Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read this!

I thought this would be right up my alley because the movie The Bodyguard was my favorite growing up. Unfortunately I was wrong. I couldn't connect with the characters and it was not the rom-com I expected. I realize this is probably a case of: it's me, not the book.

*Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter for providing this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. Pub date: June 12, 2020

Well without a more eloquent way to say it...I just really enjoyed this book! There were a few character traits dwelled on a bit much, but unlike many romance novels, this had a surprising and welcome amount of substance in addition to the romance. There was a good (albeit quick) chemistry build up and the issues these two had were well rooted in their backstories. The secondary characters didn’t distract from the story, but added to it and I thought the power dynamic between the characters played out well. This could have had many cringeworthy chauvinist moments but managed to avoid them, and for that I am grateful!

Sadly I dnfed this at 50% I feel like getting to that 50% mark shows I did really try to give it a chance and get into it but it just wasnt for me.

I didn't like either of the characters. They were both cliches to the extreme I'm my opinion and not realistic. Their initial connection just seemed weird to me and then throughout it just seemed a purely physical connection even though they are claiming that emotional connection.

I didnt really like their banter either or the way they spoke. And alot of things were contradictory especially in regards to zac needed all this high security stuff to him living at kats house with her and her teenage niece... all very unrealistic.

I feel like this book could have been good but I didnt find any part of it to be.

Again with Netgalley I had the opportunity of reading a book in a genre that I wouldn't normally choose. In this romantic suspense Zac is an up and coming star who has a stalker, enter Kat as his bodyguard. Ex army she is still suffering from her experiences in Afghanistan but is determined to give Zac the protection that he needs. She finds him very upper class, but there is something about him that makes him more than just a star, equally he finds her refreshing even though they are very different personalities. Gradually there is a growing attraction between them, although they both have secrets that they don't want to share with each other. Throw in a a few twists and turns and some spicy, although not explicit, sex scenes and I did enjoy reading this book.
Thanks again to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy of this book, however this did not influence my review of the book.

Up Close and Personal follows Zac Edwards, new movie star being stalked and harassed by a female fan, and Kat Parker, his new bodyguard hired by the production company of the film he is shooting. The problem? Zac and Kat are hopelessly attracted to each other and have giant personal secrets that they won't share with the other. It's a story full of push and pull in this relationship, made more complicated by someone trying to kill Zac...

I really enjoyed this book, which didn't surprise me because I also really enjoyed Kathryn's most recent book as well. The characters had a great rapport and dialogue from the beginning, and I enjoy a forbidden romance. Both Kat and Zac have their demons that affect them but also have a lot to do with their character development and in their future relationship development. The plot was intense and incorporated a realistic kind of villain.

In some parts of the book the relationship super dragged. I get why because it was forbidden, but I think it could have been more interesting if more happened when it was still forbidden. Also, there was a sub plot that really wasn't followed up on, and I have questions about it.

Up Close and Personal was a cute, easy to read, romance that included forbidden love, emotional baggage, and a crazy stalker. It is also mostly clean for those who aren't interested in a lot of smut in their romance books.

[Thanks Netgalley for the ebook. This review is my honest opinion but just another opinion, you should read this book and judge it by yourself]
I had a really good time reading The New Guy, previous Kathryn Freeman book.. Sadly, I didn't feel the same reading Up Close and Personal. It has a great starting point but the rest isn't well developed. I couldn't feel the tension between the MC (sexual one, I mean), their relation felt very awkward to me and the suspense had no suspense at all. However, there're bits here and there that I liked and even sometimes the book made me smile, so maybe it'a just me and you can enjoy it more.
I think Freeman is a great writer but I couldn't connect with this story at all.
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Otro netgalleycito de portada colorinchi, otro libro mñe.
Debo decir que este lo pedí porque el libro anterior de esta escritora (que también me concedieron en Netgalley) sí me gustó, pero este, aunque parte de una buena idea (un actor famosísimo que recibe amenazas de muerte y al que le ponen una guardaespaldas), el desarrollo es bastante malo, no hay tensión por ningún sitio, algo más en la parte de intriga, tal vez, pero en la parte amorosa, cero. Según avanza el libro, va cada vez peor y el suspense se resuelve de un modo totalmente anticlimático.
Me parece que esta mujer no escribe mal pero este libro no se salva lo mires por donde lo mires. No le pongo menos valoración porque, dentro de lo mñe, he tenido partes en las que he estado entretenida y el principio es divertido. Otra vez será, Kathryn.

I was hoping for something a bit lighter than my usual murder reads with this one. But I don’t think that it was the night book for m, although the story sounded good. The characters were a bit annoying and I just couldn’t care enough about them .

