The Man Ban

Score: 4/5 Bookmarks

Steam Level: 🍆🍆 /5

Thank you to Berkley for gifting me a review copy of The Man Ban by Nicola Marsh.

I actually went into this one without realizing it was set in Australia, and Melbourne of all places. So that made me instantly delighted, and homesick all at once.

Harper decided she’d put herself on a ‘man ban’ after a nasty breakup where she finally revealed her vulnerability to her boyfriend at the time, and the next day he broke things off.

Manny Gomes becomes completely smitten with Harper during a wedding, but the two get off to a decidedly rocky start when he belittles the food styling at the event, not realizing that Harper was actually the stylist. But two weeks later Harper is working at a hotel in New Zealand when who should walk in but Manny, who is attending a conference there. He actually helps her out with the job when her assistant is a no-show and naturally, the more time they spend together, the more sparks start to fly.

I loved all the little Australianisms and places in the book that feel like home to me. I’ve also been lucky enough to travel to New Zealand for work a few times, with a bit of vacay tacked on, so it was really special to read about NZ as well.

I found myself getting a little annoyed at Harper and Manny on occasion because I really wanted them to get out of their own way, but overall I found them pretty loveable and I really enjoyed this book so much.

If you’re looking for a good dislike-to-love story (I wouldn’t go as far as to call them enemies or anything), then you can’t go past this one.

Synopsis:

When you swear off men for the foreseeable future, that means no dating. Hookups don't count, right?

Harper Ryland has been on a self-imposed man ban for the last twelve months, after a particularly horrible breakup. Instead, she's focusing on the one thing she can control: her career as an up-and-coming food stylist. Harper's latest gig is her best friend's wedding, and she receives glowing praise throughout the night. When the Best Man, Manny Gomes, belittles her hard work, she wants to stab him with skewers from the buffet table, but she can think of something much better: to lead him on the entire wedding and then humiliate him in sweet revenge.

When the handsome Anglo-Indian doctor shows up in New Zealand a week later, while Harper's on her first international job, it's the last thing she needs. Everything about him rubs her the wrong way, but when suave Manny steps in to help after an unfortunate disaster, his chivalry gets under her skin a little, and Harper discovers lifting her ban while overseas is exactly what the doctor ordered.

Manny isn't looking for anything but fun either--especially not marriage, like his grandmother Izzy keeps pushing on him. But there's something about Harper that makes him want more, even though she keeps her distance, and they're about to discover how far he's willing to go to be with her. . . .