I have loved every book of Katherine Center's that I have read, and The Bodyguard is no exception. The story centers on Hannah Brooks who is assigned to be the bodyguard of Jack Stapleton, an actor who does not want or feel like he needs a bodyguard. Jack is going through a bit of a rough time. He is still mentally recovering from his younger brother's death and his own guilt over it. Jack's mom is undergoing Cancer treatment and Jack doesn't want his mom to worry about any potential stalkers that he might have. Hence, he wants Hanna to pose as his girlfriend. Hannah's own mother has recently died and her colleague/boyfriend dumped her the day of the funeral. To top it all off, Hannah is competing with her ex for a potential position in London and needs to successfully complete her assignment. Hanna's and Jack definitely have chemistry and what starts off as an assignment that Hannah didn't even want might end up leading her to her happily ever after.

Okay, so a kick-ass female main character and (what I imagine) is a young Matthew McConaughey falling in love during a funny, stressful and heartwarming fake dating trope involving corgis. It’s as if the author took all of my favorite things, put them in a bowl, and mixed it up. The book takes place in my hometown of Katy, Texas where bodyguard Hannah Brooks is tasked with being movie star Jack Stapleton’s fake girlfriend to keep him safe, and in a twist of funny, and perfectly mushy moments the two end up falling for one another. “The BodyGuard” is a book I would recommend to anyone looking for a feel-good read!

When I started reading this one, I felt Hannah was going to be another quirky female whom I might not like much but thankfully it wasn't so. Jack, the movie star was beyond adorable and their relationship was cute. This is perfect for those who enjoy fake relationship, forced proximity and celebrity romance tropes. The whole settings of a ranch and them enjoying the nature was well written. I liked the emotional growth in Hannah and how she starts to live life rather than simply exist. It was a quick read and left me grinning quite a few times!

This book should definitely be a movie!! I've now read four Katherine Center books, and this definitely meets/exceeds all expectations. The main characters are very likeable and have a sweet, slow chemistry together. I loved Hannah because she is strong, emotional, and funny. I thought Jack was a great romantic interest because he was able to open himself up and had a lot of respect for Hannah. Also, I must admit I have a big soft spot for normal person/celebrity romances. My only holdup for this book is the evil ex, as he just seemed almost too cartoon villainy in his obnoxious ways. But overall, this is definitely a worthy read and I'm so happy I was able to get an ARC!!

I loved this unexpected plot line and gender swap on the classic bodyguard story (Katie Holmes and Mandy Moore, anyone?). And the book got at some very heavy, real themes of family trauma and loss. But even with all the right parts and lots of potential, I struggled with the writing style - it felt distant and I didn’t find the chemistry believable (so much so I thought for sure that Hannah would end up with Jack’s brother). Thank you for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

I especially enjoyed The Bodyguard. I have read most of Katherine Center's books. This was one of the best. I highly recommend it.

I enjoy Katherine Center books so much and she’s still on a roll with this new release. The Bodyguard pulls you in instantly with likeable and well developed characters and the story is just so good. Such a nice and easy read for the warmer months!

Katherine Center is a must read for me. I loved this one so much. It was such a unique storyline with the protection agent and movie star. Some heavier topics are dealt with, and even though it was completely predictable, I just really enjoyed the ride. I loved Jack’s family so much. I would love to see a book about his brother. This could totally be made into a movie and I would be there for it.

Bottom Line: Read it!!!

**I received a copy of The Bodyguard from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are of my own.**

Katherine Center wrote a sweet and emotional tale with such heart and love that I couldn't put it down.

After her mom dies and her boyfriend dumps her, Hannah Brooks is desperate to avoid her mess of a life and sink into work as an Executive Protection Agent, a bodyguard to wealthy corporate clients. In walks her next assignment, reclusive superstar actor Jack Stapleton who needs protection from a middle-aged stalker while visiting his sick mother. The catch: Jack wants Hannah to pretend to be his girlfriend so his family won't know. Now Hannah must act the part, and decide whether Jack's just a really good actor or if the connection they seem to share is real.

