Julia Fairfax isn't quite herself today.

It's not like Julia to quit her job just because she was over for a promotion. Or to call off her engagement just because her fiance is a bore. And it's certainly not like her to pack her bags, sublet her house, board a rattletrap hotel boat, and pass herself off as a gourmet cook. It's just not like Julia to be so recklessly--and delightfully--in control.

And she's loving every minute of it...

But Julia's new life soon gets anchored with familiar baggage--like an old boyfriend, a meddling mother, and a spurned fiance nipping at her heels--all of them bursting with unsolicited advice. Now, Julia's got a surprise in store for each and every one of them. And somewhere between dry-dock and a bargeful of hot-tempered tourists, between old friends and new lovers, Julia's got to turn survival into a skill if she wants to turn a season adrift into the summer of a lifetime...