Scandalous

Alpha Bodyguard #1

by Sybil Bartel

Bodyguard.

Babysitter.

Chauffeur.

Not what the hell I thought I’d be doing with my life.

Especially not for a spoiled Hollywood actress on location in Miami Beach. But triple pay and carrying a gun had its advantages. I’d shove away paparazzi and screaming fans for a lot less. The Marines trained me to be Force Recon—intimidation and crowd control was child’s play compared to four tours. This assignment should’ve been easy money.

But the doe-eyed starlet with the perfect ass dragged me down her rabbit hole. Living for the spotlight, she leaked the perfect scandal. I warned her making headlines wasn’t in my job description, but she kept smiling for the cameras.

Now she was going to find out just how scandalous a bodyguard could be.


*SCANDALOUS is a sexy new standalone book in the Alpha Bodyguard Series.

The Alpha Bodyguard Series:
SCANDALOUS
RECKLESS
MERCILESS
RUTHLESS

Genres: Romance, Contemporary Romance, Military Fiction, Contemporary, Enemies To Lovers, Amazon, Military Romance

296 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 10, 2018

About the author

Sybil Bartel is a USA Today Bestselling author of unapologetic Alpha heroes. Whether you're reading her dominant Alpha Elite mercenaries, her protective Alpha Bodyguards, or her page-turning romantic suspense, all of her heroes are sexy-as-sin and unwaveringly Alpha!

Sybil lives in South Florida, and she is forever Oliver's mom.

Reviews

[Melanie A. · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 STARS!

This wasn't sex. This was mind-altering fucking, and it only had one outcome. Addiction.

God, this book was trashy! So classless, so tacky, and even offensive in some parts . . . and I loved it! What a luxurious wallow in the alpha-smut gutter. :D

On the surface, Audrina is a spoiled, out-of-control Hollywood starlet, and Tank is her arrogant, unfeeling, muscle-bound security. Dig a little deeper, and . . . yeah, they were still mainly those things, but they did have something important in common; their chemistry was off the charts.

Good grief, these two gave each other hell; Audrina loved Tank's dominating ways, but refused to give into them . . . mostly.

His unwavering stare pulled me in and used me up, daring me to say more.

Tank loved Audrina's naturally submissive responses almost as much as he loved her rebellion.

"Jesus, woman. Am I ever gonna win an argument with you?"

"Only in the bedroom."

Things do not go smoothly between them and Tank won't be winning any awards for charm.

She wanted to be that one magic pussy that turned me from who I was into who she wanted.

But honestly, neither will she. There were some all-out, curse-laden, uber-insulting arguments between these two. They both stepped over the line, multiple times.

But that's why I was able to enjoy this one so much, because they were equals.

"Is that your recipe for a perfect life? Mindless screwing of faceless women?"

Thirty-fucking-four years old and I didn't have a comeback for a young-as-shit, sexually inexperienced actress.

So if you're looking for a bossy a/f caveman and a headstrong heroine who will take you on a trashy roller coaster ride, this one's for you!

[Iqra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yep I still loved it.

After reading it this time everything made more sense and I still loved the way this book made me feel. It’s a quick fast paced book that helped me out of this UGLY slump I was in.

It isn’t necessarily an amazing book but it’s a comfort book. Rereading this was fun and I really enjoyed it.

FALCON’s inner monologue was fucking hilarious. I couldn’t stop laughing the entire time even when he tried to be serious. And meeting the side characters again was so comforting ugh I love this world so much. The whole dominant alpha thing was ott but it was kinda hot.
I literally don’t care how big of a red flag the mmc is, I still love him.

The fmc, AUDRINA, wasn’t as annoying as fmcs usually are to me and I actually loved her too. But that doesn’t mean I loved every choice she made. Like she made absolutely insane decisions but the outcome of every one was so fucking entertaining. The way I was so excited to read my favourite scenes was insane.

I loved how they both gave each other shit just to rile them up 🤌

The third act might not be for everyone but I personally have never hated or loved the trope so it didn’t affect me in that sense.

This wasn’t the cute cuddly type of book but I still loved reading it.

𝗦𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗲:
I’m looking forward to rereading my other favs in this series.

𝗙𝗮𝘃 𝗤𝘂𝗼𝘁𝗲𝘀:

‘𝐈𝐟 𝐈 𝐰𝐚𝐬𝐧’𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐭𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐮𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐦𝐲 𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐞𝐲𝐞𝐬, 𝐈 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝𝐧’𝐭 𝐟𝐮𝐜𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐚𝐜𝐥𝐞 𝐈 𝐬𝐚𝐰 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭.’
~ HAHA ME FUCKING TOO

“𝗢𝗹𝗱 𝗺𝗮𝗻,” I whispered.
“𝗪𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗶𝘁,” he growled.
I dared a peek at him and all of his shirtless glory. His eyes were closed, but 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙤𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙧 𝙤𝙛 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙢𝙤𝙪𝙩𝙝 𝙩𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙙 𝙪𝙥.
~ I’m giggling 🤭

“𝗜𝘁’𝘀 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘆, 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗵𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘁𝘆. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝘄𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝘀𝗽𝗮𝗱𝗲𝘀, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗲’𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝘄𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝗹𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿.”


𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘀𝗶𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝘃𝗶𝗯𝗲𝘀:
The Alpha elite series - Sybil Bartel
Alpha bodyguard series - Sybil Bartel

#𝟯 𝗥𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱 - 𝗡𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟮 - 𝟱 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘀

***

Well this guy just always did it for me. Tank and drina have such amazing chemistry and the way they met was so unalike any book I’ve read.