I rarely read romances, but I am all over Katherine Center's love stories, especially since they aren't steamy at all. Don't expect quality literature here, but a cute engaging contemporary romance that won't make you think too much, but has the feel-good happily-ever-after ending you crave. I liked how Center flips the script, making Hannah the protector of the male protagonist. If you want a light easy rom-com without steamy sex scenes, The Bodyguard will be the perfect summer read for you.

While Hannah Brooks is renowned for guarding others, she's locked away her emotions. Remaining steadfast in her duty as a bodyguard, Hannah forgoes personal attachments. When she's selected as a famous movie star's bodyguard, she would rather have an international assignment to escape reality.

Judging by appearances, Jack is an entitled star that she's stuck protecting. Treating him like a regular person instead of a star, Jack respects her for being immune to his charm. Realizing that Jack is threatening to topple the walls she built, she's afraid to put her heart on the line. Will Jack be the one that can convince Hannah to star in her own life instead of remaining in the background?

Thank you to #NetGalley and the publisher for the early edition of 'The Bodyguard' in exchange for an honest review. I'm a fan of Katherine Center's books and eagerly awaited her new novel. To be honest, I wasn't sure of the book's direction or my interest at its beginning. As I grew to care about Hannah and Jack, my opinion changed. The book needed that opening to fully appreciated Hannah's journey. Readers will realize that you can't judge a person or a book by its cover.

Excerpt from The Bodyguard:

You’re thinking I’m five-foot-five, and female, and nothing even close to brawny. You’re conjuring a stereotype of a bodyguard—maybe a club bouncer with skintight shirtsleeves squeezing his biceps—and you’re noting that I’m pretty much the opposite of that. You’re wondering how I could possibly be any good.

Let’s clear that up. Steroid-inflated bruisers are one type of bodyguard: a bodyguard for people who want the whole world to know they have a bodyguard. But the thing is, most people don’t.

Most clients who need executive protection don’t want anyone to know about it.
I’m not saying that the big guys don’t have value. They can have a deterrent effect. But they can also do the opposite. It all depends on the type of threat, to be honest.

Most of the time, you’re safer if your protection goes unnoticed. And I am fantastic at going unnoticed. All women EP agents are, which is why we’re in high demand. No one ever suspects us. Everyone always thinks we’re the nanny.

I do the kind of protection most people never even know is happening—even the client. And I’m the least-lethal looking person in the world. You’d think I was a kindergarten teacher before you’d ever suspect that I could kill you with a wine bottle opener."

A few chapters into this book, I nearly stopped reading. In the slow build up to the main storyline, the protagonist isn’t a particularly likable character and there are just too many words going nowhere. I’m glad that I stuck it out, because the story turned out to be surprisingly sweet and humorous.

Hannah, the lead character, excels in her career as a bodyguard. As a result of past trauma, she never truly lets others in until she is assigned to Jack and his family. It’s fairly clear that the two will end up together, and once their story got going I was hooked. The dialogue and scenes are fun, and I truly enjoyed the character development.

Although sweet and fitting, the ending was a bit long-winded.

I’d easily give this a five-star rating if the beginning and ending had been more strictly edited. Otherwise, it’s a book that I feel many patrons will enjoy. I certainly did.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for access to the ARC in exchange for a review.

Hannah is one of the best security agents at her firm but she's finally met her match with her latest assignment --- pretending to be Hollywood heart-throb Jack Stapleton's girlfriend while really protecting him from a stalker.

While she integrates herself further into the family, she finds herself opening up in a way that she never has before --- especially with a client. She has a harder time separating what's real and what's good acting, because she can't believe that someone like Jack would be truly interested in someone as ordinary as her.

This book was cute but would have loved a little more steam! I loved the friendship and the banter between these characters but didn't see the love connection I was hoping for.

Still an enjoyable beach read perfect for Summer 2022!

I have been a fan of this author for quite some time so I was thrilled to read this book. The author has such a great way of being so descriptive in her writing. I could picture myself in the scenes and it makes the story even more enthralling for the reader.



