Name: The Bodyguard
Rating: 3.91514598540146 (274 reviews)
ISBN: 9781398717411

Katherine Center

The Laugh-out-loud Fake-dating Romcom from an International Bestseller!

The Bodyguard

Kiara

Maybe love isn't a judgment you render...Maybe it's something you choose to do. Over and over. 

And loving other people really does turn out, in the end, to be a genuine way of loving yourself. 

samantha lias

You don’t have to be perfect to be lovable 

Rebecca Briesemeister

Jack kept going. "When youre not around, even for a little w while, I feel like I have to go find you. I just feel this pull to be near you. I wa to know what you're thinking, and what youre up to, and how vou feel. I want to take you places and show you things. I want to memorio. I want you-to learn you like a song. And that nightgown, and the way you get so cranky when I leave my stuff all over the place, and the way vom He vour hair back in that crazy bun. You make me laugh every single day- and nobody makes me laugh. I feel like I've been lost all my life unil now- -and somehow with you I'm just found."

And I guess there really is something profoundly healing about letting somebody love you.

loving other people really does turn out, ler people really does turn out, in the end to be a genuine way of loving yourself.

But you don't have to be perfect to be lovable.

Kayla Duncan

I double-checked my read on them. just baldly standing here. Staring. "It feels a little aggressive," Jack turned to me then, in fascination. "Are you afraid of these Cows?" "Im not going to comment on that." "You, who flipped me on my ass without even trying?" "These cows make you look like a dollhouse person." "But you know that cows are gentle creatures, right?" Ive heard of people getting trampled by cows. That happens." "Well, sure. If you trip and fall right in front of one that's already running, maybe. But on the aggression scale.." He tilted his head and thought about it. "Nope. They're not even on the scale." Now I felt like I had to stand up for myself. "I wasn't the only person scared just now. You came running like a shot.” "Yeah. Because you screamed." "Why did you think I did that?" "I didn't know. Copperhead snake? Fire ant attack? Murder hornets? Something scarier than cows?" But whose side was I going to take besides my own? I doubled down and declared: "One of them attacked me." "Define attacked.” "It licked me. With intention." Now he was suppressing a smile. You mean, as if it might-what? Eat you?" Who knows what its endgame was?"

The whole cow thing is literally so hilarious.

"Trampled by a cow' might be a thing. 'Eaten by a cow' is definitely not—in any way, ever—a thing." "The point is, I was licked. By its green tongue. I didn't even know cows had green tongues." Jack's expression got totally hijacked by amusement now. He closed his eyes, then opened them. "Cows don't have green tongues. It's the cud." I stared at him. "It's grass," he said. "It's regurgitated grass." "What!" I thrashed around, trying to wipe off my already-dry arm again on my sundress. Watching this made Jack actually laugh. He leaned forward and rested his forehead on the steering wheel, and I watched his shoulders shake. "What?" I said. "It's legitimately disgusting." This just made his shoulders shake harder. "What is so funny?" Now he leaned back against the headrest, still laughing. "You're afraid of cows." "Um, hello? We are outnumbered." I looked around. "We are totally surrounded. I mean, what happens now? Do we just have to live here?" But Jack just kept laughing. "I thought it would be a banana spi-der, at least." "You think I'd be scared of a spider?" "You've clearly never seen a banana spider." 

"Can you just get us out of here, please?" "Now I kind of want to stay. This could be a reality show." Then his face just relaxed into a big grin. "My money's on the cows." I glared at him until he put the car in drive and slowly eased forward into the herd. I put my hand over my eyes, but after a second, I had to look. The herd was moving for us, stepping away, like Whatever. As he turned off the gravel road and into the field, steering a bumpy and wide U-turn over ant beds and thistle bushes, Jack just kept laughing, wiping at tears with one hand and steering with the other. "Oh God," he said finally, as we pulled back up onto the gravel, now driving away from the house, back toward town. "Thank you so much." "What are you thanking me for?" I asked. But Jack just shook his head in amazement. "I did not expect to laugh today"

Athena

Have you seen my other girlfriends? Have you seen Kennedy Monroe? She's nothing like any of them. She's short. Her teeth are crooked. She barely wears any makeup. She doesn't self-tan, wear extensions, or dye her hair. She's a totally plain, unremarkable person. She's the epitome of ordinary. But she's mine,

Alesha Clifford

Nothing like flipping a man on his back to bolster your self-esteem. Recommend.

She’s got his back.
Hannah Brooks looks more like a kindergarten teacher than somebody who could kill you with a wine bottle opener. Or a ballpoint pen. Or a dinner napkin. But the truth is, she’s an Executive Protection Agent (aka "bodyguard"), and she just got hired to protect superstar actor Jack Stapleton from his middle-aged, corgi-breeding stalker.

He’s got her heart.
Jack Stapleton’s a household name—captured by paparazzi on beaches the world over, famous for, among other things, rising out of the waves in all manner of clingy board shorts and glistening like a Roman deity. But a few years back, in the wake of a family tragedy, he dropped from the public eye and went off the grid.