I love this authors books and try to keep up to date with all of them. This book is my absolute fav and comfort read.

#𝟮 𝗥𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱 - 𝗦𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟭 - 𝟱 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘀
#𝟭 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 - 𝗦𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟬 - 𝟱 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘀

[Princess under cover · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars rounded down.

After the first 10% of countless “fucks” in terms of language, not actual, my eyes kinda glazed over and I stopped paying attention. I like to read stories, not just insanity. And I know military curse a lot, but that was excessive. You can still have a story along with the cursing.

The first part with her making animal noises in the back seat was ok... the middle part with the actual f*cking was 👍🏻. The rest of it was a blur.

My fave scene was when she’s sitting in the bathroom telling him he should NEVER EVER talk about other women in front of her for any reason. That one paragraph had me smiling. I’d tell a man like that the same thing. And the funny part is that he said something harmless - ‘you think I never saw a woman pee before?”

Nothing at all about his prowess in bed or anything sexual, but her reaction was off the charts jealous. She told him! Best part of the book.

So 3.5.

Likely won’t be reading another book by this author anytime soon. Maybe some other time down the road when I’m hankering for a BUILT, foul-mouthed dominating male with a gigantic tool.

They have their moments...

[Debra Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Purchase Amazon April 16, 2019

Scandalous by Sybil Bartel
Genres: Adult, Humor/Comedy, Romance
4.5 Stars

I had a load of fun reading this one.
There were times I laughed and grinned so hard it made my cheeks and jaws hurt.

The story flowed smooth as silk. It was so easy to read I finished it in record time! I am a slow reader. This book flew by! 🦅

Both mc's are awesome and easy to connect to.
Together they are hot and steamy.
Explosive!
And HILARIOUS!

There are some really crazy scenes and poor Dreena seems to be the catalyst. At least her butt is!

The adult scenes between Audrina & Tank are erotic and steamy.
The romance is OTT awesome fun.

I highly recommend this one to all my friends who love adult romance filled with humor and sexy alpha men!

[Mindy Lou's Book Review · Rating 4 out of 5]

Audrina is a 24 year old A-list actress embroiled in the scandal of her life. Tank is a former marine, turned body guard working for Luna and Associates and Audrina is his newest client.

Holy cow. This couple was like watching a lit match get thrown into a pile of explosives. I really didn't know what to think of these two at first. You're not going to get sweet and romantic with this couple but you sure are going to see a lot of heat.

I did not like Audrina when we first get introduced to her. I can't tell you how relieved I was that there was more to her story. I love how an author can push me past first impressions and show me why a character does the things they do, or are forced to do. You soon learn that both Audrina and Tank have more layers than meets the eyes.

You are going to need to get ready for Tank. Man can this author write alphas. Tank is a fictional character and he intimidated the heck out of me. I'm pretty sure he could command me to do anything. I can't say that I blame the heroine for her reactions to him.

This is a couple that was an explosive mess that will take you on a wild ride!

[Vaishali • [V.L. Book Reviews]]

RATING: Stars undecided because I'm so confused

'I had everything.
But I didn't want any of it.
I wanted the touch of a man who cared.
A smile meant only for me.
A summer evening under the stars with no camera.
A month, a week, hell, a day without obligation.
I wanted country roads and Sunday drives.
I wanted holding hands and stolen kisses.
I wanted everything simple..
But the man who'd just held me, the man who'd been named by a mother who believed in the beauty of a predator, he wasn't simple.
I stared at his full lips, his strong has, his stern expression - if a man born to be a warrior could be beautiful, he was beautiful.'

"It's about chemistry, trust and honesty. The first we have in spades, the second we're working on and the last we need to remember."

I have to be honest. I'm speechless. The good or bad type of speechless? more bad than good I must admit. And really, I don't know how to untangle the spectrum of feelings I'm currently faced with. What was this book? Bear with, and I'll attempt to elaborate...

Let's start with some good

The author had my attention from the first page. A very, I mean V E R Y dominating alpha, unapologetic and takes no prisoners. He should have a warning sign on his person. 100% alpha, fine tuned, cold, no-nonsense brute. Oh, how I'm going to love his possible character development surely? Not the case, I'm afraid.

I thought I was going to enjoy this - the story of a gruff, intense ex-marine with a cold, cutting heart who will end up giving it to one special lady. The typical scenario that promises friction, tension and an alluring resolution ...I should say that I didn't know Sybil Bartel writes a special kind of alpha, apparently one that is also reasonably controversial.

Aside from that, this story had some great pieces of dialogue (smut included) and has an interesting way of building the relationship between the two main protagonists with a very activated and reactive back and forth. Bullheaded versus mouthy equals a thrill fest of encounters.

Let's start with the bad

AUDRINA - I didn't know whether Audrina (the female protagonist) was going to be a character that I could appreciate, let alone like. Whether she is the 'spoiled' actress that Tank frequently claims her to be was confusing at first. I didn't know whether she was an attention seeking starlet who likes to light up the media with intentional scandal or a fractured girl, lost and near a probable breakdown. She does have a persona in play, but she's very likely all of these things combined; a product of neglect and a very toxic culture. She is vulnerable and her behaviour is reminiscent of a codependent who requires attachment. She's desperate to get her life on track again, but she's also erratic, exasperating, all over the place and her characterisation lacks depth, and more importantly, coherence.

