Genre: romance, contemporary, Chick Lit, standalone

Age range: 16+

Overall: 5/5

Characters: 5/5

Plot: 5/5

Writing and Setting: 4.5/5

Content warning: *manipulation, emotionally abusive family

The gist of my review:  

This book needs to be a movie! ‘When We’re Thirty’ is a classic example of a phenomenal contemporary romance novel. It has relatable and loveable characters, an absolute rollercoasters that will take your heart on the ride of its life, and the happily ever after that leaves you all warm and fuzzy inside! 

We follow Will and Hannah through the ‘fake marriage’ trope, yet the perimeters around their arrangement is so original, incredibly relevant to the American way of life, and contains such a freshness that left me gripping to binge this novel until completion. 

This would be a great book for a holiday read, but I think you’ll find yourself with a new favourite when you give it a try. 

Characters: 5/5

Will and Hannah are our two MC’s and love interests. Hannah is an interesting character. She’s doing a job she loves within the music industry. She has her own apartment. She’s talented and career driven. The initial vibe I got from Hannah was that the choices she had previously made in her love life were ones that were safe and convenient, but with Will we see Hannah emboldened herself and take risks. I really liked Hannah, she was a really lovely and intelligent character. 

And then there was Will…

Will was Hannah’s friend from college who was stifled by his ex’s betrayal, and slip up in the family business that had almost lots him his job and the respect of his family. In the beginning of the book, Will comes across as a really frazzled and anxious character but the book progresses we see a lot of growth and confidence appear with Will. He’s a kind and passionate character that wants to prove to how much love he has for Hannah. 

I really think readers will love the fun and flirty dynamic Hannah and Will share with one another. 

Plot: 5/5

The plot followed closely with the structure of a great romance novel. The ‘fake marriage trope really spiced up the progression of the book and made it an interesting read. The story flowed nicely and stuck to a natural progression. 

Writing and Setting:4.5/ 5

The writing was enjoyable and lighthearted throughout the majority of the book, and then artfully touching and emotion evoking through the rest. 

We experience Will and Hannah’s story through third person. This gives us this incredible perspective to both of the MC’s thoughts and actions within space. 

The settings are predominantly set in New York, Boston, The Hampton’s and the surrounding areas. As someone from Australia and never having been to America, the setting were sometimes a little hard to picture. I think that’s because Dembowski assumed that the reader would be just have a general knowledge of what these areas looked like. It’s not overly important but my knowledge of American cities is very limited to what is depicted in movies 😅