Real Men Don't Break Hearts by Coleen Kwan

Real Men

Don’t Break Hearts

by Coleen Kwan

Ally Griffin is horrified to learn her new landlord is none other than the infuriating playboy Nate Hardy—the man she blames for getting her jilted at the altar six years ago.  Plus, now her ex-fiancé is back in their hometown of Burronga, Australia, to marry his beautiful new bride…for real this time.  Everybody’s treating Ally with kid gloves, as though she’s still heartbroken, but she’s just fine, thank you very much.

Nate Hardy is tired of his high-flying city career and bachelor lifestyle and is looking for something more real.  The last thing he needs is to find himself undeniably attracted to Ally, the woman with whom he never saw eye-to-eye.  But is he even capable of what Ally wants and deserves?

As Ally tries to pull her life out of the rut it’s fallen in, she doesn't count on Nate stirring up her emotions.  A short-term fling with the resident bad boy is practically irresistible, but only if she can guard her heart…

REVIEW

This is the first book by Coleen I’ve read. I have to admit, in the beginning I wasn’t really into the book at all.  But it got so much better.

Ally Griffin is a single twenty-five-year old woman living in her hometown of Burronga, Australia.  Ally owns and runs a gift shop in downtown Burronga that once belonged to her grandmother.  She also lives above the gift shop.  Ally pretty much lives the life of an old-maid.  She hasn’t really had a serious/long-term relationship since she was nineteen and she doesn’t date very often.

Nate Hardy is a twenty-nine-year-old bachelor who grew up in Burronga but left and made it big in the financial world of Sydney.  He’s tired of the life he’s been living and is looking for a change.  He’s decided to give up his lifestyle in Sydney and move back to Burronga and re-open the landscaping business his brother Robbie once owned.  As a child/teen growing up in Burronga, Nate was far from being a model citizen.  Burronga is small and Nate has a long road ahead of him to live down the memories people have of him.

Ally and Nate are NOT fond of each other.  The dislike stems from over six years ago when Ally dated Nate’s cousin Seth Bailey.  Nate thought Ally was a Goody-Two shoes who looked down on him.  Ally blames Nate for Seth Bailey (Nate’s cousin) standing her up on their wedding day when she was nineteen-years-old.

In what seems to be a spur of the moment decision, Nate purchases the building which houses Ally’s gift shop and apartment.  When Nate made the purchase, he had no idea it was the building where Ally’s shop was located.  Nate was simply trying to make a mends for the past.

Ally finds out about Nate’s purchase of her building the same day she finds out her ex-fiance is going to get married in their hometown.  Ally thinks Nate is just coming around and buying her building to stick it to her once more.  Everyone around Ally thinks that because she hasn’t had a serious relationship or even gone out with that many men since getting stood up by Seth that she’s still pining over him.

Real Men Don’t Break Hearts is a wonderful romance.  It’s a story of a woman who must learn to stand on her own two feet and stop allowing herself to be a victim of her own life.  It’s the story of a man who is trying to make up for his less than stellar past and allow people to see who he really is.

I look forward to reading more books by Coleen Kwan and the future books in this series.

Rating: 4

Release Date:  December 2012
Book Length:  235 pages
Source:  Publisher
Reading Format:  Available only in eBook

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