They’ve got a secret.
When Jack’s mom gets sick, he comes home to the family’s Texas ranch to help out. Only one catch: He doesn’t want his family to know about his stalker. Or the bodyguard thing. And so Hannah—against her will and her better judgment—finds herself pretending to be Jack’s girlfriend as a cover. Even though her ex, like a jerk, says no one will believe it.

What could possibly go wrong???
Hannah hardly believes it, herself. But the more time she spends with Jack, the more real it all starts to seem. And there lies the heartbreak. Because it’s easy for Hannah to protect Jack. But protecting her own, long-neglected heart? That’s the hardest thing she’s ever done.

A Novel

Steph

Out of all the celebrity romance books that i've read so far, this one takes the cake. It has all the typical rom com tropes like grumpy sunshine, one bed, strangers to friends to lovers, small town... And honestly, I can totally see this book being adapted to the big screen. With Jacob Elordi as Jack. I don't know why I kept picturing him while I was reading it, but he's honestly the perfect guy for it. I also like the fact that this is a reverse bodyguard romance situation, where the female character is the one doing all the protecting. Also, Jack is such a golden retriever boyfriend. He's so god damn precious, I just want to protect him from everything. Overall, solid book. The writing's very easy to get into, but i noticed some repetition in the way she writes, maybe that's her style, but i personally think that she could tryyyyy varying it. But yes, good plot, good chemistry, good characters. Someone should get the rights to adapt this into a movie and get Jacob Elordi on board. Like now.

michelle

“And, In the end, do you ever truly know for sure if you're lovable? What a question. You don't. You can't. Of course not. Life never hands out the answers like that. But maybe that's not even the right question. Maybe love isn't a judgment you render- but a chance you take. Maybe it's something you choose to do-over and over. For yourself. And everyone else. Because love isn't like fame. It's not something other people bestow on you. It's not something that comes from outside. Love is something you do. Love is something you generate. And loving other people really does turn out, in the end, to be a genuine way of loving yourself.”

💌 : "i feel like ive been lost all my life until now—and somehow with you im just... found." ⋆˙⟡

while this book was very cute and i love how hannah never let the people who wronged her walk all over her and jack was a sweetie pie, it did feel like something was missing. their relationship felt rushed because she already had a 'crush' on him because she had watched his films so it felt forced. 

he was a nice enough mmc except he did call her ordinary and said her teeth were crooked like who says that about their 'girlfriend' like?? 

maybe its katherines writing style im not sure but i just didnt feel connected to the characters at all. 

hannah was cool. jack was okay. fuck bobby. thats all. 

💌 : "i feel like ive been lost all my life until now—and somehow with you im just... found." ⋆˙⟡

୨ৎ — 3.5/5

while this book was very cute and i love how hannah never let the people who wronged her walk all over her and jack was a sweetie pie, it did feel like something was missing. their relationship felt rushed because she already had a 'crush' on him because she had watched his films so it felt forced. 

he was a nice enough mmc except he did call her ordinary and said her teeth were crooked like who says that about their 'girlfriend' like?? 

maybe its katherines writing style im not sure but i just didnt feel connected to the characters at all. 

hannah was cool. jack was okay. fuck bobby. thats all. 

Fake dating. She falls first but he falls harder. The movie “The Proposal” but the main characters are a female body guard and movie star duo who pretend they are dating so that his family isn’t worried. Instead of going to Alaska like in The Proposal they go to the superstars family ranch in Texas where they fall in love. The female main character is a bit grumpy too like Sandra Bullock in that role. 

Leah Diaz 

I actually like the plot but I think a ao3 writer would have done a better job with it. I hated that there were no actual character development and that the characters weren’t even round in the first place. Funny at times, i’m disappointed with it because there could have been so much more deep connection within the protagonists. 

mirta <3

Incredible. One of my favorite reads this year!!! Sobbed through the last two chapters. Great book.

Naomi Kemph

i quite enjoyed this one! at first, i wasn't sure if i would like jack -- celeb romance novels are not really my thing just because they read a bit too much like an unrealistic fantasy to me (not that fantasy is bad... just not for me!), but i ended up really adoring him; as always, katherine center's male leads are 

. i felt like hannah was the one whose characterization i was less convinced by. we were often told that she is brave, good at reading ppl, calm in tense situations, etc, but i felt like her actions sort of belied that. she would often justify it as jack throwing her off kilter bc this assignment is outside of her wheelhouse, but i also feel like if she's so good at her job that she's been there for eight years, she wouldn't be ruffled so easily. i still liked her romance with jack, but i just felt like it was harder to see who she was as a person bc of it. it's also unclear how exactly her relationship w her mother impacted her after her father left. these were all rly tiny minor things, bc overall i still enjoyed the book very much, but they were things that i felt like could have used a bit more development. overall still a great read! onto the next!

lucia

i quite enjoyed this one! at first, i wasn't sure if i would like jack -- celeb romance novels are not really my thing just because they read a bit too much like an unrealistic fantasy to me (not that fantasy is bad... just not for me!), but i ended up really adoring him; as always, katherine center's male leads are chef's kiss. i felt like hannah was the one whose characterization i was less convinced by. we were often told that she is brave, good at reading ppl, calm in tense situations, etc, but i felt like her actions sort of belied that. she would often justify it as jack throwing her off kilter bc this assignment is outside of her wheelhouse, but i also feel like if she's so good at her job that she's been there for eight years, she wouldn't be ruffled so easily. i still liked her romance with jack, but i just felt like it was harder to see who she was as a person bc of it. it's also unclear how exactly her relationship w her mother impacted her after her father left. these were all rly tiny minor things, bc overall i still enjoyed the book very much, but they were things that i felt like could have used a bit more development. overall still a great read! onto the next!

