Random House|Ballantine|Dell
Thank You for this eARC!

Funny You Should Ask
By Elissa Sussman

Talk about a wonderfully written story!
A very well developed story. With a great cast of characters that.
Chani is an exceptional protagonist who I just adored.
Well-developed secondary and tertiary characters and friendships, where no one felt throwaway. It had humor, heart,
The story is told in both now and then chapters. Which made this story that much more entertaining.
This is one romance you won't want to miss.
An awesome and unique story. That is keen, funny, and heartfelt, 
Sussman is a phenomenal storyteller with amazing skills. I was hooked to this story and to me that says alot.

Thank you to Random House and NetGalley for the advanced copy of this gem of a book! The format was unique and kept me intrigued. I enjoyed that the reality and the articles were just slightly off from each other and the story in the “now” was so charming and heartwarming. Both Chani and Gabe had so much depth and dimension. They were flawed, honest portrayals of people. The cringey moments they experienced together and independently were so true to life I felt them in my bones. Similarly, I was rooting for their triumphs. The supporting characters were well developed too. The timelines and sequence of the story was so well done, I loved every single minute of it. This book felt thoughtfully planned from the first chapter to the last. When I finished the last chapter, I went back and read it again because I wasn’t ready to leave the story or the characters.

This was a quick read with deeper content than first appearances would give. Chani is a writer who's big break came on an interview with mega movie star Gabe. We get to re-live their initial weekend together, along with their reunion a decade later. Both carry a lot of baggage, and both timeframes kept me guessing where it would be going. I enjoyed the structure of the book, covering 3 days 10 years apart and I didn't have trouble following the story. I liked seeing how Chani and Gabe had grown over the years, along with their story unwinding in a unique format. A nice story with substance.

My one complaint: maybe I missed it but I cannot for the live of me figure out where the title comes from....it feels super random and unrelated after having read and enjoyed the book.

I really enjoyed this book. I liked how there were different storylines and interjections of articles and other media in the story. It made it more interesting to have multiple storylines play out at once. I did think the big fight at the end was a little unrealistic and resolved way to fast, but I enjoyed the book.

This book was cute and fluffy. I liked the alternating between "then" and "now" storylines but it did slow down the pace a bit. Overall an enjoyable read.

Thank you Netgalley and Morgan Hoit (Random House Publishing Group) for inviting me to read and review this book! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

When Chani, a journalist and writer living in L. A., was twenty six years old she was asked to interview the next James Bond star: Gabe Parker. Chani and Gabe hit it off and she realizes there's more to him than just an interview. In a span of three days rumors start flying about Chani's involvement with Gabe sexually, Gabe gets married to a co star in his next big role, and Chani moves to N. Y. to be with an ex boyfriend.

Ten years later, Chani is in a good place with her work, divorced with a wall around her heart, and then receives a request to re-interview Gabe. Chani's first interview with him made her famous in a good and bad way. Critics and fans all have speculated her relationship with Gabe and how she moved up the social ladder. In a good way she has been able to make a name for herself and her writing despite what her ex boyfriend/husband would say.

The story is told in both Then and Now chapters with articles inbetween. We begin to learn what really happened during the three days of her interview with Gabe and see what has become of them both in those ten years.

I absolutely LOVE this book!
I was expecting this book to be an average adult romance book but the author has surpassed my expectations and then some. I flew through this story in only 5 hours. The pacing is perfectly done. The writing kept me engaged and I rooted for Gabe and Chani's happiness the whole time. I'm glad this book wasn't just about the steam in the bedroom. Yes there are sexy moments but appropriate for the book instead of just for shock value. I love the way the author handled Gabe's rise and fall and his recovery to do better for himself and others. I felt like both MCs were very relatable, realistic, and justified in their decision making.

The ONLY nitpick I have is the cover! I do not like the cover for the book. It does have elements that do represent the story (Teddy the dog and the airplane) but the colors are hideous and the cartoon comic boxes almost turned me away from reading it. I got the wrong idea of the book and I hope it changes before the book is published.

