I'm so happy (and surprised) to say that Funny Place has surpassed People We Meet on Vacation and has become my favorite Emily Henry book.

I absolutely devoured this book in just two days, and I loved every moment of it. Daphne & Miles had the best banter and chemistry! And don't even get me started on the character development. I cried my eyes out over these two. Watching Daphne fall in love with life and Miles slowly opening up was simply magical.

I don't want to say too much!!! But I could gush about this book endlessly. I adored the romance (and the forced proximity 😌), the fact that Daphne is a librarian, and the fake dating that had me giggling and kicking my feet.

This was one of my most anticipated reads of 2024, and it's officially upgraded to being one of my favorite reads of 2024 🤭. If you haven't already pre-ordered this book, then take this as your sign to do so ASAP .

Five solid stars for Funny Story. Could this be my new favorite Emily Henry book?? I binged this like I was starving. I enjoyed it so much.

I love a good forced proximity trope, specifically roommates, because of the tension that usually comes with it, and this one was delicious. Daphne ends up moving in with her ex fiance’s new fiancee’s ex boyfriend after he breaks up with her. I mean?? So good!

I was also kind of surprised by how funny I found this book? The witty banter was exceptional. Which, in turn, made me fall in love with these characters right away. Root for them.

I loved Miles and Daphne. I loved their journey. I loved the softness, the vulnerability, and the bravery. You do not want to skip this.

Thank you so much for the ARC!

(4.5)
Funny story
Okay, I need Emily Henry to get out of my head. With this book and Happy Place she somehow got to me on such a personal level that it’s almost freaky. More on that later. This book is such a great combo of fun, light hearted banter and good times mixed with emotional, hard hitting, big thoughts and emotions. Which, for me as a reader, is the perfect combo and one of the reasons she’s one of my favorite authors. She had me smiling and giggling so many times and then she had me clutching my heart and staring off into space as I processed parts of my own life. I mean, she’s a dang wizard. This story brought up so many feelings from my own life and especially my childhood that I need some time to process. But it also just made me so happy and giddy. The banter between Miles and Daphne is so freakin top notch, especially in the first half. The character growth was phenomenal for both, but especially for Daphne. I truthfully went in blind so I wasn’t sure what to expect but I knew I would love it. Emily Henry was killed it once again, I will read anything she writes at this point.

Thank you Berkley for the advanced copy.

As a children's librarian myself, I greatly enjoyed the love given to libraries in this book. As for the plot line itself, it is ironic and true to its name funny. The relationship is built up so nicely and becomes truly believable. It is not one of those love at first sight books. In addition to building up a romantic relationship, the book builds a friendship and looks at what it means to be a friend. I appreciated how it examines the effects of distance, romantic partners, and children on a friendship.

EMILY HENERY WROTE THIS FOR ME IM CALLING IT. The most romantic and most funniest book she’s written hands down and anyone who says otherwise is LYING.

THIS BOOK WAS EVERYTHING TO ME.

Emily Henry does it again--and better than ever. I wasn't sure Happy Place could be topped, but Funny Story is her best work yet! No one is doing it the way she is in any genre, but definitely not in contemporary romance. Her characters are so incredibly fleshed out, layered, and real. I feel like they're my friends by the end of the book. Even the side characters have full personalities and I can understand their reactions to events and interpret them as
"yes, this is exactly how I think Ashleigh/Julia would behave." Truly, Funny Story is a masterclass in character development and relationships of all kinds--parental, friendships, and best of all, romantic.

The parallels and callbacks and use of setting to add depth to the story (Daphne telling her truth on *her* beach and Miles revealing his vulnerability on *his* beach is perfection in storytelling). The development of Daphne and Miles' relationship was genuine. It wasn't just insta-love or some other trope; they had experiences together and dialogue that was organic and real. But, speaking of tropes, fake dating is my jam and it's extremely well done here in Funny Story.

All the stars in the sky out of 5 for this book, no notes, etc. It's perfect. I will admit a minuscule amount of bias since I'm a librarian and the FMC is, too, BUT STILL. Thank you for the opportunity to read and review this title. I will be recommending to practically everyone I encounter, both in and outside of the library.

NEW EMILY HENRY BOOK YAAAY!!!
This story follows Daphne, a Children’s Librarian (!!!) who is currently engaged and working on transforming the house her fiancé just purchased into a home. Until Peter (said fiancé) comes home from his bachelor party declaring his love for his childhood best friend Petra. Suddenly Daphne finds herself single and homeless, realizing that all her friends were shared with her ex. Daphne moves in with Petra’s ex, Miles, in shared misery at their circumstance. When a wedding invite to Peter and Petra’s upcoming wedding arrives, Miles and Daphne decide to fake a relationship to get under their ex’s skin. But the fake-relationship progresses, the feelings start to take a very real hold!

