Suddenly One Summer by Julie James

From the New York Times bestselling author of It Happened One Wedding comes a novel about a man and a woman whose summer is about to get very, very steamy…

Divorce lawyer Victoria Slade has seen enough unhappy endings to swear off marriage forever. That doesn't mean she's opposed to casual dating—just not with her cocky new neighbor, who is as gorgeous and tempting as he is off-limits. But once she agrees to take on his sister's case, she's as determined to win as ever—even if that means teaming up with Ford…

Investigative journalist Ford Dixon is bent on finding the man who got his sister pregnant and left her high and dry. He's willing to partner with Victoria, despite the fact that the beautiful brunette gets under his skin like no other woman. He might not be looking to settle down, but there's no denying the scorching attraction between them. Still, the more time he spends with Victoria, the more he realizes that the one woman as skeptical about love as he is might be the only woman he could really fall for…

Victoria Slade is a divorce lawyer, and since she only ever sees the bad parts of marriages, she’s sworn never to marry. Ford Dixon is an investigative reporter, and for the time being, her neighbor. The main reason this book isn’t a full 4 or more stars is that these two never actually interact until like a third of the book has gone by. It’s still fun and cute and the interactions they almost have are funny, it still kind of bugged me. I wanted them to finally meet, rather than keep thinking about what they hear on the other side of the wall.

This book seriously reminds me of a Rom Com. I could totally see this as a movie!

When they finally do meet, and realize who they are (they saw each other once at a bar, but the fates didn’t align for them that night!), it turns out they don’t like each other. This is really where the book got fun. Meanwhile, his sister is a struggling single mom who Victoria meets in the hallway. They talk, and it turns out, she’s really struggling. More than anyone knew, and she doesn’t know who the father is, but knows his name. She wants him to know they have a daughter. victoria wants to take her on as a client, and when Ford finally finds out everything, he wants to help track this guy down.

Ford and Victoria make a good team, and begin to see each other in a new light. It was enjoyable, and you like them.

I’m always amazed how Julie James can write these fun, flirty, witty and enjoyable books without the romantic suspense. She kicks this book off with a home invasion. Victoria hides the entire time, and isn’t discovered, but is so traumatized by the event that she moves out of her new home. Wouldn’t you think this would be the start of a Romantic Suspsense? I mean with the careers she gives her characters I’m always shocked there’s no suspense plot! She goes straight for the character-driven romance, and she nails it every time!

This was a fun and quick read. For any Julie James fan, you’re sure to love this one! For anyone new to her writing, this is a stand-alone book, although I’d say you could pick up any of her books and be fine.

This isn’t listed as being in her FBI/US Attorney series, but it fits right in, with even a few familiar faces.

***Review copy provided by Jove