Her fear of abandonment had her always chasing Tank when I really wanted her to maintain some dignity, but no, she's very erratic and skittish, and I just didn't know what to think. She has a fatal lack of control in her life which makes her look for assurance and comfort in Tank - a bad decision because for 80% of the book he doesn't even like her, let alone care about her or her troubles.

Ultimately, I couldn't warm up to her as much as I wanted because I didn't understand her. She doesn't stick to her convictions enough - only with her career decisions, but with Tank? She was the epitome of a hot mess...and then some *sigh*

I will say that her character is more fleshed out than Tank's. Her future is very uncertain, besides Tank being in it. Does she get the much-needed control back in her life after having none? She gets a happy ending in some form, but it's not one readers may find belief in.

TANK - Falcon 'Tank' Gunther is a 100% no nonsense, no bullshit 'it's my way or the highway' kind of character. Very alpha. Large and in charge. Throughout the book I kept thinking, 'gosh, he's such a man beast' - At first I liked it. I love a convincing alpha, but afterward? The thrill wore off, and here's why...

He's completely jaded when he has no reason to be. His opinion of women was too jaded to make sense of. It was almost pathological. And there was no reason for him to have such a lack of respect and regard for them. He's an ex-marine, so his no-bullshit barometer is sharper and far more intolerable than most. In fact, he doesn't seem to be fond of people in general. But he has a special kind of prejudice towards women. Does he even respect them, see them as something more than seeing to his male needs? Knowing this, how can we ever understand his interest in Audrina when there really isn't even any notable character development.

Despite not liking or trusting women, and despite always using protection during sex to avoid any attachment or consequences with them (you know, because they're so awful) he decides that unprotected sex is the right way to go with Audrina. In what world this makes sense? I don't know. A lot of double standards, mixed messages and hypocrisy abounds. What both of them really need is the insight of some well-intentioned therapeutic intervention coupled with extensive self awareness, not to crash into a 'relationship' like two damaged automobiles.

Tank makes a lot of assumptions about Audrina and doubts her sincerity because of his this complex he seems to have with women. He characteristically writes them off, but is then audacious enough to make them meet his needs. It's one rule for him and another for everyone else. He looks at life and people with a narrow, brutal lens. He never once apologises to her, but she does to him. Many times.

Additionally, Audrina's family are horrible. Truly terrible people who neglected her in very vital ways. It was better to have a life away from them, but that doesn't mean this new life afforded her the stability she desperately needed. But when Tank schools her family in a quick course of decency, I couldn't help thinking that he wasn't a particularly decent human being either. He accuses her of being deceptive and playing games. Newsflash: he also plays them! And always wants the upper hand, removing any control she may have (and she doesn't have very much in her universe). If she doesn't bend to his instruction he won't like it and he never has a decent word to say about her. Any real meaning is lost in their games. I kept trying to figure out who's baggage is bigger, who's chip was heavier...

For the most part I didn't like Tank at all. Because he is so closed off and emotionally intangible (and unreachable in most every other way), it's really only at the end of the book, just before the epilogue that he changes his tune from 'she's immature, spoiled, entitled, narcissistic to she's strong-willed and brave. And this had to happen in the last few scenes only? The characterisation was particularly poor.

T H O U G H T S - A B O U T - T H E - S T O R Y

This is a book that you'll either really like for all it's crazy, or not like at all. At first I thought I'd be a stellar supporter of the former, but my choice withered the further I read. It's not easy to make sense of things because there's not a fair amount of elaboration. I only started to like Tank at the 90% mark. The manner of the narrative development exposed a story that was without any real coherence.

It was a task to draw semantics from the story because these characters were hard to read and this story was hard to find sense in. Notably because character profiles were particularly insubstantial. Tank we don't know a lot about, and Audrina we know a bit more about, but her character arc, as well as his is not far reaching or well written. Frankly, they weren't explored well enough.

There were also some unnecessary details such as two momentary characters looking very similar to Audrina. What's the point of mentioning this when it has no relevance?

The time frame in this book was remarkably unrealistic. When both Tank and Audrina meet, they only know each other for a few days Two crazy, erratic days filled with continuous, puzzling angst and back and forth that did not always make sense. I love the friction that precedes an awaiting culmination, but here it was purely chaotic, and I was either cringing at Audrina's oscillating tendency to like or hate Tank a dozen times a day (to feeding on those feelings) or annoyed at Tank for his bullheadedness.

Because almost everything between Tank and Audrina was so perplexing, fragile and volatile, I didn't at all think any HEA would be lasting. So I was prepared to feel that way toward the end of the book. Both Tank and Audrina spend so much time hiding their feelings, competing in a play of one-upmanship that they're hardly honest with each other, Tank being the obvious perpetrator here. They're both written with impact, but whether a reader decides it's in a beneficial way or a controversial one? That depends on what sort story floats your boat or what sort of characters dot your I's and cross your T's. Or if you can take Scandalous with a pinch of salt and run with it.

The book ended on a big laugh from me - I liked the epilogue to some degree; it was funny and epitomised these two in a nutshell - and it was only then that I saw some charm in this crazy couple. I think it's a bad sign however to highlight some warmth and certainty for a set of characters come the the end of the story. I love a good HEA, but I don't think every story has to be tied up in marriage and baby,especially with these two. A baby doesn't fix critical relationship foundations. Most certainly not a barely-there relationship between two people who but heads more than they like each other and really know each other.

