Review: “Single-Minded”
I snapped this novel up from an ARC program because I was in the mood for a humorous women’s fiction.
The Premise
Alex’s picture-perfect life, meticulously planned out with the love of her life who she’s known since they were in kindergarten, suddenly comes to a crashing halt when a scandal breaks: her beloved husband had an affair… with a man. While everyone around her admits they always knew he was gay, she didn’t have a clue until this point, and struggles to reconcile her love for her husband and best friend with the lie that has tainted everything she ever thought was true. Still, she loves him deeply and they agree on an amicable divorce — so amicable that they even throw a mutual divorce/coming out party with a smorgasbord of their closest friends.
Her friends encourage her to get over her “gay husband virginity” by dating several men prior to getting serious about anyone — the “Naughty Nine” list — and while she resists at first, she eventually dives into a slew of dates from hell. When she starts to have feelings for her new client, she doesn’t trust her own judgement anymore — is he or isn’t he gay… and even if he isn’t, is he still too good to be true?
The Pros
This novel was hilarious from beginning to end, and I thoroughly enjoyed every moment. I flew through it in one day, unable to put it down by the time I got to the second half. The characters leap off the pages, and I felt as though I was right there in all of Alex’s cringe-worthy dates, as well as the heartwarming moments when she bemoans her suddenly single status:
I will not cry. I love Michael, he broke my heart, and it’s over. And also I sometimes want to wring his f-ing neck. Deep breath. Just let it all go.
Even in the depths of her despair, the novel was laugh-out-loud funny, and her eclectic band of friends brought just the right mix of humour and overwhelming support — despite their inherent flaws, which made them all the more lovable, as they felt so real.
Though the new relationship with Daniel is a huge underpinning theme throughout the novel, the romance was only one small element of the entire novel’s charm. Her relationships with friends, her colleagues at her job, Michael’s family, and everyone else around her really crafted exactly who she was, which was a character worth admiring. (Bonus points for her cat Morley, who needs his own fan club!)
I was completely blown away when she rallied to Michael’s side and overcame all her own drama to be who she needed to be in that moment. It was such a sweet and purposeful message; her straight-talking friend Darcy puts it best:
Sometimes life sucks. Can you avoid disaster with careful planning? Sometimes. And sometimes the tornado just comes down and rips your house away. And you get the f— up, and rebuild.
Conclusion
This book was amazingly funny, heartwarming and just simply an excellent read. I would highly recommend to anyone, particularly female readers. The blurb compares it to Sophie Kinsella’s Shopaholic series, and I did see elements of that kind of slapstick comedy here, but it was much deeper and beautifully done. I made the error of glancing through other reviews before writing this, and I can’t believe anyone who says it didn’t hold their interest. I personally just became a super-fan, and I can’t wait to read more by this author!
