny bc I saw a similar comment under a different book I recently read and thought they were crazy. So it's probably a to each their own kind of situation.
I know this has been a mostly critical review, but I really didn't hate the book. The style of narration was interesting; it reminded me of voice-over narrators in film and TV, both humorous and personal. I think it's just one of those books you can breeze through quickly, needing to know the resolution, but that won't really stick with you all that much.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Death, Grief, Infidelity, Cancer, Gun violence, Car accident, Toxic relationship, and Sexism
Moderate: Alcohol
Minor: Alcoholism
kaydeedickins's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Suicide attempt, Car accident, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Gun violence, Death, and Medical content
Moderate: Alcohol, Cancer, and Sexual content
Minor: Alcoholism, Vomit, and Sexism
amandamarieger's review
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
This was so fun!! I’ve been reading a lot of heavy stuff the last few months, and this book was such a breath of fresh air. The writing was super funny and I felt like I was flying through it. If you’re a romantic comedy fan, this is a great one!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident and Stalking
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Cancer, Sexism, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, Medical content, Gaslighting, Death, Grief, and Bullying
Minor: Blood, Gaslighting, Suicidal thoughts, Addiction, Injury/Injury detail, Alcoholism, and Child death
mcmartini's review
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence and Stalking
Moderate: Sexual harassment and Sexism
foldingthepage_kayleigh's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident, Gun violence, Death, Blood, Body shaming, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Sexism, Alcoholism, and Cancer
kb33's review
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.5
Loved this one. There were so many scenes of Jack and Hannah just talking, spending time together, and growing their connection, and that’s what sets Katherine Center apart from other romance writers who gloss over those types of interactions. I wish there had been more chemistry/steam - for most of the book I was never really sure if they were going to end up together or if she would just end up happy with herself, or someone new toward the end of the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Grief, Gun violence, Stalking, Bullying, Kidnapping, Suicide attempt, Toxic friendship, Car accident, Sexism, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Death, Death of parent, and Cancer
Minor: Abandonment, Alcoholism, and Domestic abuse
brokenbodybitch's review against another edition
sad
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.0
1-2 ⭐️
so yes don't get me wrong I really enjoyed the reversal of the bodyguard idea, HOWEVER, this book is filled with lines shaming others appearance for the fmc's self esteem. His ex is a famous like model or something; essentially she was famous for being attractive (or smth) and the plot hinged an uncomfortable amount on shaming her; either negative comments about how she got cosmetic surgery/wore makeup/got dressed up a certain way and she was made into this kinda negative stereotype, then compared against the fmc, who was 'real' according the the LI 🙄 it was like Yes, this was fun at times and had a decent level of emotion but the woman bashing for the sake of the fmc alone was a bit much for me.
Also there is a lot of tragedy in this book it is not really a happy book, fair warning… ‼️ SPOILERS? ‼️ it starts with her mom dying and his brother is also passed and it was just a lot of possible triggers (PLEASE CHECK TW/CW) packed into one book which like is fine but the description doesn’t really prepare you for the way some of these things are handled and it's like not all that light tbh especially towards the end. I think there are some people who will enjoy this book but definitely check tw/cw (especially suicide and such) and be prepared for some women bashing on women and not great stereotyping of the LI’s ex.
I enjoy the idea but this book missed the mark for me and I didn’t even want to re read the parts of it for the review, and doing that made it drop in my enjoyment of it immensely
so yes don't get me wrong I really enjoyed the reversal of the bodyguard idea, HOWEVER, this book is filled with lines shaming others appearance for the fmc's self esteem. His ex is a famous like model or something; essentially she was famous for being attractive (or smth) and the plot hinged an uncomfortable amount on shaming her; either negative comments about how she got cosmetic surgery/wore makeup/got dressed up a certain way and she was made into this kinda negative stereotype, then compared against the fmc, who was 'real' according the the LI 🙄 it was like Yes, this was fun at times and had a decent level of emotion but the woman bashing for the sake of the fmc alone was a bit much for me.
Also there is a lot of tragedy in this book it is not really a happy book, fair warning… ‼️ SPOILERS? ‼️ it starts with her mom dying and his brother is also passed and it was just a lot of possible triggers (PLEASE CHECK TW/CW) packed into one book which like is fine but the description doesn’t really prepare you for the way some of these things are handled and it's like not all that light tbh especially towards the end. I think there are some people who will enjoy this book but definitely check tw/cw (especially suicide and such) and be prepared for some women bashing on women and not great stereotyping of the LI’s ex.
I enjoy the idea but this book missed the mark for me and I didn’t even want to re read the parts of it for the review, and doing that made it drop in my enjoyment of it immensely
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Grief, Ableism, Alcohol, Body horror, Cancer, Car accident, Mental illness, Sexism, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Addiction, Alcoholism, Misogyny, Death, Death of parent, Gun violence, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Minor: Violence and Ableism
Character aims to harm others then ‘plot twist’ he was only there to die by suicide and there is a comment about brain matter not being in someone’s skull because of gun violence I’ll say that…bananathebookbestie's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I loved this book! It was so funny, sarcastic, romantic and heartwarming. The characters were amusing and the plot was so fun — with a few surprises along the way. Katherine Center's writing style was the absolute cherry on top. This was my first book by her, but it won't be my last!
Hannah is a small but mighty Executive Protective Agent (aka Bodyguard) who is sent on an assignment to protect Jack, a movie star who's dealing with a stalker situation. Jack is spending time with his family on their Texas ranch while his mom recovers from surgery and deals with being sick. Naturally, he doesn't want to add stress and can't let his family know he has a bodyguard, so he presents Hannah as his girlfriend for the month they spend together on the ranch.
Seeing Hannah and Jack's relationship develop over the course of a few weeks made me so happy while reading. They had incredible banter and tension, and you could tell they just wholly trusted each other. The slow burn was ultimately worth it. There's forced proximity, one bed, fake dating, a little bit of grumpy/sunshine — and the most welcoming and accepting family (The Stapletons).
This book also tackled grief and other serious topics in an appropriate way. Through this assignment, Hannah was able to dig deeper and understand the core of her issues and then heal from them. She also helped Jack work through some of his trauma, and in the end they were both better for it. And even though this is a closed door romance, I didn't miss on-page sex scenes. Center did a great job of showing Hannah and Jack's intimacy in other ways, where you could still feel their connection and chemistry.
This was just a perfect, delightful, adorable story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Grief, and Car accident
Moderate: Sexism and Stalking
Minor: Domestic abuse
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