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A review by lkmreads
The Billionaire Needs a Bodyguard by Ravina Hilliard
4.0
I received a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
The Billionaire Needs a Bodyguard by Ravina Hilliard is a contemporary romance novel set in Europe. Alexandra “Lex” Granger is a bodyguard (although she doesn’t seem to like that word) who excels at her job but has some self-esteem issues. She is hired by the head of security of womanizer-billionaire Michale Thornton in order to guard his life following a death threat which Michael did not take seriously. Because Michael is not aware of this, she has to work undercover.
I really enjoyed the story, the mix of action, and small bits of intrigue mixed well with the romance plot, making it a very entertaining read through and through. I was honestly pleasantly surprised at finding I couldn’t put it down, it was very captivating.
The character development for the main characters was nice. They felt fleshed out, which can’t be said the same for all the side characters. I suppose it’s alright seeing as they’re not really the main focus of the romance, and it didn’t really deter from the main story, I just wish they’d been a bit more than “the ex” and “the security guard”. The villain was a bit more developed, but even then felt a bit shallow.
Lex’s job seems to have involved undercover work in the past, just never while being a bodyguard to someone. The cover they come up with is of an escort, which continually plays as a point of stress to the buddying relationship. The back and forth is nice, even when Michael is being an ass and verbally abusive towards her, but given his background and what he believes through the story of her, it makes sense.
I was a bit iffy on how fast they got to bed, but otherwise I enjoyed the characters' interactions and chemistry, and at the ending I felt Michael acted super endearing. I also really liked that there was an age difference between them.
I know Lex was putting up the pretense of being a hostess, but I feel like one part where she asked the security detail to flirt with her mid-party so she would have an excuse to talk security with them was a bit of an unnecessary push for the sake of drama, because she really could have just pretended she had lingered for a chat without anyone getting touchy with her. It felt a bit forced
I do have to say, even with Michael being an ass, he was still my favorite character. You could tell he was really sweet and just didn’t really know how to handle himself.
Regarding the writing itself, a lot of people often complain when stories start with the character description by looking in the mirror, which is how this one goes, but I personally don’t mind it. I rather like it, because you get the character’s self reflections rather than someone else thinking how hot they look.
The sex scenes were nicely described, not crassly detailed but not fade to black. Here I’ll go back to mention that for someone who had said they wouldn’t lay with her client, Lex sure forgot about it way quickly - they both did. Even if on the first intimate encounter where they are still testing each other they didn’t go all the way, it felt a bit fast-paced. I’m also conflicted about the first sex scene. I know she was really into him by then already, but it feels like after all the arguing they did before that her giving in was a bit weird. Also her crying during sex, not my thing.
There are a few typos throughout (“[...] settle for one women” instead of woman, or “their reached their second summit” are some examples), nothing major. Though I do have a bit of an issue with people ‘ejaculating’ when they talk, in a romance novel, where there’s sex... (“‘As your what?’ she ejaculated [...]”) It’s semantically correct for older books perhaps, but I don’t think I’ve ever encountered it before in a modern book, and in a romance it just sounds hilarious to me.
As a closing thought, I really loved the sweet ending in terms of where the couple ends up and how they got there, but the ending itself was abrupt and felt unfinished, like the author just cut off there and decided they didn’t want to write the rest. I was left feeling like it needed a proper wrap-up.
Overall a captivating quick read, and a very sweet romance.
The Billionaire Needs a Bodyguard by Ravina Hilliard is a contemporary romance novel set in Europe. Alexandra “Lex” Granger is a bodyguard (although she doesn’t seem to like that word) who excels at her job but has some self-esteem issues. She is hired by the head of security of womanizer-billionaire Michale Thornton in order to guard his life following a death threat which Michael did not take seriously. Because Michael is not aware of this, she has to work undercover.
I really enjoyed the story, the mix of action, and small bits of intrigue mixed well with the romance plot, making it a very entertaining read through and through. I was honestly pleasantly surprised at finding I couldn’t put it down, it was very captivating.
The character development for the main characters was nice. They felt fleshed out, which can’t be said the same for all the side characters. I suppose it’s alright seeing as they’re not really the main focus of the romance, and it didn’t really deter from the main story, I just wish they’d been a bit more than “the ex” and “the security guard”. The villain was a bit more developed, but even then felt a bit shallow.
Lex’s job seems to have involved undercover work in the past, just never while being a bodyguard to someone. The cover they come up with is of an escort, which continually plays as a point of stress to the buddying relationship. The back and forth is nice, even when Michael is being an ass and verbally abusive towards her, but given his background and what he believes through the story of her, it makes sense.
I was a bit iffy on how fast they got to bed, but otherwise I enjoyed the characters' interactions and chemistry, and at the ending I felt Michael acted super endearing. I also really liked that there was an age difference between them.
I know Lex was putting up the pretense of being a hostess, but I feel like one part where she asked the security detail to flirt with her mid-party so she would have an excuse to talk security with them was a bit of an unnecessary push for the sake of drama, because she really could have just pretended she had lingered for a chat without anyone getting touchy with her. It felt a bit forced
I do have to say, even with Michael being an ass, he was still my favorite character. You could tell he was really sweet and just didn’t really know how to handle himself.
Regarding the writing itself, a lot of people often complain when stories start with the character description by looking in the mirror, which is how this one goes, but I personally don’t mind it. I rather like it, because you get the character’s self reflections rather than someone else thinking how hot they look.
The sex scenes were nicely described, not crassly detailed but not fade to black. Here I’ll go back to mention that for someone who had said they wouldn’t lay with her client, Lex sure forgot about it way quickly - they both did. Even if on the first intimate encounter where they are still testing each other they didn’t go all the way, it felt a bit fast-paced. I’m also conflicted about the first sex scene. I know she was really into him by then already, but it feels like after all the arguing they did before that her giving in was a bit weird. Also her crying during sex, not my thing.
There are a few typos throughout (“[...] settle for one women” instead of woman, or “their reached their second summit” are some examples), nothing major. Though I do have a bit of an issue with people ‘ejaculating’ when they talk, in a romance novel, where there’s sex... (“‘As your what?’ she ejaculated [...]”) It’s semantically correct for older books perhaps, but I don’t think I’ve ever encountered it before in a modern book, and in a romance it just sounds hilarious to me.
As a closing thought, I really loved the sweet ending in terms of where the couple ends up and how they got there, but the ending itself was abrupt and felt unfinished, like the author just cut off there and decided they didn’t want to write the rest. I was left feeling like it needed a proper wrap-up.
Overall a captivating quick read, and a very sweet romance.