Yes this is one of those "don't judge a book by its cover" moment but I'd hate for a great story to be turned down by other readers due to a terrible cover choice.

5 stars

Chani is a writer and is asked to interview Gabe Parker, an actor she has fantasized about for years. The interview turns out great but it ends up to be a weekend with Gabe and is full of things she would love to forget. After 10 years she gets a request to interview him again and as much as she would like to see him, she is concerned about reliving their time together. I loved this book. The characters are great and the life of parties adds a lot of entertainment. It offers a chance to examine what success is really about. Chani and her boyfriend later husband are writers and share as much competition over their writing as Gabe encounters with other actors. This book points out how each vocation has pluses and minuses and it is nearly impossible to understand another’s vocation. Communication is key yet few really want to truly expose themselves. The story allows the reader to really think about what is important in life.

While scrolling through Instagram recently, I came across an infographic with the statement “Reading romance books is feminist.” And, while reading Elissa Sussman’s soon-to-drop romance ‘Funny You Should Ask,’ I was reminded—and brightened—by that sentiment.

Chani meets Gabe 10 years ago, when she is tasked to write a profile on the highly controversial new Bond actor. They spend only 3 days together, creating material for a groundbreaking celebrity profile, but also forming a bond they would think about for the next 10 years.

10 years later, Chani and Gabe meet again to rewrite the profile that once caused so much controversy and praise for both parties. Chani and Gabe are both (semi)freshly divorced. Her career has hit an all-time high, while his 007 days are behind him. Over the next 3 days, Chani and Gabe get to know who’ve they’ve become—and who they’ve remained—during their years apart.

Perhaps the most pleasing part of the story is that Chani never sets out to save Gabe, nor does he ask her to. Gabe, who struggles with alcohol addiction, gets help for himself and his loved ones. Chani was once subtly gaslighted into believing her writing was subpar, and that her talent is not the harbinger of her success. Throughout the story, these two characters discover what it means to be worthy—not only of each other, but of their careers, their happiness, and their success.

Gabe is initially characterized as an archetypal male Hollywood spectacle: chiseled, tanned, smooth, waxed, and just the perfect mixture of charisma and innocent charm. However, as his career falls of the rails, his physical appearance changes. While in recovery, Gabe startles the world by stepping out in public having—gasp—gained some weight and grown his facial hair. A weight gain in writing all too often signifies a character’s rock bottom—not in Sussman’s writing. I really appreciate the way she handled Gabe’s weight and marked it as a step forward in his recovery rather than a setback, like I’ve seen too many authors do.

Her focus on both character’s mental health was also noteworthy. Chani must unlearn the digs her ex-husband dealt her, and it is heartwarming to her her reclaim her writing and her success over time.

i liked this one! cool idea, i think the “then” and “now” approach worked really well here. dragged a bit but also i kept was able to keep on reading so the speed wasn’t the worst.

#netgalley

Funny You Should Ask is a light, fun, easy read. It follows the adventures of journalist Chani Horowitz over a ten year period - the time she meets movie star Gabe Parker and writes an interview that does both their careers a favor - and a decade later, when she and Gabe reunite in an attempt to recapture the public's attention.

Chani (and I never did figure out how to pronounce her name. The prompt in the book says to rhyme it like 'knee' so I kept thinking 'Cheeni? Chanee?") has typical woman's guilt over the connection between how her own career took off after what she views as exploiting Gabe's fame. I did have an issue with this reasoning, as that's exactly what she was hired to do and what Gabe's publicist wanted, but the author got a lot of mileage over milking this insecurity. The romance genre requires obstacles, and one of them is Chani's imposter syndrome.

The other obstacles include Gabe's fellow costar, who is gorgeous, and Chani's boyfriend, as well as fame itself. As the book is told in alternating then-now format, there's tension while reader figures out what exactly went on that first weekend Gabe and Chani met. It's always fun to have an imaginary brush with fame, and for anyone who's had fantasies of hooking up with a celebrity crush, you can live vicariously through this heroine.

