Going Dutch by Katie Fforde

Both Jo and Dora are in a bad way. Jo has been traded in by her husband, Philip, for a younger woman. Dora is the best friend of Jo's daughter, Karen, and has cancelled her wedding to John, whom she had been dating since she was seventeen. Dora moves in with Jo on a barge near the Thames in London. The women, despite the more than twenty years age difference between them, become each other's friends and confidantes. Even though they've sworn off men, Dora becomes friends with Tom, who encourages her to be more adventurous by daring her to sing karoake and go to a rock festival. Jo, on the other hand, crosses paths with Marcus, someone she last saw when she first met her husband years ago. The foursome is thrown together when they take the barge to the Netherlands for repairs. Will love come out of the trip or will the journey be a disaster, especially since Marcus' girlfriend, Carole tags along? Going Dutch starts slowly in my opinion and doesn't really pick up (with a good story and characterizations) until more than halfway through the book. Regular readers of Fforde might be disappointed and this would not be the first book I would give to a new reader. Try Rose Revived, Stately Pursuits, or last year's Practically Perfect instead. Also, Going Dutch has not been published in the U.S. yet (probably next year?)