After years of abuse from her husband Caroline Ashton has finally put all the steps into play to get away from him. On the day she leaves and hires a bodyguard and heads for what she thought would be a safe house she finds the body of her dead husband and is under suspicion from both the police and her husband’s brothers as being the one that killed him.

Luke Dawson had no idea who this woman was that walked into his office and wanted his services immediately but something about her made him take the case and right off the bat his protective instincts kick in when the local sheriff and her brother in laws come on pretty strong with their accusations.

There are plenty of twist and surprises and betrayals throughout.
( )

Finally Caroline Ashton has all the ducks in a row to leave her abusive husband and is on her way to the house she's rented to get away and try to get the courage up to divorce him, when she stops along the way and hires a bodyguard, which is useful when they stumble on her husband's body. Then others discover why she's so timid and after a while in hospital she finds that she wants her freedom a little more than she originally thought, but there appears to be someone else out there who wants her dead. Luke Dawson, the bodyguard, seems to be her only port.

It's not a bad read but the end left me a little unsatisfied. ( )

In Diaz’s romantic suspense novel, Caroline Ashton is the victim of a violent marriage and she’s finally ready to get out. She hires bodyguard Luke Dawson to help her escape to safety but before he can even begin the arrangements, she stumbles across the body of her husband. Now faced with so many unknown fears, Luke steps up his game and is willing to risk everything to ensure her safety.

A fast-paced story about a woman daring to get out of a violent relationship and the man powerful enough to help her. ( )

This book was a Goodreads, first-reads giveaway that I received free from the author in exchange for a fair and honest review. Thank you Goodreads and Lena Diaz. More like 3.5 stars. I enjoyed The Bodyguard. It was a fast-moving suspense book with realistic characters, setting and plot line. Caroline Ashton is abused by her husband, but when she finally tries to make her escape her husband is found dead. Now the race is on to find out who killed Richard Ashton. I think the book is everything I expected from a short book of intrigue. There weren't many characters so I felt like it was possible to guess who the killer might be. Nevertheless, I was still wondering who it was up to the very end. If you're looking for a fast-moving and suspenseful read, this book should satisfy you. ( )

Excellent story with an incredibly strong heroine. Caroline has spent the last five years in hell. The man she fell in love with turned out to be an abuser of the worst kind. She has been kept prisoner in her own home, every aspect of her life controlled, from what she wears to what she eats. She's allowed out of the house once a week to run two errands and timed to make sure she doesn't make any other stops. After months of planning she is finally ready to get away. Still in fear of her life, she goes to the first security agency she finds in the phone book and hires Luke to be her bodyguard. When they arrive at the house she has leased, they find her husband's body and suddenly she is suspected of his murder.

Luke was surprised when she walked into his office because he knows that a rival security firm provides protection for the Ashtons. But he sees the fear in her eyes as she asks for his help and he has no choice but to help her. Luke is with her every step of the way as she deals with those who believe that she's the one who killed her husband, and is there to protect her when she is attacked.

One of the things I liked best about the book is that it felt so real. The descriptions of what Caroline went through were horrific, but completely believable. I also liked the strength that Caroline showed, first in her determination to escape, then in her need to overcome what she had been through. I loved the way that she had an instinctive trust in Luke and his ability to protect her, and also that he would not hurt her himself. I loved Luke's gentleness with her and how he showed her the respect that her husband never did. Just being there for her gives her the strength she needs to start to take control of her life.

The mystery of just who killed Richard Ashton is very well done. There were so many twists and turns that the investigation took that I wasn't sure until the end just who was responsible. Every person had equally strong motives for the murder. Just when I thought I had it figured out something would happen to change my mind. By the time the end came all I could do was hope that Luke would be in time to save Caroline.

I also loved the realism that didn't have things be all sunshine and roses for Luke and Caroline at the end. She admits that she needed time away from him in order to get herself together, but that she's still "a mess" and probably will be for a long time. I also liked that they still feel that their love is worth the risk. ( )