This book was pure fun, but with a lot of heart (and some steam, too!). Told in alternating timelines, Sussman slowly reveals what happened between Chani and Gabe, and what happens when they reunite 10 years later. I couldn’t stop turning the pages because I just had to find out their story. The chemistry between them is palpable, and the awkwardness of being in your 20s just starting out in your career, coupled with the complexities of being in your 30s is all too relatable. For fans of Love and Other Words and Seven Days in June.

Funny You Should Ask by Elissa Sussman

Chani Horowitz received the dream job when she is assigned to interview the very handsome and very high-profiled actor, Gabe Parker as he is about to embark in a new role as James Bond. Chani is living the dream as she is interviewing her celebrity crush but dreams start to come true as an immediate spark between the two lead to a whirlwind weekend. Ten years later, Chani is having deja vu as she is assigned again to interview Gabe Parker. Their reunion not only brings back memories of their weekend together 10 years ago but it also brings to light some questions that they both need answered.

Sussman has done a wonderful job with this really fun and dreamy romance. Chani is the relatable queen of my dreams--her awkwardness and spunk had me not only laughing out loud but rooting for her the entire read. This is a wonderful second chance, open-door, famous/non famous romance filled with a cast of characters that will stay with you! For fans of The Idea of You and Emily Henry stans, this would be a great next read!!

Also, I am putting it out into the world that I want a follow up to this book involving Gabe's sister and his young, handsome co-star!!!

Many thanks to Elissa Sussman, Random House Publishing Group, and NetGalley for the advanced reading copy.
#FunnyYouShouldAsk #NetGalley

This book was just fun! I loved the characters, their individual stories and their ever changing romance. I was unsure if they would get their happy ending at the end of the book. A cute romantic book about a famous, Hollywood actor and a writer - who gets to interview the actor. The book is written switching between 10 years ago and present day - also in the perspective of Chani and a piece she wrote about a night 10 years ago. A sweet, fun story about individual growth and perspective.

Thank you netgalley fo r my advanced reader copy!

Chani is a writer who get the opportunity to interview the rising Golden boy of Hollywood, Gabe Parker. The interview turns into a weekend together that remains with them both for the next 10 years.

Chani goes on to marry, honestly the biggest jerk I have had the displeasure to read in awhile. She moves to NYC and moves on from that weekend with Gabe. Years later she is a successful writer, and is divorced, moving back to LA.

Immediately following that weekend, Gabe ran off to Vegas and married his co-star. Then over the next few years became an unbearable drunk, goes to rehab, moves home to Montana, also gets divorced and is restarting his movie career.

They meet up again in LA to recreate that first interview.

Jumping back and forth between the past and now, we get to see just how everything ended up so different than how they wished their lives would have gone. And that sometimes you find love with the right person at the wrong time.

So I didn't really connect with Chani, sure I have had my fair share of celebrity fantasies, but that is where I stop connecting with her. Her present self was pretty bitter and hurtful to Gabe, even once she found out more of the why. In my opinion she didn't really grow from the last 10 years.

There are a lot of highlights, mainly Gabe and his relationship with his best friend Ollie (who is an absolute delight), his family and his dog.

My favorite line is when Gabe says, "The funny thing is," he says, "I think we would have been a mess ten years ago. If you'd stayed. If I'd called. But now..."

I love the development that Gabe had, I just wish Chani would have a had a bit herself.

Overall this is a emotional but fun read that I devoured in a night.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine and NetGalley for the ARC.

I really enjoyed this read! It was a lot of back and forth which is something I generally am not a huge fan of, just because it typically leads to a very redundant story, but this one wasn’t like that! I will always reach for a celebrity/non-celebrity romance! I also really liked that it kind of incorporated what it’s like today to be viral for one “small” thing and then what it’s like to try and make a name for yourself but constantly being brought back to that one moment. I also really enjoyed how it wasn’t one of those books that only showed all the good things going on in the characters lives and showed how difficult things can be in life when huge changes in your life are happening

Chani is a journalist with big dreams of one day being a “serious” writer, when she’s given the chance to interview Hollywood heartthrob Gabe Parker. Hunky Gabe Parker is the man of everyone’s dreams, especially Chani’s (she’s even got him on her phone wallpaper). When the interview ends with him inviting her to a big movie premier and a totally unexpected weekend, Chani not only nails the article she’s also got lots of gossip and buzz surrounding her and Gabe’s time spent together. 10 years later, after divorcing “The Novelist,” Chani gets a call to interview him again. She desperately wants to say no, since she’s finally getting over her feeling for him, but she can’t help but say yes.

Told from the perspective of “then” and “now” with articles and newsletters interspersed between the chapters. We are weaved through the weekend they spent together and what really happened, as well as what happened during the 10 year gap. We learn more about each character and their feelings on the weekend and how the time difference helped them to grow, or hit rock bottom before they could grow.