I really enjoyed this book, which surprised me because I don’t usually like books that skip back in time and current continuously. There were some parts that confused me on if we were reading the present or past, but I really liked the book and ending

This book was honestly a breath of fresh air! The balance of both timelines was executed really well! It's usually hard for me to follow along with separate timelines but I loved this book! The flow was super easy to follow along with. I appreciated the real-life aspects that were included in this book. With Gabe's alcoholism and Chanzi's past relationship leaving some scars, both are determined to be better. I feel like this will do great in stores! This story is so fun and the tension is THERE! Romance readers are always looking for that feeling of butterflies when they read and this one delivers. This has been a top recent read for me! I loved it, and I can't rant enough about it. I hope this review gives you some insight into how a 21-year-old perceived this wonderful masterpiece.

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book was around 3.5 stars for me.

While it's a romantic story, the pacing was a bit slow for me. We jump back and forth from a young Chani breaking her teeth interviewing famous actor and next James Bond Gabe to them in their present lives. We get pieces of the article, snippets of Chani's blog throughout her life, and pieces of the current timeline. It all takes a while to unwind, and then starts to make sense. Overall not a lot actually happens, but it's a cheesy romance story.

Overall not exactly what I was expecting, but not a bad read either.

Funny You Should Ask follows the relationship between Chani Horowitz an MFA journalist stuck writing celebrity fluff pieces and world famous celebrity Gabe Parker over the span of ten years. The two meet when Chani is hired to write a profile story on Gabe.

What Chani doesn't expect is to have a whirl-wind weekend with Gabe that has other reporters curious about the 'real' relationship between the two of them.

Ten years later Chani is at a peak in her career but her personal life can't seem to stay afloat. After a nasty divorce Chani is back in Los Angelas. Even after all of these years everyone is still interested in the piece she wrote on Gabe. When her PR team requests a follow-up interview with Gabe, Chani jumps at the opportunity reflecting back on the intense weekend they had shared.

"But the thought of sitting across from Gabe Parker after all these years, pretending I haven't replayed that weekend over and over in my head, pretending I don't still think about the moments we shared, pretending that what I tell everyone is the truth and that nothing really happened between us ...
Well it makes me feel more than a little unsteady."

No matter how much time has passed the two can't seem to escape each other.

I think fans of the book Normal People will really enjoy this story as the author does a strong job of showing how the interactions between Chani and Gabe impacted their lives/careers over the next ten years.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group, and Elissa Sussman for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

3/5 For people that enjoyed Normal People or Daisy Jones and the Six this should absolutely be added to your TBR. Its essentially a story of 2 people that, over the span of 10 years, cannot leave each other alone.
Chani is a 26 year old reporter send to do a story on her celebrity crush, Gabe Parker— every girl’s dream. The timeline flips between that saucy initial interview and the present day, showing how they’ve impacted each other’s lives and careers.

I loved Elissa Sussman's YA, DRAWN THAT WAY, so I was super excited for her adult debut. FUNNY YOU SHOULD ASK delivered! I appreciate that Sussman writes mouthy Jewish heroines as sexy and lovable. It felt heavily influenced by Edith Zimmerman's infamous profile of Chris Evans, where Zimmerman ended up so drunk she crashed with Evans after a party. I loved the use of journalism, blogs, and newsletters to add more context to the dual-timeline story and heighten the tension. I loved Gabe and his best friend Ollie, and I loved the Hollywood setting. I was a little wary of the premise, as I hate it when fictional female journalists sleep with sources/subjects - but having read DRAWN THAT WAY, I trusted Sussman would address that, and she did - Chani is very aware of the stereotype and how it's affected her career. I read FUNNY YOU SHOULD ASK in two sittings; I couldn't stop reading it. Sussman is now an auto-read for me!