I never gravitate toward contemporary romances, but I cannot say no to a Julia London romance. One thing that struck me right away with this book is that it is a stand alone, so if you haven't read Suddenly In Love - no big deal. I love series where you can almost pick and choose your reading order. While I would consider this book a light-hearted comedy the characters are relatable and have to overcome personal obstacles, which keeps the readers engaged.
Lola Dunne is a women who cannot say no and people tend to take advantage of that (i.e. her cheating husbands, her siblings that lovingly rely on her, and pretty much the world at large) and she couldn't be more opposite of Harry Westbrook who is trying to build his own company at any cost and will not be distracted. Both their worlds collide when they each unknowingly are offered the same summer home of Lake Haven by a divorcing couple. With Lola's messy cooking (and lack of cleaning skills) and Harry's love of a clean kitchen, it is all the ingredient necessary for a wonderful romance filled with plenty of laughter, at times frustration, and most of all acceptance and love.

Suddenly Dating was my second chance at contemporaries by Julia London. It was ok but not great and I think I’m done here now. It took me ages to get myself into the mood to read it, mostly because I didn’t enjoy the first book in the series.

In the end, neither Harry nor Lola really made me care about them and consequently this was a total “meh” book for me. Both are naïve in the extreme, frankly. Both have issues that (like in the first book) remain unresolved at the end. Both are clearly “good” people but they just fail to be real and three dimensional.

The situation is so contrived and frankly, just that little too unbelievable to really work. How things (that do get resolved) end up also feels too contrived. Things that should feel drama-filled felt more like “Here we go again. ”.

I’ve concluded that this series is just not for me.

Suddenly Dating is a romcom I was seeing on the television as I was reading. I loved Harry. Lola, not so much. I appreciated that so many of parts of their story felt real and could have been the story of someone I know.

I'm wondering what is in store for us next in London's Lake Haven series. Can't wait.

There are characters that are obviously perfect for each other. And then there are characters that are more like Harry and Lola, characters that are imperfectly perfect. It's obvious to everyone that they were meant for each other, but the way they become a couple makes you shake your head a bit. It's a comedy of errors and I loved every single moment of it. I loved their banter and how they struggled living with each other. The constant rules and the fun they have testing each other's limits. The moment they finally come together and the little rough patches they face afterwards. Everything wasn't perfect for them, but I don't think they'd change one moment in their budding relationship. I loved how real they were. Both Harry and Lola are strong individuals that work hard to accomplish their dreams. Two characters that you just want to see succeed so badly and you want to see them happy that I may have had a happy sigh at the end of the book.

Suddenly Dating may have only been the 2nd book of Julia's that I've read, but I know it will not be my last. I love her characters to pieces. Her writing style is so much fun. She made me giggle at times, I ugly cried along with Lola. And of course I sighed when they expressed their true feelings. At the end of the day, I loved coming into this book after going through a bit of a reading slump because it rejuvenated me. I don't know who the couple will be in the next book. All I know is that I can't wait to fall in love with more of Julia's characters.

This is a story about love the second time around. There are enough cute moments and engaging characters to make this a worthwhile read, although nothing that will make you text your friends to rush out and read it.

I liked Harry a lot. His character is well written and personable. Lola on the other hand, took some time for me to appreciate. I wanted to tell her to deal with it and move on...I guess I just didn't have a lot of sympathy for the things that caused her to be so needy.