I saw the story going in a completely different direction when I read the synopsis, but this turned out to be a narrative that wholly takes place in a two-week time slot (one week lapsed in a separation, the characters only knowing each other for a few days). It was underwhelming, crazy, unrealistic, rushed, a fast and furious, tension-filled read that left me little more than beffudled.

I love the unreachable alpha who gives up his heart to the one woman for him trope, but I didn't like the execution in Scandalous

Trigger Warning: This book overflows with profanity if you're not comfortable with that and multiple scenes of sexual intimacy. There's also a side character who has a drug addiction so there reference to drug use. Sexual assault and molestation of a minor it's referenced that the heroine was assaulted and molested by her older brother when she was a minor, and her parents didn't believe her, even when her mother walked in on it happening.



Visit my blog for more reviews: V.L. Book Reviews

[Leila · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 lock and key stars!

Lock and key, she fit me like a glove.

Whew! Excuse me while I just cool off...that was a seriously hot read!

I was in the mood for something smutty after all of the rom-coms I've been reading lately and a good friend suggested I try out anything by Sybil Bartel so I decided to start with her Alpha Bodyguard Series. This was my first introduction to Ms Bartel's work and let me tell you it did not disappoint and it will definitely not be the last.

Tank is the epitome of a dominant alpha male. All tall, dark and broody with a possessive streak to match.

I'm so glad that Audrina wasn't quite the spoiled Hollywood princess that we are first introduced to and that her character develops into something more.

The heat between these two was off the charts!

I was a wanton mess under his abrasive touch. Except that wasn't touching. He'd assautled my body like I was the enemy and he was the conqueror.

This book left me wanting for more...more alpha males...in the form of sexy alpha bodyguards.

[☁️]

DNF @34%


Yeah should’ve judged a book by it’s cover

[Alison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stars: 3.5
Length: Full Length
POV: Dual
Series: Alpha Bodyguard #1 (Stand Alone)
Ending: HEA
Re-read? No

"He wasn’t just naked and hot, he was every bad decision I’d never made but wished I had gorgeous."

This one was a little hard for me to rate. I love alpha, controlling, possessive men but the first half of this book, Tank was just too much for me. He treats women like sex objects and trash, won't even kiss them. Then he plays weird psychological games with Audrina to "test" her. It doesn't matter if she fails or passes, he always finds some reason to be disappointed. He gets a bit better as it gets closer to the end but he still can't admit that he actually cares about her, even when he spends days looking for her and tries to get her to come home, he pretends it's all about business. It was infuriating.

Audrina was a better character but not by much. She's a movie star who is ready to get out of the game and Tank is protecting her. What frustrates me about her is that even though Tank treats her like trash she repeatedly throws herself at him. I am always annoyed when authors have the female leads do that.

So, while the story was semi-interesting and the book was well written, the characters really dragged down the rating for me. I mean, a dominate controlling man in bed doesn't have to be a completely chauvinistic, manipulative, pig! I had previously read another book in this series so I know that they aren't all like this so I'll continue the series but this one won't be making it to my re-read shelf.

[🦉Maggie Whitworth · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
💋💋💋

So so glad I found these books, I felt my reading was going flat and then I was sent an advertisement of Alpha, a book from a related series, I was hooked.
Then I discovered this set and I’m in heaven now.
This is awesome, wait till you meet Falcon.
He a big, rough, alpha male with attitude.
His woman has attitude too, but can he keep he in line and out of trouble.

[Ros (Rosie) 🦋 · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 alpha male stars!

I had no expectations going into this book whatsoever; this is a new author for me. I’ve been trying to read outside of what I like to call my “comfort blanket” authors recently. Glancing through the reviews, it seems that Sybil Bartel is known for her scrumptious alpha males and if Scandalous is anything to go by, then sign me up because Tank, well, hot damn!

Falcon ‘Tank’ Gunther, a former marine, and now personal security is given a new client to protect. This client being Audrina ‘Drina’ McKenzie, a young Hollywood A-lister. Tank is built like a brick shit house; he’s unapologetically alpha and is, I’m sure, most women’s dream hero.

Audrina is a child star turned Hollywood starlet. She’s already run her previous security guard (Tank's colleague) ragged. Tank believes she is going to be a typical spoiled brat, yet, she turns out to be the opposite. Despite not being a brat, I did find Audrina to be a little naïve and annoying throughout.

Their relationship is hot and fun. Audrina is powerless to stop the temptation of Tank, and despite it going against his better judgement, Tank also cannot resist Audrina.

The ending of this book was a little bit ridiculous though. I think this is mainly because this entire book is set over what cannot be more than a two week time period. Frankly, believing that such a “strong” love connection (no spoilers but you'll understand what I mean if you read this) is formed within such a small amount of time is a bit of an impossible task, but hey, I guess this is fiction after all!

Yet, despite the above, I actually enjoyed this book! Tank was a hot, brooding dream and the story overall was really exciting - regardless of the silly time span. If the author had paced this out over a few months it would most definitely be a four star read.

[Coco.V]

🎁 FREE on iBooks today (4/5/2019)! 🎁

Blurb:
Bodyguard.

Babysitter.

Chauffeur.

Not what the hell I thought I’d be doing with my life.

Especially not for a spoiled Hollywood actress on location in Miami Beach. But triple pay and carrying a gun had its advantages. I’d shove away paparazzi and screaming fans for a lot less. The Marines trained me to be Force Recon—intimidation and crowd control was child’s play compared to four tours. This assignment should’ve been easy money.