Hannah is the bodyguard and she has overcome so much in her life. I really appreciated her self-deprecation yet also her ability to succeed in a world that was challenging for her. Jack Stapleton is the famous actor that she has been hired to protect. Definitely characters that the reader will fall in love with.

Thanks so much to netgalley and the publisher for the arc. The opinions are my own.

I'm not sure what makes Katherine's books so compulsively readable but this was a reading at 3am and then waking up early to finish book. The characters weren't as developed as some of her other books but I just didn't care.

I am really enjoying Katherine Center's books. She is becoming one of my favorite authors. This book was so easy to become involved with and was so entertaining. I have been recommending her books to all of my patrons at the library.

I have read several of Katherine Center's other books and have really enjoyed them, but this is my favorite so far! What a treat! Hannah Brooks is an unconventional bodyguard for movie star, Jack Stapleton. With that being said, she is more than capable for the job. However, Jack does not make keeping the line of professionalism easy with his handsome looks and down-to-earth ways. Center does a wonderful job developing this plot line without making it hokey in any way. In addition, you can't help but love the characters as you read the book.

I would love to see The Bodyguard become one of 2022's best beach reads. It is thoroughly enjoyable and perfect for a day at the beach. Thank you NetGalley for an arc of this delightful read when I needed it most!

Was this supposed to make me think of Matthew McConaghey? Was I supposed to know where I thought this was gonna go right from the start?
So many scenes reminded me of the movie The Proposal. On the other hand, The Stapleton Ranch could only be the Yellowstone property in my minds eye. So I’ve got McConaghey and Sandra Bullock driving up to Yellowstone Ranch. I guess I’ve seen too many movies.

So many adorable scenes. The nightgown scene made me laugh out loud. 😆 Some other scenes I just loved but won’t describe because…spoilers!

I usually take notes for my reviews but with this one, I felt like I was watching a rom com I’ve seen before but still can’t stop watching. I didn’t bother with notes, just read with a full heart. The safety pin!! Accck, so very sweet. And then the ending throws you for a little loop that I didn’t see coming.

There’s just something about the way Katherine Center writes that I connect with and I really enjoy. This one is no different and I found to be like a fuzzy blanket or a warm hug. Just a great comfort read. I gobbled it up in 24 hours and now I’m sad to have to wait for her next one.

I’ll be there for it.

A big thank you to NetGalley and St Martins Press for providing the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was a very cute closed door romance! I love reading about women who are in male-dominated fields which is what this was. I didn’t really feel the chemistry between the two MCs… they felt more like close friends. Anyone else? I also could have done without some of the predictable side characters, but it was a good read overall. I hope to read more from Katherine Center!

Let’s start with the writing: In a nutshell, it’s not good.
The story is unnecessarily long, with dialogues that go on and on over the same thing dragging a fruitless conversation and then “puff” the chapter is chopped. Then we have the overuse of words like anyway or anyhow: I’m not an expert, but there are better ways to connect ideas in a story, and as a reader with English as a second language, grammar is very important, and it doesn’t matter that a story is good, bad grammar makes a story looks bad.
Then we have the characters… They are horrible, all of them.
Hannah the protagonist, who supposes to be this amazing strong bodyguard, in reality, she’s whiny, weak, with low self-esteem and immensely annoying. I mean she doesn’t even carry a gun. The boss is a jerk, the best friend is a jerk, and the ex-boyfriend is the biggest jerk of all. Oh! let’s not forget the family of the love interest manipulative and jerk as well.
Everybody’s behavior is immature like they were in a high school or something. (sorry! non-offence to high schoolers.)
Jack is the only one who deserves a star.
The plot is another thing: all over the place, or no plot at all.
After 46% into the book, I skipped almost at the end, which also it’s not good, but the worst part is that I didn’t read a big chunk of the story still, I didn’t miss much.
Do I recommend this book?
Even though lots of people seem to like it, it didn’t work for me, so no, I don’t recommend it.
But as I always say, it’s just an opinion, maybe for somebody else, this could be the best book of all.