Review: 'Thirty-Two Going on Spinster' by Becky Monson (2012)

Julia Dorning is a spinster, or at least on the road to becoming one. She has no social life, hates her job, and lives in her parent’s basement with her cat, Charlie. 

With the arrival of Jared Moody, the new hire at work, Julia’s mundane life is suddenly turned upside down. Her instant (and totally ridiculous) crush on the new guy causes Julia to finally make some long-overdue changes, in hopes to find a life that includes more than baking and hanging out with Charlie. 

But when the biggest and most unexpected change comes, will the new and improved Julia be able to overcome it? Or will she go back to her spinster ways?

I’m delighted to be a part of the CLP Blog Tour for Becky Monson’s novel, ‘Thirty-Two Going On Spinster’! After seeing a shout-out on Twitter for bloggers to join this tour, I checked out the blurb and immediately had the feeling this would be a story I’d enjoy. I was lucky enough to be given a spot and I’ve even got an interview with Becky Monson which will be posted on the blog later today. First of all, though, the novel itself!

‘Thirty-Two Going on Spinster’ tells the story of Julia Dorning, a 32-year-old who is slowly starting to consider herself as the real-life definition of the word ‘spinster.’ She still lives at home in her parents’ basement, she has a boring job of which the highlights are the smoking breaks in which she can gossip with her colleague and good friend Brown, and her social life is non-existent (if you don’t count watching TV shows with your cat while eating homemade cupcakes). Julia’s spinsterly existence is, however, turned upside down when Jared Moody suddenly starts working on the floor above hers. He’s handsome, friendly, and Julia can’t believe he actually seems to want to spend time with her. With the help of her sister Anna and a bit of her own confidence, Julia starts to slowly change a few things: a bit of make-up here, a new outfit there... But when Julia’s world is turned upside down once again, will she be able to crawl back up again or is she indeed doomed to spend her life as a real spinster?

Julia is a brilliant heroine and I thoroughly enjoyed reading about everything that happened to her, especially all the humorous situations she managed to get herself into. With Julia, Becky Monson managed to create a down-to-earth, friendly and funny main character, which I think many women will be able to relate to. I also loved Julia’s passion for baking, and the contrast between the scenes where Julia has the chance to bake cupcakes or cookies, and how much she adores that, and then next to that her boring job, where she obviously does not belong. She really goes through a lot of changes, and I liked how her character develops throughout the story. Jared (aptly named McManly by Julia) is a handsome leading man, and I really enjoyed reading about Julia’s typical school girl crush on him and the slightly embarrassing situations that followed (can't we all relate to this one way or another?)! 

Next to Julia and Jared, there is a really entertaining collection of characters. I specifically liked Julia’s younger sister Emma, who is dealing with her own problems after having maxed out a few too many credit cards, and the mix of colleagues at the company where Julia works. The novel is easy to read and made me laugh out loud more than once; a thoroughly enjoyable addition to the chick lit genre and I look forward to reading more of Becky Monson’s work!

Rating:8/10

If you are looking for a funny and uplifting read, be sure to pick up ‘Thirty-Two Going on Spinster’, available on Amazon by clicking here!