If I could give this 6 stars, I would. Yes, the romance was great (Emily Henry never lets me down), and yes, I thought the characters and their interactions were dynamic, but SOMEONE needs to give Emily Henry extra applause for finally writing a children's librarian correctly, and that person is me. I have wait months and years for someone to get it-- to write my profession in a way that is TRUE. She nailed it. I have no more to add, that's it. That's the review.

I really wanted to love this book. It was easy to read and the prose was written well enough. The characters and plot left much more to be desired. There seemed to be this investment in having the cheaters not come off as horrible people but also to have them come off as horrible people and that left me feeling confused. The male main character leaving at the end to help his ex was frustrating because that ruined the romance for me. But most frustrating was that the female main character was billed as trying to rebuild her life around her own desires and not centering herself and life around a man (and that's explicitly stated to be the central plot of the book) and somehow by the end she has not changed at all and is still centering her life around another man. It just felt disingenuous.

Emily Henry has a fun and accessible writing style. I don't mesh well with her plots, so that's one me. Objectively, the book is fine!

Even a subpar Emily Henry novel is still lightyears above most romcoms... and this is NOT a subpar Emily Henry novel. A perfect love story of second chances, enemies-to-friends-to-lovers, forced proximity, and heart. It's also, may I say, kind of a funny story at times.

Rating: 4.25/5 ⭐️

HAPPY PUB DAY @emhenwrites and THANK YOU @berkleypub for the eARC of Funny Story!

Well, Emily Henry has done it again. Funny Story is so sweet. Which, sounds underwhelming but the type of genuinely sweet romance that makes every one wonder how there was ever a time that a couple wasn’t together. Daphne and Miles are two pieces of a puzzle, two sides of the same coin, the

I really enjoyed Funny Story, but I was missing that 5 star emotional connection. Funny Story was sweet, but it didn’t elicit that gut punch kind of emotion that Happy Place did. The MCs mostly… coasted. Drama happened around them, but even when Daphne and Miles faced obstacles, they resolved them rather quickly.

Additionally, I felt like Miles’ character flaws were not really addressed. Or not addressed as thoroughly as I would’ve expected/hoped. The flaws were a significant part of the plot and a very significant part of him, but then were not really resolved in the context of his relationship with Daphne. Or at all.

Despite these shortcomings, Emily Henry will remain the queen of playful banter and lovable characters. Daphne and Miles and their found family were an absolute pleasure to get to know and fall in love with.

Overall, Funny Story is sweet and a fun edition to your summer reading list!


LIKES:
🥸 Fake dating
🏠 Found family
☀️ Summer vibes
👤 Single POV
🌱 Personal growth themes
🍼 Daddy issues
💬 Playful banter
🌶️ Spicy

This book really was funny and cute!! Full review and reading updates on Goodreads <3

4 stars
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Another perfect beach read from Emily Henry. Loved the main characters and the setting. I'll be highly recommending and it's already a hit at the library.

Not my favorite Emily Henry book, but Emily Henry is still my favorite author and I loved the book. I do think it lacked a little bit of the emotional depth than some of her previous books has given, though not for lack of trying -- the attempt was still there, and Henry is still the queen of giving me romance that goes above and beyond in terms of characters and story.

I would 1000% watch the movie version of this, though. 1000%.

Thank you for sending me this review copy! My full review is on TikTok, which I will link in the links section!

How Emily Henry manages to make me laugh while also tugging at my heartstrings the entire time needs to be studied by science. Oh how I adored this book! It’s definitely lighter than her other work, but just as emotional and vulnerable and raw and human and romantic as the rest of it. One of my favorites of the year for sure.

This was a slow burn for me. I wasn’t really connecting with it at the beginning and I really didn’t know why, and then at like the 25% mark this book burrowed it’s way into my heart and soul and it would not let me go. I was stuck in the in between of wanting to binge it and delaying it so I didn’t have to finish it and I could stay in the story a little longer.

Daphne, my sweet Archer girlie. While not the typical FMC I connect to, so many things she said and thought hit so close to home. I found myself rooting for her the entire time. Celebrating her when she started to open up again and making a life for HER based on HER and not anyone else.

Miles, my sweet disheveled sunshine man. How I adore you!!! What a breath of fresh air of a MMC. He’s not your typical sunshine golden retriever guy, he is still a little bit broody, but I love how he truly wasn’t afraid to feel his feelings around Daphne once he started trusting her, big or small, and how he managed to find joy in the little things.

Everything about Miles & Daphne felt so intentional, so purposeful, so real and deep. I loved how the relationship progressed, how they only wanted the best for each other, how they helped each other heal, and love. And their chemistry!? The spice!? OMG they’re hot. So hot. Miss Emily DELIVERED. Might be her spiciest yet??

I loved this book so so so much, what a joy. Thank you so much Berkley & NetGalley for the ARC!!!

It was a slay I fear ✨

Admittedly Funny Story was not my favorite EH—this one just lightly shoved me emotionally instead of punching me in the stomach and then in the face when I doubled over *cough cough beach read and book lovers cough*—but it was nevertheless a banger. And I’ve gotta respect her ability to make a tattooed stoner wearing crocs at least somewhat attractive

(Although as I pointed out in my stories: WAS Miles hot? Or was Julia Whelan just doing her MMC voice, which let’s be real, is hotter than most dudes’ actual voices?? The overwhelming consensus from people in my DMs seems to be BOTH but honestly idk, the audiobook is just THAT good—thanks to @librofm for the ALC!)

Will always be obsessed with Emily Henry’s writing! The banter on this was so good and if you know me, I’m a sucker for good banter! I really enjoyed this book! Doesn’t beat Happy Place yet but it’s up there!

