This is a good book. The two main characters are Carly and Owen. Carly is a widow and a first responder on an island. Owen is the island new doctor and a father. There is an instant attraction. Carly and Owen work together when there is an emergency. They both have issue but together they work them out and fall in love.

Two lost souls find a second chance at happiness on a gorgeous New Zealand island in Louisa George’s emotional and engaging new Medical Romance, Resisting the Single Dad Next Door.

When she had married her late husband, Carly thought that she had finally found the home she had spent a lifetime searching for. The majestic beauty of Rawhiti Island and the warm welcome her husband’s family had given her had meant the world to Carly and she truly thought that she was going to be spending the rest of her life in this beautiful part of the world – until tragedy struck. The widowed Carly has tried to continue to live her life on Rawhiti Island, but the time has come for her to put the past behind her and make a home for herself elsewhere. Carly is all set to sell up her husband’s business and move away, but will the arrival of Owen, the new GP, end up giving her a reason to stick around forever?

Owen is not looking for romance. The single dad’s number one priority is his young son who has had enough upheaval in his life, thanks to his actress mother who had chosen her career over motherhood. Owen wants to make a new life for himself and his son on Rawhiti Island and nobody is going to come between him and this second chance at giving his boy the best possible childhood – until he crosses paths with Carly and he is unable to stop himself from thinking about her. Owen knows that he should give Carly as wide a berth as possible especially as she will be leaving the island soon. But with fate conspiring to throw the two of them together at every turn, Owen quickly finds himself giving into temptation…

Carly has made up her mind to leave Rawhiti Island for good, but as she begins to fall for Owen, she starts to wonder whether the second chance she had been hoping for might be right under her nose. Will Owen and Carly take a leap of faith and chance on love? Or will their fears and insecurities end up costing them everything?

Louisa George’s Resisting the Single Dad Next Door is an irresistible contemporary romance that sparkles with warmth, pathos, drama and heart. A compelling and heart-warming tale about finding somewhere to belong, new beginnings and falling in love when you least expect it, Resisting the Single Dad Next Door has a wonderful heroine readers will root for and relate to and an honorable and charismatic hero they will love.

Louisa George’s Resisting the Single Dad is a terrific New Zealand set romance I thoroughly enjoyed!

Good story about starting over. Carly lives on a small island off the coast of New Zealand, where she runs an outdoor camp for children. Several years ago, she lost her husband in a boating accident, and she has been grieving ever since. She's decided that the only way to move on is to sell the camp and fulfill the dream of traveling she gave up when she married.

After his wife left him and their son, Owen sold his medical practice in the city and came to Rawhiti to be the island's doctor. With less stress and shorter hours, he can spend more time with his son, Mason. He hopes to become a better father.

I enjoyed watching the relationship develop between Owen and Carly. They got off to a rough start when Carly called him out on what she saw as reckless behavior on the water. But underneath the antagonism that flared between them were sparks of attraction neither was happy to feel. Carly only has a few weeks left on the island before she leaves, possibly for good. She doesn't want anything to derail her plans. Owen is still dealing with the fallout of his ex-wife's departure and doesn't want to get involved with another woman who isn't going to stick around.

But with Carly being the island's first responder, she and Owen are frequently thrown together and soon develop an easy working relationship. They also live near each other, and Owen's son takes an immediate liking to Carly and her to him. There are plenty of sweet scenes of the three as Carly and Owen do their best to give Mason the attention he needs. At the same time, the attraction between Carly and Owen grows stronger. I ached for both as Carly fought her feelings. Part of her wants to stay and see where it goes, but the other part feels the need to get away. Owen wants to ask Carly to stay but doesn't want her to resent losing her chance to travel. Additionally, he is afraid that her "itchy feet" would cause her to leave after a while anyway. Each of them allows their fears to get in the way of going after what they want. It takes a dangerous situation for them to come to their senses and realize that they belong together. I loved the epilogue and seeing how they overcame those fears.

As always, I enjoyed the medical aspects of the book also. Seeing how a big city doctor dealt with the differences of working in a small, isolated clinic was intriguing. There were a variety of medical emergencies that called on Owen's capabilities, and I liked seeing him rise to them all. I also enjoyed the small island setting. The descriptions of the land and animals (I loved the living alarm clock!) made it sound like a neat place to live or visit.

This is a Medical Romance, and this is the first book in the Rawhiti Island Medics Series. The characters were great in this book, and I really loved every second I spent reading this book. I love the mix of romance, drama, and medical stuff in this book. The ending was so great, and I was living for it. I was kindly provided an e-copy of this book by the publisher (Harlequin Medical Romances) or author (Louisa George) via NetGalley, so I can give an honest review about how I feel about this book. I want to send a big Thank you to them for that.

This was a light read that was interesting and easy to get into. I liked it and thought the setting was good.