But the doe-eyed starlet with the perfect ass dragged me down her rabbit hole. Living for the spotlight, she leaked the perfect scandal. I warned her making headlines wasn’t in my job description, but she kept smiling for the cameras.

Now she was going to find out just how scandalous a bodyguard could be.

[L Cherry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hot and exciting

This is a new author for me recommended by a friend on goodreads. I am really glad to have found her.

The characters really grabbed my attention and kept me interested. I expected something similar to all the other bodyguard novels I have read, but this had an interesting edge to it. Super hot and a good story!

[Lee Piper · Rating 5 out of 5]

To be honest, I was hesitant in starting, Scandalous (The Alpha Bodyguard, #1). Not because I thought it wouldn’t live up to my expectations, but because I knew it would surpass them.

You see, Sybil Bartel knows how to craft alphas. Her heroes are a romance reader’s wet dream. They’re what women (and some men) conjure in their deepest, darkest fantasies. Bartel’s heroes are unapologetic, uncompromising, and so freaking hot, they need to come with some form of signage—a warning label will do.

So, when faced with Scandalous, I was like, “Sybil can’t pen a more alpha, alpha. It’s not possible. Wait, is it possible? Sweet baby Jesus, the woman’s going to kill me.”

And she did.

From the very first line, Falcon ‘Tank’ Gunther owned the narrative. Heck, he owned my ovaries. The dialogue, the imagery, the sex—holy Hades, the sex! Smokin’ hot doesn’t begin to describe it. And Audrina is the perfect heroine, the perfect blend of sass and chaos to bring a man like Tank to his knees.

I’m still recovering from this book. It’s going to take me a long time to recover from the mother of all book hangovers. Maybe Sybil Bartel needs to start a support group? You know, Alpha Addiction Anonymous or something? Lord knows, nothing but book #2 in the Alpha Bodyguard Series is going to help.

Bring on Reckless.

[Mettesknit · Rating 1 out of 5]

Awful 🤢🤮

[Meg H · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was great! Ex-military hot as f and dominant too plus a Hollywood starlet who is refinding her life and way? Quick read, steamy scenes and a guy whole dominate takes care of his person? Sign me up. About the devour this whole series.As background I was feeling meh about what to read next and actually picked out another book, but feel asleep before getting started. When I woke this book was downloaded and I assumed it was associated with the blurb I read the night before. I spent 5 chapters wondering when the main female character would change from a young Hollywood starlet to what I was expecting… before realizing I had no idea what I was reading 😂 this book was such a great surprise I already downloaded the next in the series. Bonus points Sybil Bartel‘s website offers this first book free if you want to test the waters

[Melluvsbooks · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bodyguard and a *seemingly* entitled pampered celebrity... and word on the street is that maybe his 🍆*business*🍆 is a bit too much for her🐱. 👀😏
Sounds like a winner! 👀🤣

What I liked:

- the h is a 23 yo actress, and maybe not what everyone assumes. She’s not a v, but she’s not promiscuous - she’s vulnerable, and I liked her sassiness

- the H is full-on dominant alpha. 😍 He’s ex-military and he’s not messing around. He is eventually j/p. He’s a 34 yo manhooooaar @$$hole. #alphaholesaremyjam 🤷🏼‍♀️

- this is a fast burn, I believe things get smexxy WELL before the 50% mark. 🔥🔥🔥🔥

- the H is dominant, but not necessarily a Dom. No safe words are ever mentioned 🖤

- the H’s... erm... SIZE... is a... uuuuhhh... PROMINENT aspect during the very frequent smexxy times. 👀 😅 *giggles* 🙈

- she totally calls him out on talking about his past experience with OW. I’m glad she said something because I wanted to reach into the book a knock him across the head. 😒

- the H makes a conscious decision to go without a condom 😉

- loved the epilogue. It totally saved the book and the Hero. ❤️👌🏻

What I didn’t like:

- dual POV - in this case, I would have liked this book way more if I didn’t have his perspective.

- the H thinks about his relations with his long line of past quasi-submissives quite a bit. Even when he’s in the middle of smexxy times with the h. He thinks about how he likes his women submissive and their...erm... *aroma* ... and other stuff that wasn’t exclusive to the h, but just how he likes to do the smexx. 🥴😑 At one point, I almost DNF’d due to this, but carried on because I was curious about other stuff...

- I’m not sure that we ever got an adequate explanation for why the H was such jack@$$ when it came to his relations with women. Maybe his military experience was supposed to be that catalyst?

- the h is supposed to be pretty inexperienced. It sounded like maybe she’d only had smexx one time, 4-years earlier, but then other times it seemed like her experience might have been more than that. It was vague... but my issue wasn’t that it was vague, it was that she seems practically virginal, but she is super sexually aggressive and vulgar. It was jarring and didn’t fit with the vague depiction of her experience, IMO 😬

- the H kept talking about his need to dominate and how submissive the h was... but I kept waiting around for either of these two to live up to those descriptions, because I was so here for it! If it happened, I never saw it. He’s bossy isn’t afraid to do a little manhandling and tells her not to touch him without permission... so I guess that’s dominant?? And she, well, despite being a bit vulnerable due to her situation, I didn’t see anything submissive about her at all. She was topping from the bottom, smarting off, and fighting and sassing him at every turn... so I was a little confused. 🤔🤷🏼‍♀️

Bottom Line? I finished! 🤷🏼‍♀️😅 Despite it including stuff that would typically have me moving on, I was entertained enough to keep on reading. I liked it overall ... ⭐️⭐️⭐️

⚠️For the Safety Squad⚠️

- no cheating or sharing
- no OW drama (other than his thoughts)
- no dubcon/noncon
- there are very vague references to the h’s brother touching her inappropriately
- the h is drugged by a costar

[Mikky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Originally posted at:


My expectations were high for this novel because I've loved most (if not all) of this author's past few book releases. I'm so glad that this novel stood up to my expectations! This authors writing style is so good! The overall pacing of the story was perfect. I love seeing this authors evolution in every book she releases because they keep getting better and better.