"Because love isn't like fame. It's not something other people bestow on you. It's not something that comes from outside. Love is something you do. Love is something you generate. And loving other people really does turn out, in the end, to be a genuine way of loving yourself."

fake dating trope meets found family.

two of my fave tropes so how can i not love this book? i love hannah and jack and his family so much. this is the first book i started and finished this year. a good one to finally get me out of reading slump and start reading books again like there's no tomorrow.

i also just want to point out other things why i love this book. first, hannah and jack are very cowboy like me coded for me (my favorite taylor swift song!). second, in my imagination jack is so chris evans and hannah is so natasha romanoff. totally a win for my marvelswiftie heart. im sorry im like this but let me have the fun.

anyways I'll see if I can get a physical copy of this because I'd really love to reread everytime i need a silly romcom book. speaking of this is a good af material for a romcom movie!

Giulia Milani

This was one of the most light, funny and easy reading book I’ve ever read!
The FMC is just so cute, so real, we can all relate to her somehow. I just loved everything about her. 
Also, the fact that she is the one protecting him, just gives us a break from all that cliche of the helpless girl we see on most romance books. 
I love everything about this book!

Cute little romance with a somewhat predictable plot. Not a hot and heavy romance, but lots of built up tension.

Amanda 

Daphne

Amelia C 

Such a cute book! I’ve always enjoyed Katherine Center’s books. Her books, while marketed as fluffy “womens lit” are actually full of depth and real world shenanigans. I mean who doesn’t enjoy the fake dating that becomes real dating trope? I once heard Ms.Center say in an interview- that she always tries to find a balance between light and darkness in her books, and I think she has almost always succeeded!

i had a good laugh at some point but overall meh story with meh protagonists and meh dialogues.

auri 🪐

what a wild ride but i love the development so much 

Ralie Sutton

I found out it's published by St Martin's press. I wouldn’t have read it if i did, I don't support Zionists. 🍉

But that's not even the reason why I gave it 1 star. It was very cringy, it was giving wattpad. There's racist undertones towards South west Asians. The love interest, Jack, was dry and rude, there was no appeal. There was 0 chemistry, and every character was immature and annoying. 

I found out it's published by St Martin's press. I wouldn’t have read it if i did, I don't support Zionists. 🍉

But that's not even the reason why I gave it 1 star. It was very cringy, it was giving wattpad. There's racist undertones towards South west Asians. The love interest, Jack, was dry and rude, there was no appeal. There was 0 chemistry, and every character was immature and annoying. 

The end was a little cheesy but otherwise this was a 5 star read / new fav!

Kate W

If I could get $1 for everytime I laugh while reading this book, I could get myself 2 ice creams (in a very good way)

tiffany 

not to be a hater, but everything about this is so cliché and predictable. don’t get me wrong; I ENJOY CLICHÉS, and i was already expecting it when i chose to read this book. i mean, let’s be real—the plot is about a female bodyguard who falls in love with a movie star. however, this one just… isn't for me, i guess. personally, i didn't feel the chemistry between the main leads, and the female lead is kinda annoying sometimes. like, for someone who thinks she is unlovable, she assumes too much idk. also, the moment i read that the actor leaves his dirty laundry everywhere AT HIS BIG AGE, i 
  personally
just couldn’t stop thinking about how much of a red flag he is 🫤

i only persevered through this because it's technically my first read of 2024, and i didn’t want it to be something i didn't finish lmfao

ps i should’ve known better cause this book recommendation was from tiktok

Erin Darlyn

A delightful, cheerful story with endearing characters. I laughed a few times and found myself smiling at the banter quite often. I took a star off for the language (not my thing), but otherwise loved it.

very cute book and a great beach read on my vacation!

kels

turtle

this book is a very fun to read!

if you are looking for a feel-good, cozy and funny read, this is your book. 

<33

Iman Kamil

Had such a good time reading this!!! I'm not sure if I were to read it alone and not after a not-so-happy high fantasy I would feel the same, but this is the first romance book to actually make me laugh since last year. The book has it's issues (rushed ending, some problems weren't solved in a satisfying way, etc.) but I'm purely rating from how it made me feel, and it made me feel good so 5/5 !!!!

Ally

not spicy but I loved how everything turned out! fake dating! famous actor who is from a ranch and has a super sweet family, badass woman, actual laughable moments

The Bodyguard The Laugh-out-loud Fake-dating Romcom from an International Bestseller!

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