Thanks for the opportunity to read This book, I am sure other people will enjoy it a lot more than I did.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an ARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

I thought this was a fun book; it was an easy read that I devoured in a day. The gender reversal was fun and I enjoyed the unusual role of a woman bodyguard. I quickly got sucked into the Hollywood aspects of the story.
The story did drag on for a bit but overall it was quite enjoyable.

First of all thank you to NetGalley for the advance copy!

Here's the thing...I've seen the Bodyguard with Whitney Houston and Kevin Costner upwards of 60 times....so when I read the description for Up Close and Personal I requested it faster than you can say Frank Farmer!

It was fun, love the concept, and it had one of the best rom com openings I"ve read in awhile.

I did feel as though some of the misunderstandings between Kat and Zac were a bit elementary, and silly they had great chemistry.

Light and fun, I finished this in one sitting. Very fun summer read!

I honestly don't even know where to start, this book began with such promise. The first chapter introduced the two leads straight away, and there was obvious chemistry and I was intrigued if nothing else. And then everything kind of went sort of downhill from there.

Characters
Our leads in this story are Kat and Zac. Both of them were seriously underdeveloped with supposedly mysterious and tragic backstories that I had guessed before the halfway point of the book. Kat is not like other girls, she's a bodyguard, she's tough, she likes Formula 1 can you believe it. And the author makes a point of driving (hehe pun) this home at least once every chapter and it started to bore me. Zac on the other hand is more polite, neater, and posh apparently, another point that the author repeats - he also likes to use long words that are impossible to understand but they're also the sort of words that no one uses in their day to day life, not even posh people.

Plot
The basic plot was enjoyable enough, a twist on The Bodyguard (film) where the genders were reversed. But I found some of the plot points to be slightly illogical and the pacing was a little all over the place. We know from the start that Zac is apparently being stalked, this is why Kat is hired, but this storyline is resolved around halfway through the book and from then on things just drag. The resolution of this storyline (and one that follows on from this) happen way too quickly over the course of a couple of chapters, and are majorly lacking in action
Then the ending, it dragged on for way too long. When the overarching plot had been resolved and we were left with just the romance to sort out there was still around about 15% of the book left. We were then left with pages of will they won't they, that as the reader you easily knew the answer too and whilst I'd been somewhat enjoying the book up to that point, I was suddenly very keen for the author to just wrap this up. She did not.

The Relationship
This showed such promise. As soon as they're introduced the author did an excellent job of selling the chemistry between Kat and Zac. They get on, they can be there for each other, there's a decent level of humour between them. But oh boy did they have their issues:
- This book featured so much miscommunication that I wanted to lock the two mains in a room until they talked things out. And it was the same misunderstanding over and over again, it got SO frustrating
- Following on from this the two kept so many secrets from one another, which like you're free to do you've known this guy for less than a month, but would then get annoyed in return when their partner wasn't spilling everything
- I also got increasingly frustrated with Zac's attitude towards Kat, and how he didn't want her to protect him in case she got hurt. He kept saying this wasn't because he didn't trust her, but if you trust her to do her job right then surely you trust her not to get hurt in the process? It was also increasingly frustrating when he talked about how emasculated he felt because he was being protected by his girlfriend - not because she was a girl, don't think he's being sexist - but because it was his girlfriend and he should be protecting her (yes, I did roll my eyes)

Basically I have issues, this book didn't have enough good stuff to balance out the bad, sorry.

The preview for this book sounded so good. Just my idea of a great stress free read. However unfortunately it didnt live up to my expectations I’m afraid. I did struggle through it and certainly once I got over half way the story did seem to improve. I just didn’t buy into either Kat as a professional bodyguard or the romance at all. Her whole characterisation and dialogue were just wrong - not enough to be humorous just really unbelievable.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the preview copy.

This book started off strong and then started to drag. There were almost TOO many issues to deal with. It was hard for me to care about the 50 different obstacles they faced. I thought their chemistry and dialogue was very fun though.

This book was an ok read for me. It had some suspense some action some heartbreak and heartache. I don't know the main characters were a little whiney to me? It wasn't a bad read at all but just ok for me! Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for sharing this book with me!

This is a gender reversed version of the bodyguard. But it's much more than that. Lots of romance... a little mystery, angst and humour mixed in. The characters are great and their relationship works really well despite all obstacles... Great book!

Thanks to Netgalley the chance to read for an honest review.

There was a lot of potential with this book, but it felt flat when Kat and Zac began having the same argument over and over. There was an instant attraction and their chemistry simmered, but everything else felt shallow. I also hate instant love, and that's what we had here. Also, the love scenes left a lot to be desired, but hey, they at least practiced safe sex. I wanted more, but I wasn't entirely put off by the book. That major spoiler for the show The Bodyguard with Richard Madden, however, was not a good look, and the editors need to fix that before it goes to print

When Zac Edwards starts to receive creepy lipstick stained messages from an unknown source around his home and work, he feels worried. As a famous actor, tons of people recognize the handsome movie star. His production company decides that Zac is at risk and needs protection. Bring in Kat Parker, former member of the army, and bodyguard. Zac and Kat first meet in what seems like a coincidental run it-before Zac finds out that Kat has been hired to protect him. Zac is shocked-especially since he had his eyes on Kat from the first moment she spilled her drink on him. As Kat begins her bodyguard duties, both her and Zac quickly realize there is a lot more to their relationship than simply protection.