I got total TJR vibes from this and loved the writing. It was done in such a way that I couldn’t wait to read what really happened that “weekend” the thought “celebrities are just like us” kept running through my mind. I love the second chance romance aspect, and the chemistry between two unlikely characters.

I adored Ollie and would love to see a book written about him!

Thank you so much to Random House- Ballantine books and @netgalley for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This one is out April 12, 2022 so run and grab it!

https://www.instagram.com/p/CcQVmO7rhxZ/

Thanks to Random House and Netgalley for this advanced copy!

Its a real testament to Sussman's writing that I did not like a bunch of things about this book but overall really enjoyed reading it! In particular, I kind of loved the structure of the two interviews, with the reader slowly having information unfurled to them as they read along with what happened then vs what was happening now. Different plot points are expertly teased and the author does a great job of setting up why all of this is important to Chani, the main character.

What I think was missing from this book was a dual point of view. The author does such a good job of articulating Chani's POV, with her cravings for recognition and maybe a little celebrity, balanced around her ego as a writer. But without Gabe's POV, it feels like there is a lot of insta-love and you never really figure out why he feels his connection at the first interview all the way to the last one. It felt like Chani lept off the page while Gabe was stuck being the object of Chani's observation, and isn't that what famous good-looking actors are? It would have been nice to see Gabe as more than that.

In the end, the premise was great, the characters, while not always as developed as I had hoped, were fun and I really had a hard time putting this book down once I was into it. I'm definitely adding Sussman's other books to my TBR and is it bad that I hope that Lauren, Gabe's sister, gets her own story? I'd definitely read that!

3.5 stars.

There's a sweet story here, but something just didn't click. I feel like there could have been some serious pining going on, but everything felt like it was presented as fact instead of shown through action - like we're just supposed to accept that these two are deeply in love, when we really don't see too much of them interacting? They have great physical chemistry, but I'm not sure that what we see from them "back then" is enough to sustain 10 years worth of a serious love.

absolutely adored this book. It was a unique take on a celebrity/journalist romance. I loved both the main characters of Chani and Gabe. Chani is a young journalist who is doing a magazine interview on the soon to be mega-famous movie star, Gabe Parker. He’s been cast as the new James Bond. Instead of a normal interview with public relations standard answers, Gabe invites Chani into his world. The result is a story that made the public, years later, wonder what exactly happened between the two of them?

I loved the intertwining of stories between the before and the after. It was my type of romance. A little bit angsty and full of longing and just a dash of sexy.

If you love a little Hollywood, a little romance and second chance love, this book will fulfill that.

It’s a gem of a novel!

Dear Fellow Reader,

Are you in a book club? I am a believer in book clubs. I think that you will often read books that you may not think that you want to read or books that are unfamiliar to you and that it is all good for you. I do believe that, but I will tell you that I am having a terrible time with my book club book for this month. I have read 7 other books just to avoid reading the book club book. What is worse than just avoiding it, is that I own a copy of the book because I wanted to read it. I know it is supposed to be a really good book (won the Booker prize in 2020) but I know it is depressing and I just can’t bring myself to read it. I have made it to page 60 in the last 3 weeks. I hate to give in and give up, but I think I will have to. Now, do I go to book club and admit my defeat or do I go and listen to them talk about the book in hopes that I feel motivated to read it? I might be more inclined to go if I had finished last month’s book. That one I just didn’t like and ran out of time.

A couple of weeks ago, I decided that I was in over my head on books to read. Do you ever just suddenly feel like you have gone too far? I went to my library queue and deleted almost all of it. I did write down the books so I could start over at another time. But there are always so many books to read! I will admit (just to you) that I have since gone in and put three books on reserve. AND THEY HAVE ALL COME IN!!! What a mess.


In the meantime, I read an ARC that I received. (Repeat after me “in exchange for an unbiased review.) It is a nice story. Funny You Should Ask is the story of Chani Horowitz who is a writer. She has all the credentials (Iowa MFA) but she lacks confidence in her writing. Instead of rejoicing that she writes a really good interview article, she thinks that she is not quite good enough. When she was 26, she interviewed Gabe Parker. Gabe Parker had just been chosen to be the new James Bond and to say that there were questions as to whether he was up to playing the role is to put it lightly. It just so happens that Gabe Parker is Chani’s ultimate Hollywood crush. She is so overwhelmed when she meets him that she can barely talk much less ask a coherent question. But she makes it through the interview – probably without finding anything new – when Gabe invites her to go to a movie premiere with him and then invites her to a party at his house. The interview she writes not only makes her career but sends Gabe off to play Bond with a positive outlook.


