The Protector: A sexy, angsty, all-the-feels romance with a hot alpha hero

Jodi Ellen Malpas

Sep 2016 · Sold by Forever

About this ebook

"Every kiss, every sexy scene, every word between this pair owned a piece of my soul. I could read this book a hundred times and still react as if it was the first time. The Protector is a top 2016 fave for me." -- Audrey Carlan, #1 bestselling author of The Calendar Girl series

Jake Sharp resides in his own personal hell. The ex-SAS sniper was distracted from duty once before, and the consequences were devastating--both personally and professionally. He vowed never to let that happen again 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 the lesser of two evils seems to be protecting the heiress, whose life is threatened as a result of her father's ruthless business dealings.

He thinks he knows her type: beautiful and spoiled, with her father's bank balance to fund her lifestyle. But he soon discovers the real Camille--warm, compassionate, determined to be independent and happy after struggling with past mistakes. Now, his duty to protect her turns into something 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.

For fans of Maya Banks, The Protector delivers the all-consuming romance and devastating alpha hero that make a Jodi Ellen Malpas novel an irresistible, passionate read.

Ratings and reviews

In The Protector we get to meet Jake Sharp who is a tormented soul who needs a purpose or else he drowns himself in women and booze to keep his mind off a part of his life that is kept somewhat of a secret to the reader until the end. We get glimpses of this secret as the pieces slowly start to come together making Jake Sharp a man you just want to hug and take all his troubles away. We also get to meet Camille Logan, and from the outside looking in appears to have everything her heart desires. The reader quickly finds out though that Cami wants nothing more than to be an independent woman, out on her own and not be the daddy's girl the press makes her out to be. Jake and Cami come together when Cami's father hires Jake to protect his daughter from a threat that could cost Cami her life. As the story progresses, tension mounts, trusts are broken, and relationships are mended; but most of all love blooms for two people who are absolutely perfect for each other and make each other whole. What a special treat The Protector was to read! The feels.....oh my gosh the feels! The Protector is a fast paced, action packed, super hot sexy romance with well-rounded and well-developed characters. The writing is outstanding and flows flawlessly. The author, Jodi Ellen Malpas, definitely has an incredible talent and I can't wait to read more of her work. I really enjoyed this astounding story immensely and did not want it to end. Overall, from the beautiful cover to the fantastic story within the pages, this book is exceptional in every aspect.

First thing. Jake was not Jessie or Miller so don't go into the book looking for them. Jake had their alpha male qualities and a troubled secret past, but add in a military background and the take-charge attitude soared off the charts. There was a lot of Jake since the book has dual POV's which was a departure from Jodi's other books. As a diehard JEM fan, I loved having more of the male perspective when normally it was in an epilogue. Secondly, Camille was a different type of female heroine. She was rich, pampered socialite, but strong, determined and very headstrong. She wanted to prove her own worth to a world that saw her as the spoiled party girl. As one can imagine, she was not thrilled to get Jake as a 24/7 bodyguard when her father received threats against her well-being. Her relationship with their father was already a battle ground and having a dark, handsome man with a no-nonsense attitude hovering in all aspects of her life did not help. Her father was a cut throat, ruthless business man with enemies everywhere so Camille needed Jake's protection whether she thought she did or not. Now for a hotness factor. Holy mother of God when Jake and Camille finally hooked up, I needed a fan or a cold shower! It was H-O-T!!! Smoking!!! Steaming!!! Lord have mercy!!! You get the picture. The story was fast paced. It threw me a bit because at 5% in there was a lot of background that normally I would have expected Jodi to feed slowly to the reader. I had to remind myself this was a stand-alone book, not a trilogy so the story had to move along at a good clip. That doesn't mean everything was laid out at the beginning. Jodi had several secrets up her sleeve toward the end that were really good. One I never saw coming! No spoilers here so get the book! However, I struggled through parts of the book. Not because it was a bad story or poorly written. Not at all! Jodi's work is always fantastic! It just "sounded" different than her previous books. There were several moments where I thought an editor got ahold of it and set the tone because it just didn't sound like her writing. I expected more flowing, romantic dialogue. Toward the end of the book I saw some of that, but by then I was already used to the tone of the book. Overall I enjoyed reading The Protector. Jodi always weaves a good romance with some mystery, drama and a feel good ending. The book did not disappoint in any of these areas. I highly recommend snapping up this book when it is available in September!

This story takes many twists and turns. There’s passion, suspense, humor and excitement in this riveting new read by Jodi Ellen Malpas. I was completely captivated by THE PROTECTOR. Jake is an amazing character; strong and fiercely protective, yet deeply troubled. He’s fighting some major demons and to keep those demons at bay, he immerses himself in alcohol, women and work. The deadlier the assignment, the better. At the beginning of the story, Jake is in a really bad place and is relieved when his partner delivers his next assignment: protecting an entitled “princess” figure. Well, he’s almost relieved. Jake has no patience for selfish, privileged party girls. But as his assignment goes on, Jake finds out that Camille is none of these things. It’s a blessing and a curse. Camille Logan is a strong, self-sufficient woman. She knows her dad is a very rich and powerful man, but she wants to be successful on her own. Independence is very important to her. Unfortunately, her father refuses to let Camille out from under his oppressive thumb. He wants to protect her but his idea of “protection” is overbearing and controlling. Especially when he hires Camille a bodyguard. What nerve! Now Camille is saddled with an unbelievably gorgeous pain in the butt, cramping her style and invading her life. She’s already got one overprotective father; she doesn’t need two! But Jake is anything but fatherly. As Jake and Camille spend more time together, lines are blurred between professional and passion and the threats on Camille’s life become a very real thing. And Camille’s father seems to be hiding something. All is not what it seems and the real threat to Camille’s life may not be as dangerous as the threat of losing her heart to Jake. This is my first read by the author and I really enjoyed it. Jake is a very dangerous and very sexy man. In the beginning I didn’t think much of him because he is a pretty big a**hole, but he slowly won me over. I loved Camille. She’s strong, independent and loyal. I admired her so much. I thought She and Jake paired well together. The plot was what kept me glued to the pages. There’s suspense and some angst and a lot of surprises. I loved how three-dimensional the characters were and how well they supported each other and the storyline. THE PROTECTOR is a solid read from an obviously talented author and I would definitely recommend it to readers. ***I want to thank the publisher for gifting me an early copy of the book in exchange for an honest review. All conclusions reached are my own***

About the author

Jodi Ellen Malpas was born and raised in the Midlands town of Northampton, England, where she lives with her two boys and a beagle. She is a self-professed daydreamer, a Converse and mojito addict, and she has a terrible weak spot for alpha males. Writing powerful love stories and creating addictive characters has become her passion -- a passion she now shares with her devoted readers. Her novels have hit bestseller lists for the New York Times, USA Today, Sunday Times, and various other international publications and can be read in more than twenty-four languages around the world.