Dreena was an interesting character with somewhat of a dark backstory. You never knew what mood she was and in (especially in the beginning) and what she would do next. She was predictably unpredictable and her dynamic with Tank worked well for the story. I loved the overall female empowerment message this book featured with an event that happened to Dreena. I liked how supportive Tank was of the whole situation.

I both like and dislike certain aspects of Tank. I liked it when he was caring, sweet and open to Dreena, but I disliked it when he would get unnecessarily overprotective, domineering and bossy on a drop of a hat. I understand that's what the whole "alpha" character trait embodies, but I wasn't a fan when it came to that part of Tank. Though one thing that became consistent in the second half of the novel was his need to protect and treasure Dreena because somewhere along the way he fell for her too.

Overall the ending was so cute and sweet but it caught me off guard. I don't know what I was expecting but it wasn't what was presented. I did enjoy it though! I can't wait to get my hands on the next book in this series!

My Favorite Quotes:

"I was stupid, foolishly, idiotically thinking she was that one in a million."

"Your past isn't your fault. It doesn't change a single damn second [...] or have any influence on what I'm asking."

"Life is only as complicated as you make it [...]."

[Reading · Rating 2 out of 5]

Scandalous is a near perfect example of a story that could have been something great and took a turn into a predictable hot mess. Not so bad I won't read this author again, though. I see potential.



Note to authors: There is no obligation nor unwritten rule that states a story needs to be as tropetastic as possible. Choose no more than 3 and see how that works

[Imogen Keeper · Rating 5 out of 5]

So...I've been really struggling to read during 2020. This time last year I read around ten books a month. I tore through books like a...like a motherfu**ing romance reader. Then covid happened and it was like a switch flipped. I could not read.

Then this book happened. I can't say it was the best thing I've ever read because it wasn't. But it was FAR from the worst. I think it was the unpredictability that kept me turning page. The writer can writer. That's not up for debate. She has a straight-forward prose style that doesn't ever get in her own way. And her characters are...well, they're definitely characters.

***Mild Spoilers below *** D

What did I love? I loved Tank...Falcon Gunther. I think she calls him masculine and dominant at least twice a page. He constantly wanted to spank the FMC (but he never does), and he's got a mouth on him...at least internally. He's borderline monosyllabic in actual dialogue, though when he talks he's worth listening to.

I also loved the open. Tank, bodyguard extraordinaire, rocks up on a lark to find out what the fuss is for his bodyguard coworker who's struggling with a batshit errant client. Audrina, the it-chick of LA. She's laced out, running naked on Miami beach, and the bodyguard cannot get a handle on her. The media gets involved, and Tank, who really just wanted to go to sleep, ends up with a steaming red mess on his hands. And she is a mess. She's braying like a donkey, and crying that she's drowning, she's shrieking that their boat is sinking, masturbating, barking...literally barking...like a dog. So...it's a hell of an open. And honestly, it kept getting better from there for a while. Though, i rolled my eyes a few times and it had a soggy middle.

I also love the hurt comfort element of it all. Tank's not a nice or easy person. He's blunt, honest, harsh and uncompromising. He also has mild dom tendencies and I kept wondering when he'd quit threatening to spank her and just do it already...cuz that was distracting for me. She'd have been fine with him spanking her. I think.

Anway, what didn't I love...Audrina. Don't get me wrong, I didn't dislike Audrina. She'd had a rough go of it, and she was simultaneously spoiled and reckless and also broken and desperate. What irked me a bit was the desperate. There are multiple scenes of her begging him to have sex with her and him saying no. And it doesn't end there. Her response to him saying no, is to get naked, shout, berate, threaten? At one point he says he won't have sex with her and he won't respond to her until she eats her food, so she gets naked, straddles his plate...like spread-eagles it right over his food and proceeds to shove her lo mein into her mouth bare handed. Like an animal. I didn't make that up. It happened.

That was a first for me in a romance.

Tank loved it though. For some reason. He kept bringing it up like that little display of comingled desperation and lunacy was proof of bravery. I don't quite get it. Use a fork? It was right there.

Also...the first time they made the sex... Dude's big. Okay... but like dude's SO big that his peen got caught inside her? Like wedged in there and wouldn't come out. So i don't know if he's got like an omegaverse style wolf man part or if human peen can actually do this. But that was kinda wild. Also...then he orgasms her straight into convulsions which trigger a panic attack. Maybe that sounds less ridiculous as i write it out. Audrina was dramatic AF. So maybe that plays through. IDK. It reads like it was just some kind of supernova of an orgasm. Maybe I've just been doing sex wrong. Who knows?

Anywho, I wish the characters used reusable water bottles, but that's a mild gripe.