Then 10 years pass. Gabe has been to rehab twice and was fired from his third Bond film. Chani has her second book of essays and interviews coming out. The publisher and the producer of Gabe’s new film have the bright idea that Chani and Gabe should revisit their interview. Chani has great reservations about this but she decides to go ahead and try.


The story is told in the popular way of going back and forth in time. It is done well and you always know where you are in the story. Learning about the missteps and misunderstandings between the two of them over time helps move the story along well. I enjoyed the book. While I hesitate to call it a “beach read” (It might jinx this weather; it would be nice to be warm sometime.) I think it would be lovely to sit on a beach and read this book.


Thanks for reading!

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Elissa Sussman & Random House for an advance copy of this!

I love the duel timelines and how they intertwine with one another. This helped so much with the pacing of the book and made me want to continue reading to find out what happened next in their story. And then have the news articles also playing a role in what is happening in the plot was great.

From both the stunning cover to the hilarious, heartfelt, and sexy writing this may be one of my favorite rom coms Ive read this year. I love a good Hollywood book and this second chance romance is the perfect addition. Elissa Sussman is most known for her YA books but her first Adult book is a complete winner.

This book follows Chani Horowitz a writer who saw success from an article she wrote ten years ago on movie star Gabe Parker. When Parkers people want to recapture the magic of the original article to help with his reputation Chani sees a chance to get some answers from 10 years ago. What I loved is that this book starts with happened in their original meeting which I think sets the stakes and shows why Chani might take this article. The original meeting is both awkward, sweet, and sexy and I fell for Gabe. When we see them meet again in the present the dynamics have changed as have both Chani and Gabe but the chemistry is still there.

My favorite aspect of this book might be the additions of articles about Gabe and peeks into Chanis past writing and blogs. This truly helped expand the world of the book.

I truly can't recommend this book enough and cannot recommend it more.

Thanks to Random House, Ballantine, and NetGalley for my ARC for an honest review.

3.5⭐️, rounded down after taking into account the controversy involving uncredited similarities to a GQ profile on Chris Evans.

I started out really enjoying this! The story is interspersed with gossip articles, pop culture reviews, blog posts and newsletters, which made for such a entertaining read. The author did a great job capturing Chani's different voices (e.g. rookie journalist, jaded blogger, personal POV etc) and also the types of reviews on the various platforms (e.g. trade review, Goodreads critic, Reddit troll). They were all so on point and it's impressive how versatile Sussman's writing is.

I love books that revolve around pop culture (and its toxicity) and this was such a fun read... until it wasn't. Somehow it just lost its magic halfway through.

All the conflict and miscommunication got to a point where it was both unconvincing and frustrating. Everything felt very surface-level by the end, including the romance. I just feel like there was so much unexplored potential.

I'm also disappointed to learn that this novel has way too similarities to a GQ profile on Chris Evans for it to be coincidental. I finished the book before going to read the GQ piece so as to not affect my judgment, but still. Hopefully the finished copy has credit where it's due.

I was given this book as an ARC from Net Galley for a review.

This book was your classic meet cute, fall apart, and then come back together later on.

This book tended to be very cliche, until the middle and end, where the characters seemed to break out of their usual tropes and admit that they could work on things like adults.

Overall, the beginning was cute if it annoying and typical, but throw in rehab, time, and growth, it made me love the book even more.

This book is a cute romance that I was excited to read. It’s a specific, unique scenario of a reporter/celebrity relationship. While this angle was something new for me in the romance context, the middle of the book seemed to drag for a bit. It started off strong and then seemingly gets bogged down midway through. This is certainly a book that can be read quickly and if you have interest in the celebrity/entertainment world, that is a certainly a plus that is featured in this book. All in all, it’s a solid read, but I didn’t love it. 3 stars ⭐️. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced copy for review.

Ten years ago, when Chani was a young and up and coming writer, she got the chance to interview Gabe Parker, who is the “it” actor at the time. Since they get along so well, he invites her to attend his latest movie premiere with him, which leads to more than just coffee and questions. When the profile on him comes out, it launches her career and helps to make him even more famous for a while, but the fame gets to home and causes his downfall leading to rehab and an unsuccessful marriage.
Ten years later and Chani is asked to do a new interview with Gabe and see where he is now. Chani is now divorced as well and had a fairly successful career as a writer and author of a couple of books. When Chani and Gabe reunite for the interview, the sparks pick up right where they left off and Chani fights it because she doesn’t want all the comments and haters to resurface again but Gabe wants her to give them a chance. This was cute and funny at points but my criticism comes at Chani. She is not a very pleasant or likeable person and at times I was wanting Gabe to just let her go! Other than that, it was an easy and enjoyable read.