Thank you to netgalley for providing an e-galley for review. Funny Story was the light, sweet balm read I was looking for after reading some pretty heavy books. Perfect for summer especially when summer is the busy season. I'm loving these modern romcoms that aren't heavy on spice.

When Daphne’s fiancé Peter returns from his bachelor party and tells her that he realized he’s actually in love with with his childhood best friend Petra, she finds herself stranded in Waning Bay, Michigan without friends or family or a place to live. Because she has her dream job as a children’s librarian, she ends up living with the only person who could possibly understand how she’s feeling: Petra’s ex, Miles. Miles is the opposite to Daphne, and yet the two find themselves pretending to date in order to appear less pathetic to their respective exes. But it’s all for show - right? There’s no doubt that Emily Henry is the ascending queen of the beach read.3 I’ve liked (or loved) all of her romance books that have come out in the past few years, and I’m thrilled to report that this one was wildly fun to read, and that it features some of her strongest protagonists in a while. I was a little worried when I saw the novel’s length, but I actually think the pacing here works very well and allows the reader to spend a lot of time with Daphne and Miles as their relationship grows from a tentative friendship into something deeper. I also thought the secondary characters - particularly Daphne’s coworker Ashleigh - were well developed and helped round out the story’s nonromantic elements. As usual, Henry’s dialogue is witty and smart and the chemistry between her characters crackles on the page. This is a knockout of a novel that romance fans will eat up.

Personal Enjoyment: 5 ⭐️

For its intended purpose: 5 ⭐️

I can say with certainty that I didn't expect to love this book as much as I did!

It was funny, and sad, and healing. It was a look into a mirror at times (and not always loving what I saw) but beautifully written

Daphne is a librarian with a passion for books and fostering a community for children. Coming out of a wildly awful breakup, she's rediscovering what her life looks like & trying to heal— with her hot roommate who is doing the same

This was my first Emily Henry book and after finishing Funny Story, I immediately added all of her others to my TBR!

Funny story about this book........... haha........ okay, maybe I'm not as funny as I think I am.

This is my second favorite book of Henry's. You know those books where you find yourself yelling at the characters (out loud) to get their heads out of their asses? That was this book for me. These two fought that attraction with all their might. I mean they did whatever they could to remain in the roommate/friend zone. All the while, the reader is like JUST KISS OR BANG OR SOMETHING over and over again. And I loved every minute of it.

I found this book fun, charming, and overall a great read. I would highly recommend it!

Sometimes you have your whole life planned out, and it is perfectly right on track. Until it's not. When Daphne's dream wedding is put on halt (because he cheated with her best friend) Daphne comes to realize there is more to her current life than a bad fiance. She makes a life for HERSELF and finds herself, along with new things (and people) to love.

I liked that Daphne was a librarian. Also that she gave her new town a second chance and found more in it than she had originally planned.

What can’t Emily Henry do? Seriously, it should be illegal to write books this well. Once again, Henry stole my heart with her latest romance. Daphne and Miles are both flawed characters who you can’t help but love and root for throughout the story. I also loved the strong female friendships highlighted in this title. If you are wavering about reading this title or have not yet read one of Henry’s books, what are you waiting for? DO IT!

4.5 stars

I loved this. Miles and Daphne were amazing and I loved their origin story and how they grew together. Ashley was so cool and such a good friend. I also loved Julia so much. This book was so good and I loved it. The community they had was so nice and I loved who was in the community and how close they were.

*Thank you Netgalley and Berkley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

As a big fan of Emily Henry, I was very excited for this book. The premise was very intriguing to me. Overall, I think this was a great story that explored the process of moving on from a long term relationship as well as being open to future relationships. I think the chemistry between the main characters had to grow through the story, although I did not feel totally connected to them. I wish there was a little more development with that. I liked how we got to see different sides of the characters, with some funny moments. I loved the side characters in this book as well!

𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬💭:
EmHen has been a hit or a miss for me. The only book that really swept me off my feet was People We Meet On Vacation. The rest were enjoyable, but not quite outstanding for me. UNTIL👏🏻THIS👏🏻BOOK👏🏻

Move over PWMOV, I’ve finally found an EmHen i love just as much. Maybe even more!

Thank you @berkleyromance for my eARC! It’s out this month, 4/23/24!

𝐁𝐥𝐮𝐫𝐛📝:
Daphne thought happily ever after was just around the corner, til her fiancé Peter breaks up with her for his childhood best friend Petra. Stuck in a town she moved to for Peter, she commiserates with the person who would understand her best, Petra’s ex-boyfriend Miles whom she also broke up with. When an unlikely friendship forms, they plot to date to get back at them. They soon realize they like each other more than they think they do.

𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5. The premise of the story was quite unrealistic, but also realistic in a way if that makes sense. Like i don’t know anybody who’s ever been in their situation, but misery loves its company. So it could totally happen! Yet it was handled with care and developed so well despite it probably not being the first of its kind. All the banter, flirting, and undeniable chemistry between the two were top-notch. The build up was insanely palpable i loved it! I really didn’t expect to love this book when I started, but towards the end, it just made me feel things I couldn’t explain and just brought me to tears so unexpectedly. And the side characters? Man, what’s not to love. They were beautifully crafted to make the amazing depth even more heartwarming. A breath of fresh air is what it was, and if you’re craving for that romance book to swoon you with one heck of a male lead, look no further. MILES NOVAK will make you fall head over heels.

𝙍𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙞𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚: 𝘛𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘧𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘥𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘳𝘺, 𝘯𝘦𝘸 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