The Protector

The Protector

by Jodi Ellen Malpas

4 out of 5

Synopsis
People think they have Camille Logan nailed: daddy's girl; beautiful, spoiled young woman with her father's bank balance to fund her lifestyle. But Camille is determined to have a life free from his strings. Out on her own, she's made mistakes, including one that found her clawing her way back after a stint in rehab and plenty of bad press. Now, after fighting so hard to be independent and happy, she finds her life threatened as a result of her father's ruthless business dealings. Caught between resentment and fear, Camille prepares herself for the measures her father will take to protect her. But nothing could prepare her for the ex-SAS sniper who crashes into her life.

Jake Sharp resides in his own personal hell. He was distracted from duty once before, and the consequences were devastating--both personally and professionally. He vowed never to let that happen again. Accepting the job of bodyguard to Camille Logan isn't the kind of distraction from his demons he should take. Women and Jake don't mix well, yet protecting the heiress seems the lesser of two evils. But Jake soon discovers that she isn't the woman she's perceived to be. She's warm, compassionate, her presence settling, and his duty to protect her soon goes deeper than a well-paid job, no matter how hard he fights it. He needs absolution. He comes to need Camille. But he knows he can't have both.



Review
Cami doesn't want to be seen as just another rich heiress, and she definitely doesn't want the bodyguard that daddy has just hired. Jake and Cami are about to find more than they bargained for.

I won a paperback copy in a Goodreads First Reads giveaway.

I really enjoyed this book. It is a romance with a thriller background that's quite light reading.
Basically, Cami's dad has a lot of enemies, and one of them is threatening his precious daughter. And because he can afford the best, in comes Jake Sharp.
Jake only took the job to occupy him, because he suffers from PTSD and a lot of guilt, that is just waiting for a quiet moment to bubble up to the surface.

The mystery of who is behind the threats is interesting and intriguing, but definitely takes a back seat to our two main characters.

Cami is a London society darling, heiress and model. But she also wants to make a name for herself as a designer, and wants to do it without daddy's money. I liked the fact that Cami is really driven, independent and wants to be more than a spoiled rich girl. But at the same time, she is very sensible of the media and society; she pays her dues and doesn't get bratty about it all. There is a nice balance between modesty, ambition, and being realistic about what her glamorous world entails.

Jake is ex-SAS, and a control freak. These skills make him one of the most successful bodyguards in the business. And it is always business.
Jake keeps detached from all aspects of his life. If he keeps everything at a distance, it can't endanger the fragile calm he's developed.
Until he meets Cami, and finds someone that might make all that pain worthwhile.

The only downside of what was a fun, light read, was a certain pet peeve I have regarding "Alpha Males"...
When the big tough alpha suddenly goes uncharacteristically squishy. No thank you.
The middle of this book gets very squishy, but luckily it picks up with more excitement later on.

Overall, very enjoyable read, and I wouldn't mind reading some of Malpas' other work.

Goodreads link
Amazon.co.uk