This book was a super quick read and I loved the concept of a “regular”person and a celebrity falling in love. However, there were some things that were a little problematic for me. The characters felt a little flat and at the end I didn’t feel like the characters were at a point of being ready to say “I Love You”. As a result, the ending felt a bit forced. I think the conclusion could have been left more open ended and still been satisfying. Overall, I enjoyed it and blew threw it in two days but wanted more from the characters and the story.

A new comfort book, methinks. Honestly, i had my issues with this one. The main character often made embarrassing decisions that irked me, but then I realized… that’s life, isn’t it? I also really sympathized with her and enjoyed the discussion on how women's success is often attributed to a male counterpart.
These characters feel like they could be real to me. What didn’t necessarily feel real or believable at first was their story. If only because not enough happened between them that weekend to warrant a 10 year long bout of yearning. But then again… aren’t I the one who spent half a year pining after a boy I only spent a day with? Truly, if the connection is right, you'll still feel it even after ages. That's what this books captures.
I think what this novel did really well was leaving you wanting more. I often find myself thinking of this book and wishing I was still reading it. It's a second chance romance that demonstrates why things sometimes don't work out the way you want them to, and how love really can come back to you when you least expect it. The cover is also to die for, a lesson in how to do a romance cover right! Anyways, i will be buying a hard copy of this novel when it comes out. (goodreads review)

I love a good normal person dating a celebrity trope, and this one certainly delivered! Chani is hire to write a piece on Gabe Parker, her celebrity crush who has been cast as the next James Bond. Her piece goes viral and launches her career, with the whole world speculating on what happened during their weekend together. Ten years later, she is asked to do another interview and the two are reunited after all this time. The story alternates between the two weekends, past and present. Funny You Should Ask is a quick read with likeable characters. I highly recommend for anyone who likes contemporary romance, especially those centered around Hollywood or celebrities. Bonus points for a cute, unique cover!

Chandi Horowitz is being asked to make history all over again. She did it ten years ago, when her profile piece on hunky Hollywood heartthrob Gabe Parker cemented him as the next James Bond. Before her interview, he’d been thought of as a lightweight, not smart enough, and too American to take on the role. His costar Oliver Matthias would have been a much better choice, being British, smarter, and more poised. But Gabe had been the first choice of the director, and he agreed to take on the role. Chandi had been brought in to help upgrade his image against all the bad press he’d been getting.

And it worked.

The article not only made Gabe into the Bond that fans deserved, but it made Chandi’s career. She became a frequent interviewer of young actors, and she’s even written a book of essays that includes some of her profile pieces, including the interview with Gabe Parker. But despite the popularity of the article, despite the three days they spent time together that gave her the material, there is one question that everyone has for Chandi when they talk about that article: did you sleep with Gabe Parker?

Now it’s ten years later, and Chandi’s and Gabe’s people want them to get together again for another article. Gabe is divorced from the beautiful actress he ran off with right after Chandi’s article had come out. And he’s out of rehab for the second time and wanting to talk about his new film, a remake of The Philadelphia Story. Chandi is recently back in L.A. after getting married to the novelist she met in grad school in Iowa and moving to New York with him. They’re both at a place of starting over, so this second article could make both their careers again.

Or it could mean something else altogether.

For that first article, Chandi wrote the article that they needed for their careers, but there was more that happened during those three days than what made it into the profile. There were things left unsaid, feelings left unresolved, and despite all the speculation, Chandi did not sleep with Gabe that first weekend.

But if they meet up again, ten years older and wiser, both divorced, both wanting to pivot in their careers, there is no telling how their story might end.

Funny You Should Ask is a delightful romantic comedy about finding connections in unexpected places. It’s about our obsession with Hollywood, with the fame and the misfortune of the actors we love, and about the snobbery of certain aspects of the literary world. It’s about friendship and family, and about trusting someone else with your most vulnerable places. This is YA author Elissa Sussman’s debut adult novel, and personally I thought she nailed it.

The book is written day by day, so after a short introduction to the story in general, you get Chandi’s article, and then it’s Friday. First we see what happened on Friday ten year ago, and then we see what happened Friday now. Then it’s Saturday, with the same format, and then Sunday. Throughout there are more articles and excerpts—reviews of Gabe’s movies, gossip pieces about his marriage, blog posts from Chandi—so you can bits and pieces of the ten years between their weekends and get a feel for the characters, their careers, and their personal lives. And I really loved this format.

I have some attention issues. I like to read electronically, and I tend to keep a close eye on the percentage of the book I’m reading. While I was reading Funny You Should Ask, I couldn’t take my eyes off the page. I would just let myself get lost in the story, and suddenly that percentage would just jump way ahead of where it had been. I needed something this weekend that would be escapist, and this was exactly the book I needed for that. It will be amazing beach or pool reading, but it would also be perfect for weekend couch reading if you like that sort of thing (which I do).

Egalleys for Funny You Should Ask were provided by Random House Publishing Group—Ballentine through NetGalley, with many thanks.