The ending was solid-ish. Some secrets came up. Some angst happened.

The single best thing about this book though is how sweet Tank is at comforting Audrina. He's like this big grumpy beast, but he's so insanely in tune with her batshit emotions that by the end I was all in. Spread-eagle animal snarfing lo mein and wolf shlong to boot.

I won't lie, I'm probably going to look for more just to see what other offkilt stuff she can cook up.

[Celine · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wanted to stop reading this book halfway but I stuck to it because of all the good reviews…
I just don’t think the characters are likeable at all - Tank was so egotistical and had anger issues, and Audrina was immature. Nah they were both immature.

They would get so angry at each other for no reason, and I felt like the dialogue did not flow at all.

I was cringing a lot as well…

There was drama that felt either unnecessary or unexplained and it just felt like the author added random facts about the characters just for angst.

I don’t usually write reviews but those are my thoughts and I felt the need to write them down.

[BookWorm · Rating 1 out of 5]

I get that this book is meant to be saucy and crude. And it's not aiming for a Pulitzer Prize. But jeez it was nuts.

There were so many things I was troubled by. Such as the hero perving on and objectifying a naked woman who was drugged up and not aware of what she was doing; The hero holding a gun to the temple of multiple people; the unprotected sex; the volatile relationship...

Different strokes for different folks and all that. But this is not my cup of tea.

[nikki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ngl you guys but the first chapter had clouded my judgement and had me thinking that this would be a disappointment.However,i was proved wrong as i devoured chapter after chapter of this book.
All I can say is that i'm glad that i didn't give up on this book and continued reading it.
if you're someone like me who likes 6 foot something dominant alpha males(who happen to be ex-marines btw😏) then this def is the book for you.
I mean y'all,don't even get me started on how hot tank is.Like jesus christ...I need some holy water lmao.
The smut was amazing and character development was pretty good.The only thing i didn't like was that the female mc was portrayed to be a little too needy/cringey imo.Other than that,towards the end,I fell in love with both characters immensely.
Overall,a pretty good smutty read and I'll def be binging the next book in this series :)))

Also how hawt are bodyguards romances teeheheh🥵🤭

[Mafalda Teixeira · Rating 1 out of 5]

I hated this one so much, I usually like enemies to lovers, but both characters were unbelievably rude to each other! There were no good qualities in them and the plot seemed to drag with almost nothing happening and I wanted to dnf this so many times but I hate dnfing books so I didn’t, but I skimmed a lot towards the end.
For me, it wasn’t a great time

[Anna (read.all.night) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This plot was kinda whack

[Chalice · Rating 4 out of 5]

The couple: Tank (Falcon) and Audrina (Dreena)

Romance trope: bodyguard/actress
Series: Alpha Bodyguard
Length: 291 pages

Plot: Dreena is a successful actress, the it girl of the moment, and she's losing it. She's the star of a viral video that was taken of her streaking down the beach, naked, with her bodyguard trying to contain her. She's obviously on something and her reputation is at stake. But Audrina isn't looking to stay in the Hollywood lifestyle anyway; she just has to find a way to get out for good. Tank is tasked to be her new bodyguard and doesn't want anything else to do with the spoiled brat, even if she is the most gorgeous woman he's ever seen. Even if she can't keep her eyes off of him. Even if she's the only woman he wants to kiss and keep.

Commentary: Poor Audrina - her story broke my heart. I've always thought that the desire to seek out fame is so strange. People practically destroy their chances of ever having a normal life, all for what? Some people recognizing them? Is it the need for adulation? I've never understood, and part of it is that I'm an introvert. I don't want people recognizing me, socializing with me, or otherwise placing their expectations and visions of they think I should be upon me. But that's what happens to celebrities. People see them as communal property and when they stray from accepted behavior or expected reactions, they're talked about, denigrated, shunned.

In this case, Audrina wasn't even at fault: her coworker drugged her in a club and her naked run across the beach was because of that. More than that, Audrina wasn't at fault for her entire career: her mother basically sold her to an agent when she was only 13 to get rid of her because she "tempted" her older brother into molesting her. She never had a chance, and now that she's taking the chance she really wants, there's so much emotional detritus in the way. She does come off as emotionally immature at times, but that's because she is. And in this case, that's okay, because I feel like she'll get to a good place, given time.

Tank, on the other hand; I just wanted to slap him. He was such a jerk. He held women in such contempt, and there didn't seem to be a good (enough) reason. He suffered in the military. I get that - most people in a position like Tank's have some leftover hangups, fears, anger, etc. It's understandable. But while he's a jerk to everyone, he's especially dismissive of and insulting toward women. Oh, they have a good time while they're in his bed (the one time he allows for a woman), but it's not about the woman - that's just a by-product. And his communication skills are pretty non-existent. I do like that he became so protective of Audrina once he found out what her trauma was, but I wish he could have been a decent human being before that! There were times when Tank and Audrina were the very definition of oil and water, with a little fire thrown in and I both loved and hated it.

At the end of it all, I was so relieved that they actually made it; obviously, I knew they would because it's a romance, but it seemed iffy at times. They made it all the way to a satisfying epilogue!

Next book in the series: Merciless

[Jordan · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was a new to me author but I'm always intrigued by a bodyguard trope. Ultimately, this was a big fat nope for me for one reason: Tank was a major dick.

