Jack is a handsome, charming, popular actor who is being stalked by a crazy fan. To be safe and not worry his family he wants a bodyguard who is also going to stand in as his girlfriend during a family visit. Enter Hannah, who has terrible self esteem issues and has just been dumped by her boyfriend. She knows it's just an act and she's here to do a job but she can't help falling for Jack and his family. This was exactly what I was hoping for...a charming, feel good, rom com that gives you all the feels. Thank you #NetGalley for my copy of #TheBodyguard.

I adored this book! Katherine Center is already one of my favorites, so I figured this was going to be a winner. The deep dive into his past, the chaos of her life…mix that with a fake-relationship troupe and you have me hooked. It was a darling read and I will be recommending this book everyone, especially if they are needed something to lift their spirits. I cannot wait for another Center gem!

Hannah Brooks is a protection agent, otherwise known as a bodyguard. She may look petite and unassuming, but she can bring a large man down before he knows what's hit him. She is reluctantly assigned to protect movie star Jack Stapleton while he is in Houston visiting his family. He's just the kind of vapid, self-absorbed person she dislike.

Katherine Center knocked it out of the ballpark with this one and it's one of my favourites. I read this in two sittings and even had to turn off the bed time reminder on my phone to stay up and read. I enjoyed the characters and although it is somewhat predictable it was so fun and enjoyable. If you have yet to read

This is a romantic comedy about Hannah Brooks, a bodyguard, who has been tasked to protect the sexiest man alive, actor Jack Stapleton, to protect him from a bizarre corgi-obsessed stalker. But he doesn't want a bodyguard, and he doesn't want his family to worry about the stalker, so he begs (BEGS!!) her to be his fake girlfriend.

Hannah's not the "tough guy" you'd expect to be a bodyguard, but she knows her way around a wine bottle opener. And Jack's a high-profile celebrity (though he's gone incognito in recent years), but he's not what you'd expect either. This pairing has grumpy/sunshine vibes, but she's the grumpy one. She tries to be all business and keep clear lines drawn in the sand, but Jack—even with his anxiety and fears since the death of his brother—is much more easygoing and prone to fits of laughter.

"Men don't dissolve into giggles," said liar-liar-pants-on-fire Jack Stapleton.

This fake dating scenario is complemented by the forced proximity trope when Jack's mom says her dying wish is for Jack and Hannah to spend a month at the family ranch. My only complaint is that I wanted more. I wanted more time on the ranch seeing the relationship develop and more instances of Hannah being a badass Jason Bourne bodyguard. Hannah mentions repeatedly that everything about this assignment is unusual, so it felt like a missed opportunity not to share Hannah in action during a typical assignment.

This story is more comedy than romance (slow burn, closed-door romance) with a side of family dynamics drama. All in all, this was such a FUN read. I actually laughed out loud more than once, which is rare for me. I finished it in just two days. I need Netflix to pick this up ASAP because it would adapt so well into a rom-com.

Read this if you're in the mood for:
-fake dating
-forced proximity
-celebrity/Hollywood romance (small town vibes though)
-slow burn
-closed door romance
-grumpy/sunshine (she's grumpy)

This book was adorable. I loved following their journey! Katherine Center writes some of my favorite books.

The Bodyguard by Katherine Center is an easy 5 star contemporary romance (celebrity, close proximity, fake dating) thanks to the polished writing and Miss Congeniality vibes. Thanks to @netgalley and @stmartinspress for an arc to read and review.

Yet another book by Katherine Center that I absolutely loved. It’s funny because the first book of hers I read I hated but I have loved every single book since then and The Bodyguard was no exception. I loved Hannah’s character and how tough she was supposed to be and how much trouble she actually was. She cracked me up. I also loved Jack and his whole family, and while the ending was somewhat predictable, it didn’t matter. The journey to the end was amazing and I can not wait for her next book to come out .

Fast, addictive read! Wasn’t a big fan of Hannah but I loved Jack! The banter and chemistry was great. Can never go wrong with a Katherine Center read :)

Anything Katherine Center writes is an instant hit with me! The storyline is so well put together and I can't help but die rooting for the characters. I need more female bodyguard stories!

She’s been hired to protect him, but she’s been protecting herself as well.

This was great!! Katherine Center’s newest book has nothing to do with the movie of the same name but I couldn’t resist singing the soundtrack. (It is what it is.)

She may not look it, but Hannah is an Executive Protection Agent (bodyguard) at the top of her game. After dealing with some personal issues, she gets an unusual assignment—protecting famous actor Jack Stapleton while he’s in Houston visiting his family.

Jack is one of the most recognizable (and handsome) actors, but after a family tragedy a few years ago, he dropped out of the public eye. He certainly doesn’t think he needs a bodyguard at first but his studio gives him no choice. The thing is, however, he doesn’t want his family to know he has stalkers, so he insists Hannah pretend to be his girlfriend. She doesn’t think anyone would believe Jack would date her—she’s a far cry from his other girlfriends—but he’s a good actor.