If you’re still recovering from Happy Place, this is a much lighter tone. I LOVED the setting in the library. As a library worker, the love for the library and community was so accurate it made me smile. *Small Children’s Library Soapbox* I took issue with the fact that she read The Stinky Cheese Man to a bunch of preschoolers for story time though. While that book is GOLD, it’s so long and not at all story time material, especially for that age group. *Soapbox over*

We get to see Daphne, as a grown adult, trying to make new friends! Which is honestly SO HARD so it made that journey all the more rewarding. I appreciated the time Daphne spends starting over and make her own little village to count on.

The fake dating trope is beautiful, and Miles is the perfect guy. It truly speaks to my character that I had a hard time connecting with him. I saw a review that described him as “Nick Miller coded” and I think if I went in with that mentality, I would’ve been more invested in him as a love interest.

As usual, I’m in love with Emily Henry and will continue to worship at her alter.

Review will be posted to Goodreads on 4/16/24

Thanks to Berkley Publishing Group and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This is book 2 I’ve read by EmHen (happy place was the first) although u liked that one a bit more i enjoyed this story.
So Daphne the FMC is supposed to get married to Peter, and he leaves her for his childhood best friend Petra *not a spoiler i promise*
(which he reassured her meant nothing to him in that way). Daphne moves in with Petra’s Ex Miles (who she left for Peter) And they become roommates. They then get an invited to Petra and Peter’s wedding and in comes the fake dating and all the things.
I feel like my one issue with this book was since both Miles and Daphne are dealing with breakups and broken hearts a dual POV would have helped this story move along faster because it kind of dragged a little bit (or it felt that way). Other than that i really enjoyed this book. This book didn’t have much spice which was fine for me,( I’d say one little pepper 🌶️).
I felt the focus was more on, healing, self discovery for both characters, finding family and friends, and kind of starting over with the romance thrown in.
I obviously haven’t read many other books to compare but I’d definitely recommend this one. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4 stars from me.

I ADORED Happy Place and so going into this book I had really high expectations. I'm not sure if it was just the trope itself that let me down (not a fan of roommates) or if it's the fact that Emily Henry relies on the miscommunication trope so much that I just want something different from her... Hoping her next book strays from her usual path!

Thank you to Berkeley and NetGalley for this advance reader copy. All opinions are my own.

I have loved all of Emily Henry’s romance books that have come out and I was so excited to get to read this one early. It is just as wonderful as the others and I am so happy that Emily is leaning into a great balance of development for the main characters and development of the romance.

Happy Place was very heavy in my opinion in terms of some of the subject matter and Funny Story was a bit lighter but did deal with similar internal conflicts for Daphne that I thought were so well done. Miles also had some wonderful development that made both characters so fleshed out as if they were real people. I also really enjoyed all the time and attention that was put into developing even the smallest of side characters, it made them all feel real.

I love this direction that Emily Henry is going in and I cannot wait to read what she has next.

Thank you SO MUCH NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for this ABSOLUTELY AMAZING ARC

5000000/5 stars

You guys. The way I DEVOURED this book! So, so, so good, from start to finish. I've only read two other Emily Henry novels (Book Lovers and Happy Place) but this is by far my favourite. Daphne and Miles are just such real and relatable flawed characters, and each secondary character was so well fleshed out, I miss everyone now that it's over.

I love books about books. This being set in a library and her task she's planning has been a delight to read.

The MULTIPLE X-Files references were fantastic. And mentioning my ABSOLUTE FAVOURITE BOOK THE RULES OF MAGIC?!?! Eyyy Emily, are you writing this just for me or what?! 😏

This was so good. Just in love. The end :3

emily henry’s writing cures everything 😭🩷 I absolutely adore her blend between romcom, serious relationship moments, and perfect side characters that have you DEMANDING for a spin off!!

it took a while for daphne and miles to grow on me, especially since they were thrust together in less than ideal terms (their significant others decided to dump them and date each other instead 🥴🥴) but I absolutely adore fake dating and relationship of convenience tropes, and miles works at a winery?? aka me?? goals

due to ✨ childhood trauma ✨ both miles and daphne have trust issues, which is a relatable concept, except for the fact that they both refuse to communicate about them!!! I loved how julia, miles’s sister, and ashleigh, daphne’s friend, became close in their mutual frustration over their brother and friends - because same ladies same 😅

I do have to agree with other reviews and say that this is one of emily henry’s hottest couples - the tension, the slow burn, the will they won’t they, it was all so perfect 😮‍💨 and when they finally did open up to each other, their talks were so healthy I wanted to cry because this is exactly what I’m looking for in a relationship!!!!!

what held me back from giving it a full five stars was the miscommunication. specifically that miles does something that he KNOWS is daphne’s trigger to her trauma, and while he doesn’t do it maliciously, he’s clearly an idiot for not understanding her anger. it just felt like all of their understanding got thrown out the window for the sake of a third act breakup 🙄

BUT I absolutely adored the characters, the setting, the writing - just everything that emily henry touches is gold thanks 🥰 and a huge thank you to berkley and berkley romance for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!!

rating: 4.5 stars
wine pairing: 45 north riesling (this is a combined brewery and winery in michigan and they have the most unique blends!! I can totally see miles working here!!)