I would rate this book 1.5. I can't give it a 1 because I still skimmed quickly through the book to see it through. I wasn't taken from it right from the beginning, I finally gave up reading it closely around 15%. Honestly, I was super into the premise of this book, a different kind of story, but ran into so many problems. The story and characters never interested me. There wasn't enough backstory from the beginning and the secrets along the way were too drawn out and anticlimactic. I didn't like the lack of characters and the side plot with Kat's family. I thought the romance between Kat and Zac was extremely lacking. He was drawn to her right from the beginning-but why? It was just never expanded on in a way that bought me. I found Zac cheesy and unlikeable. Kat was a good character, but their relationship was awkward and the way they spoke to each other just came off as odd. The premise of the book is that Zac needs protection from the person leaving the lipstick notes-but then the story just goes off in a different direction. Sadly, this book wasn't for me.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book, in exchange for an honest review.

Kathryn Freeman, a popular Goodreads author of contemporary and romance books.

This story is about a famous British actor, Zac Edwards (which sounds a lot like Zac Efron), who is hot, talented, rich, and sends all the women wild. Except for one… Kat, supposed to be the bodyguard of Zac, finds herself in a challenging situation. Does she withstand the ‘green eyes that not only captivate but also ensnare a woman’ and his ‘quirky smile that sends shivers to places which should not be mentioned’?

Kat is displayed as the strong ex-army female who doesn’t need anyone, who is tough but also needs a hug now and then. Kat is in charge of the security of Zac Edwards, who has a dangerous stalker. From their first meeting, which involved the spilling of champagne, there has been chemistry whose existence they cannot deny. Zac Edwards, the rising famous actor who does not only have a secret that brings others in danger, falls immediately in love with the clumsy female with dark brown eyes that melt his heart.

This book is not only romantic but also incredibly funny (so funny that I laughed-out-loud in the middle of the night). Moreover, it shows how everyone feels insecure from time to time and need some human contact.

I read this book while being in a slump. Initially, I did not feel like reading such a cliché book which has been written so many times before, but I was wrong. This book is the perfect read when you want just that; a nice and funny romantic book, easy to read and making you all giggly while imagining what the beautiful dark, green eyes and quirky smile of Zac Edwards would do to you.

I really enjoyed this story!!

I thought that it was fast paced with plenty of content and lots going on. It was action and romance combined and just what I look for in a book! The characters gelled together really well and I loved their interaction too.

It is 5 stars from me for this series, I thoroughly enjoyed the story from start to finish - very highly recommended!!

4 stars!

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Kathryn Freeman seems to have answered my literary prayers by creating a beautiful and sweet love story between a film star and his bodyguard.
Zac Edwards, a British actor, is the latest heartthrob of the film industry. He is sexy and talented and apparently is now in need of a bodyguard to protect him from a stalker who is getting a bit too close. Enter Kat Parker. After 12 years in the army and 3 years being a bodyguard doing private security, Kat is assigned Zac as her new client. But before they can even be introduced properly as client and bodyguard, Zac is already head over heels for Kat.

This was such a fun read with some heart-stopping and anxious moments. This. story had it all: sizzling romance, sweetness, family love, secrets, twists and turns... the whole nine!

The characters of Zac and Kat felt hauntingly real. At times I found myself so ridiculously annoyed that they weren't communicating properly about their feelings, thus causing unnecessary drama in their beautiful romance; which then made me realise that this is exactly that kind of thing that happens in real life. Both Zac and Kat have a strong character arc within the novel and learn to grow not only together as a couple but also as individuals in their own right.

Up Close and Personal felt like a bit of a modern fairy tale, Zac Edwards definitely reminded me of a fairytale Princess with an amazing personality who is trapped inside the fame attached to his name and Kat Parker is the strong, fierce lady who saves the lost and broken prince.

Definitely a great read for someone in the need of a pick me up, Up Close and Personal will not disappoint.

A very cute rom-com with likeable characters with a story that wasn't too far fetched. This was just a tad underwhelming and a bit predictable to me especially after finishing The Happy Ever Playlist, that should have been read a long time ago. Perhaps I will feel differently if I reread this at a later date, but I am moving on to something else.

Good writing, good characters and a decent story; but predictable ending once you get to to halfway point.

Thanks to Netgalley, the author and One More Chapter for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Available: 6/12/20