A review by bananathebookbestie
The Bodyguard by Katherine Center

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. 
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