Love love love this new one from Emily Henry! I wasn't a huge fan of Happy Place, but for me she's reclaimed the magic with this one. The ups and downs of Daphne and Miles's recovery from their partners' cheating alongside their own budding friendship and relationship felt so true to life. There's so much care and anger and humor, all in the right mix. Plus, she gets a lot of things right about children's librarianship!

Emily Henry strikes again! This one was better than the last as I felt there was such a strong romantic connection between the main character and the love interest. I extremely liked the perspective of Daphne as a librarian since I could connect with her experience. Daphne shares a glimpse to the daily life and duties of a librarian in a public library (even if it seemed to be a smaller library). The characters were well developed and their personal experiences were relatable. Yeah of course I was screaming at the characters because I wanted them to come together. Did I think they were being ridiculous, a little bit but their feelings were so deep that I felt them and understood. I absolutely loved the ending even if it wasn't what I entirely hoped, it was realistic but still super romantic - wish I would love to see more in the romance community.

Emily Henry can do no wrong!! I absolutely love her writing. She developed characters that are easy to connect with and you are rooting for. Loved this book along with all of her other ones!

I wasn't sure that the becoming roommates with your ex-fiance's new fiancee's ex-boyfriend would work as a great start to a novel, but somehow Emily Henry hit it out of the park. Not only that, but as a middle school librarian I completely fell in love with Daphne's job and how libraries were written into the story. The side characters were also really well developed in this story. Emily Henry is one of the best contemporary/romance fiction writers out there, and her latest novel will not disappoint!

I absolutely loved this book! It is Emily Henry's masterpiece. The characters are so accessible and it's such a feel good read. The story was fantastic. I loved how Daphne's and Miles' relationship developed. The town elements, charm, and friendships were delightful. I also loved how the book incorporated children's librarianship. This novel is now one of my all time favorites, and I will be recommending this read to all patrons.

This is the best Emily Henry book. After reading Book Lovers, I didn’t think I would ever love a book more but here we are. First it’s important to mention that I love Miles a scary amount. I will never get over the fact that he is fictional and I can’t have him for myself. Daphne is the most perfectly imperfect female main character and she embodies everything that I am and everything that I want to be.
An easy 5 stars and I feel honored to be alive at the same time as Emily Henry.

I have no words. Now, I’ve enjoyed Henry’s novels before. Loved them even. Really enjoyed them. Recommended to friends. But I wasn’t ever truly obsessed with them. I don’t know why this one hit way harder than the others, but it did. I’m obsessed with this novel.

This was clever, witty, amazing, beautiful, slow-burn, ironic, and poignant romance with a really purposeful, clear meaning that’s rife with humor. I loved it.

I’m not going to tell you a single damn thing about it except if you know what happened to Shania Twain (American singer) with her first husband, get ready for the rom-com non-celeb version.

This was phenomenal.

Funny story

Okay so I loved this book so much. I cannot wait to listen to the audiobook!! And I’m like 99% sure I’m going to have to reread this before April.

The tension, the longing, the unsureness, the roommates to lovers who are also the exes of each other’s exes so they’re going to try and get some type of revenge? I loved the setting, and the secondary characters! Everything Emily always writes is always so fleshed out and written so well.

It started a little slow, but it worked because Daphne and Miles’ friendship was a slow build in the absolute best way. They were thrown together in the crappiest of situations and then they were able to understand each other in a way they both desperately needed.

I loved how opposite they were but also they were just two people who never thought they were good enough. I love a ‘people always leave’ girl so much. And that is Daphne and I love her and her soft guarded heart so so much. I loved watching Daphne really find herself kind of for the first time. and Miles 😭 he is honestly the NICEST guy ever and it hurts that he struggles so much with trusting himself. But watching him figure it out a little bit, so he can really open himself up for Daphne was so sweet.

Also Miles semi demanding that Daphne FINALLY make Waning Bay her home because there’s no way her ex should have that much power over her?? To make her move there and then seemingly make her leave?? And Miles telling her that he’ll make sure she’ll fall in love with the town?? And then she not only falls in love with the town but ALSO with him?! He really created a HOME for her and it was what she needed 😭

As always I am DESPERATE for an Emily Henry book in dual POV. I would do anything for Miles’ POV. But then of course I would demand a POV for Alex, Gus, Charlie and Wyn and I know what seemingly to much to ask for. But there’s something about Miles that makes me want it a LITTLE bit more.

Thank you so so much to Berkley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!! I am GRATEFUL.