I can handle a hero who's into 1NS and no-strings attached relationships, but Tank took it to almost a pathological level that had me wondering if he even liked women? As in, did he even see women as anything else than a means to an end to get his rocks off?

And I wasn't sure that Tank even liked Audrina for most of the book. He called her spoiled, narcissistic, emotionally stunted, and needy. This is someone who was drugged, then taped naked without her consent which was then broadcast worldwide. She also is someone with zero support systems. Yeah, she's a little vulnerable and needy. I found the way Tank spoke to her and about her to be almost degrading. Throughout, he would mention Audrina's submission, but he wasn't interested in her submission for BDSM or kink purposes, he just wanted to maintain the upper hand and didn't want her to stand up to him and push for anything more than a sexual relationship, never mind he purposely never used a condom.

I thought about maybe reading other books in a series to see if I liked them better, then another character (who will surely get their own book) was introduced who classifies all women as bleeders or takers. No thanks. If I want to hear from misogynistic a-holes, I'll just read the news.

[Samantha Love HEA Romance Book Blog · Rating 5 out of 5]

TANK!!!! Gahhhhh, this book is just so damn good!!! This is the first book I have read by this author and let me tell you, it WILL NOT be my last. This book is so so so SO good. I was hanging on every word, every page, every scene that involved Tank...

Tank is the definition of alpha.... I am sure if we looked it up in the dictionary his face would be right there on the page. He is alpha, dominant, and oh so sexy. He is such a brooding, dirty talking hunk who had me swooning. no shame here, I freaking loved him!
To tell you the truth, I did not like Audrina at the start of this book. But as it progressed I started to love her and the chemistry she had with Tank. And her life is far from perfect, oh, I felt so sad for her.

This book took a couple of pages to catch my full attention but when it did there was no holding back. I could not put it down at all!! The chemistry is hot hot hot, I’m surprised my kindle is still in one peice and not melted. Make sure you grab yourself a copy of this steamy, sexy read and experience Tank and Audrina’s story for yourself. I can not wait until the next in the series is here!!!

[Lissanne Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

There’s nobody who writes alpha males quite like Sybil Bartel, and she doesn’t disappoint with the latest in the amazing universe she’s created. It started with the Alpha Escort series, then moved into The Uncompromising series, and now we have Scandalous, the first in the Alpha Bodyguard series.

Audrina “Dreena” MacKenzie is a famous actress, having made the leap from child star successfully. She’s originally assigned to Tyler, but when he fails to keep her contained as she strips and runs across Miami Beach naked, screaming that she’s drowning, Tank takes over the assignment of protecting her.

Tank Gunther, whose real first name is revealed in the book (and it suits him perfectly!), believes the young woman to be nothing more than a spoilt brat who needs to be kept in line. But as he gets to know her, he sees the real woman underneath... and she intrigues him. She’s hiding something from him, something about her past, and he’s determined to find out what it is. When her agent and publicist turn up to chew her out over her latest little stunt, Tank finds himself defending Audrina (he refuses to call her Dreena) since nobody else seems to.

In turn, Audrina doesn’t quite know what to make of Tank. He’s so very different to anyone else in her life. He treats her as a human being, deserving of respect and loyalty. She’s been keeping quite a few secrets, one of which involves making a new life for herself, and when she finds the courage to follow through she realises that Tank is the only person she has on her side.

They’re drawn to each other, even though they’re very different people in lots of ways. There’s a level in which they understand each other, and that deep-seated attraction rises to the surface, before neither of them can ignore it anymore. However, when Audrina says something on live TV that threatens not only Tank’s job, but could cost Andre Luna his business, she flees.

It takes Tank the better part of two weeks, but he finds her. He uncovers the secret she’s been hiding from the world, and he’s so appalled at what she has endured that he’s determined to make sure she comes back with him to Miami. To him. To stay. So he can protect and, yes, love her for the rest of his life. Even if she does drive him crazy.

Sybil works her magic once again and this book left me breathless for many reasons. Warning: Tank is incredibly dirty, so if graphic descriptions of sex and swearing isn’t your thing, this may not be the book for you. But if you love alpha males, strong-willed females, and a hot and heavy romance, then read this book immediately. And then go back and read all of Sybil’s other books, because you’ve really missed an incredible universe of characters who will stay with you for a long time.

[Candace · Rating 3 out of 5]

Audrina Mackenzie, an actress, is running butt-naked on South Beach. Her bodyguard, Tyler, captures her, picks her up and puts her over his shoulder. Mackenzie keeps talking about saving her from drowning. Tyler acts like he's swimming with her on his shoulder. Once she is contained in Tank's SUV, Tyler's boss, André, tells him he's off the case. He assigns Tank Gunther as Audrina's new bodyguard. Tank takes her to his condo and handcuffs her to his bed.

Audrina meets with her agent, her publicist, and her costar. She accuses Colton Payne, her costar, of drugging her last night. Tank gets a confession out of Payne. Tank takes Audrina to the hospital to be tested. He calms her down when she has a panic attack over the syringe. They go to a safe house. There their attraction grows for one another. For Tank, his love begins to reluctantly grow.

We obtain some information on Falcon 'Tank' Gunther in the first half of the novel, and character information on Audrina Mackenzie in the second half of the book. The characters are likeable, but shallow. What I like about the characters is Audrina standing up to Tank. She doesn't take his alpha attitude, except in bed. The plot is a romance and the subplot is assumed resolved. The description is limited. This novel I classify as erotica. It contains profanities. Overall, it was a good book.