When she and Jack move into his family’s ranch, she must negotiate the tension between him and his brother. But more than that, the more time she spends with Jack, the more she starts to feel like she could be his real girlfriend—which is bad for the job, and bad for her heart. Is he falling for her, too, or is he acting?

I love the way Center tells a story, and even though this was fairly predictable, I was there for it all. These characters—Hannah, Jack, even the supporting characters—were terrific, and I was completely hooked. This would be a great movie!

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the advance copy in exchange for an unbiased review!

I loved this book! This is only the second Katherine Center book that I have read but I am convinced that I need to start reading the rest of her books after finishing this one. Once I started reading this book, I did not want to put it down because I was hooked. This book was the perfect combination of funny, romantic, and exciting!

"You don’t have to be perfect to be lovable.”

I devoured Katherine Center's The Bodyguard in one day. I simply couldn't put it down. It follows Hannah Brooks, a bodyguard assigned to protect Jack Stapleton from a stalker. But Jack is home visiting his family and doesn't want to upset his sick mother, so asks that Hannah pretend to be his girlfriend instead.

Hannah is reeling from the loss of her own mother and the end of her relationship with a coworker when the book opens. She's ready to throw herself completely into work and doesn't have the patience for Jack's goofy antics. I loved the way that she slowly let herself open up to him and how wholly embraced she was by Jack's family and the way that healed a part of her that needed to be welcomed and loved.

Meanwhile, Jack is still grappling with the death of his brother and the way it fractured his relationship with his other sibling. He puts on a good front, but is more emotional beneath the surface than Hannah first assumes. And despite his teasing her into showing off that she can take him down, he's in awe of how capable she is.

There are definitely emotional content warnings for this one, but it was also packed with so much humor and light. In terms of vibes, this book reminded me a lot of Evvie Drake Starts Over by Linda Holmes, so if you enjoyed this book definitely check out that one and vice versa! This was my first Katherine Center book and definitely won't be my last.

5 stars! The Bodyguard was such a fun read! I can easily see it turning into a movie. Highly recommend!
Thank you to Katherine Center, St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was really feeling in the mood for something fun and light. Katherine Center is always a good author for that and her latest, The Bodyguard, fits the bill perfectly. Hannah is an Executive Protection Agent, a bodyguard. She looks like she couldn't harm a fly, but as she says, her job is to make sure she stops a threat before it ever comes to physical fighting. And yet, she can still toss a fully grown man to the ground before he can blink. She's just had the worst few weeks of her life: her mother has died, her boyfriend has broken up with her, and her best friend is on the other side of the world. The worst part of it is that she can't distract herself the way she normally does- work. Happy to call herself a workaholic, Hannah feels fulfilled by her job. When her boss finally gives her another assignment, it isn't what she's expecting. She has to pretend to be the girlfriend of a gorgeous movie star. He doesn't want his family to know that he needs protection. But how good are their respective acting skills?

This book was super cute. It was sweet and romantic while not being saccharine. I really liked it, and I can't wait to listen to the audio version. Add this one to your list. It will definitely make you smile.

This book is adorable, and as always, Katherine Center has written a strong and three-dimensional main character in Hannah and a swoon-worthy love interest in Jack. I love how the toxic masculinity that sometimes gets idealized in romance has zero place in any of her novels--her men are sweet, charming, respectful, believably imperfect, and yes, still incredibly sexy. At just over 300 pages, I did feel like the ending was a bit rushed. But overall a cute and quick read that I would easily recommend.

I have read Katherine Center before but nothing was as good as this one. I loved the story, the setting, and the characters wholeheartedly. This was easily a 5/5 star read for me and I have been recommending it to all my fellow rom com readers non-stop!
When I finished this book, I hugged it. I was utterly in love! 10/10 cutest rom-com! 10/10 build up to that first kiss! 10/10 witty banter! 10/10 character development! I am just here for it!!! Go read it!

Katherine Center's The Bodyguard is a lighthearted, playful swap on the typical stereotype of "male bodyguard protects female protagonist in danger." We have Hannah, an undercover agent hired to watch over Jack, a popular actor who's received some concerning threats but doesn't want to bother his close-knit family or worry his ailing mother. Jack only agrees to the detail as long as Hannah will pretend to be his girlfriend and no one need know of the arrangement.

Though on its surface it's a predictable plot and a quick read, there's some depth as Hannah processes the death of her mother and the end of a relationship ("Does anybody ever know a relationship isn't working? Is that something you can know? Or do all relationships require a certain amount of unreasonable optimism just to survive?"). In her friendship with Jack and his family, she begins to heal from past griefs and past hurts.

In what could have fallen flat and felt formulaic, Center has instead written an enjoyable book with heart, with themes of self-acceptance and self-worth, family, and mourning.

(I received a digital ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.)

Another delightful romance from Katherine Center. I loved the characters and the sweet world they inhabited on the ranch. A bit of a clunky start but totally hooked by the end.

I will read anything Katherine Center writes. I love all her books, and this one was exactly what I expected. I cannot recommend this one enough. I have purchased an additional copy to pass around book club.

A fun twist on the bodyguard trope but this romance was too surface level for me. I couldn’t connect with the characters enough and didn’t feel like I knew them.