This can be summed up as “Naina makes many decisions, for better and worse….”

This book is the epitome of messy bisexual and i had a hell of a good time with it! The emotional growth is so integral to the story and it makes the book that much stronger. The prose is funny and light, but talks about heavier topics in really profound ways. While I disagreed with some of Naina’s choices, I loved seeing her journey!

I had conflicting feelings about this book. On one hand, I read it in one sitting because I did not want to put it down. On the other hand, both main characters, but especially Naina, did some things that reallllllly pissed me off. While this story is probably realistic to life in the 21st century, I didn’t find it to be that romantic.

Thank you to 831 Stories and NetGalley for the ARC of this book!

Comedic Timing was a really enjoyable depiction of what it feels like to be in your 20s and in a new city. The novella explores friendship, sexuality, work, and romance in a very realistic way. I haven’t read many novellas in the past, but I think this might be a sign for me to delve into more of 831 Stories’ works and other novellas as well.

The story is set in NYC and follows Naina as she leaves Chicago to start a new life. At times, I found myself shouting at Naina (the female lead) for her self-sabotaging tendencies, but at the same time, I couldn’t be too mad at her actions. Many of her thought processes felt incredibly realistic—things that people in relationships are often guilty of in the moment. However, with the book being so short, I did spend a good portion of it wanting to shake some sense into her!

Her main love interest David, on the other hand, was a chef’s kiss. He was so relatable, laid-back, and completely believable as someone Naina would fall in love with. Overall, this was a great short read!

I loved every bit of Big Fan, my first foray into 831 Stories brand. This one, however, just didn’t connect with me. I would not necessary classify this as much of a romance. There was sex but this was more so just a story about the stress and anxiety of starting a relationship with the backdrop of grief and loss and confusion with a fmc who was immature and lashed out and reacted so poorly in almost every interaction I just wasn’t behind the romance aspect. Was this a realistic portrayal of a flawed couple starting dating? Maybe so but not necessarily one I enjoyed reading about. 3⭐️

Thank you to 831 Stories for the Advanced Reader Copy! Every time I read an 831 Stories title, I too feel a little read and Comedic Timing is no exception.

The friendship between main characters Naina and David is the sweetest - they become writing partners, have sleepovers, cook for each other, and reflect on their lives and relationships together. While both characters are rather self aware, they struggle to translate their reflections into their behavior (ouch, a little too relatable there...).

I especially delighted in this story given friends to lovers is my favorite trope <3 and given Naina! Our FMC is one of few fictional Indian women I've encountered who openly feels and expresses anger - her reactive nature reminded me a bit of Devi from Never Have I Ever. Naina is bisexual and navigating being into a man for the first time - she's questioning how this impacts her queer identity and her/others understanding of it.

I also adored the tenderness and care portrayed in this story between roommates, new co-workers, and long distance friends <3 After reading Comedic Timing, I can't help but examine how I respond when I feel vulnerable and wish for a "friends-to-lovers thing" of my own!

Like 831 Stories’ other novellas, Comedic Timing is a tightly-written romance about two complicated people who manage to find love by admitting to and overcoming their flaws. At times, the characters feel flawed enough to make me a little uncomfortable as a reader—are they good people? Do they deserve to find love? But I think Barath is successful in persuading the reader that yes, they are, despite the mistakes they make along the way. I really enjoyed Comedic Timing with its setting, lovable side characters (can we get another story about Christian and Chloe, please?), and thoughtful friends-to-lovers growth between the two main characters, as well as the delightful friendships with other characters.

Naina has just moved to NYC and is off a 5 yr relationship. This novella is full of exploration of sexuality and identity, along with, still figuring out past trauma. She is trying to figure out her feelings for David and what that all means. We get great side coworkers and friends as well. Also, we get a side of NYC life in your 20s/30s.

These novellas from 831 pack a punch, don’t hold back and are fresh and new romance stories. Can’t wait for more of them.

Thank you for the opportunity to review! I'm excited to read anything from 831 but now I can also say that I'm excited to read anything Upasna Barath! This was lovely and I very much enjoyed how New York was present.

i really do wish this was a full length novel with the amount of topics being covered in this! there was so much to unpack and go deeper into but the short length really brought it down a bit with the rushed pacing. overall it was still an enjoyable read and i'll definitely keep picking up future 831 stories releases!

I respect the exploration of sexuality in the story because that is under-represented for the genre and romance is for everyone (there, I said it!). Content-wise, this has enough going on that it could have been a full length novel. Without the space to fully unpack a lot of what was happening, this read as disorganized, chaotic, and whiplashy. Naina is going through a quarter-life crisis characterized by impulsivity - the breakup, the move, the job, the drugs. None of that really gets fleshed out before she dives into this situationship with David, which feels like it has a stark maturity mismatch as a result of *gestures vaguely*. They have chemistry and I love a good friends-to-lovers story, OK? But the relationship between those two feels implausible toward the end - Sweet David seems like a pretty emotionally well adjusted adult and letting Naina in (after she hurt him!!) is like RE-inviting a bull into a china shop. David, love yourself.

I really like what 831 Stories is doing, brand-wise. I'm looking forward to seeing what other books they release next - this one just wasn't for me. Thank you to 831 Stories and Net Galley for the ARC!

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC. This publisher is becoming one of my favorites. I haven't read a book that I didn't love by them. And this one was great! It starts with the beginning stages of dating and explores sexuality and identity. I loved every min of it.,

• after moving to nyc for a fresh start & space from her toxic ex, naina meets david at a party, and the two become fast friends. her attraction to david is unexpected, and leaves her questioning if their relationship is purely professional or if there’s room for something more?
• i love a good friends-to-lovers story, and the relationship between naina & david felt very authentic, especially in regards to navigating their own individual baggage they bring to the table.
• i really liked naina’s own journey reckoning with her sexuality, and realizing it’s more fluid than she initially assumed.
• while this was a quick & fun story, it felt like it would have benefitted from some more time with the characters. it felt like it was missing something.

Loved this book. Friends to lovers is on of my favorite tropes and this one was deliciously written . Thanks 831 stories for the arc . Highly recommend

During my teenage years Rookie Mag was incredibly influential in my life and I absolutely credit it and its contributors with helping shape me in my most formative years so it is no surprise that I greatly enjoyed this style of writing, the characters and the book as a whole. That being said, I’m glad I did not make the connection between the author and Rookie Mag until right before the end of the book because I feel like it gave me a less biased opinion of it.

And my opinion from the very start was quite positive.

From the moment I picked it up the novel was hard to put down because of how compelling I found it; I spent my lunch breaks reading it, my nights staying up way too late, hours in a bathtub with quickly cooling water because I just wanted to keep going.

I found the main character, Naina, to be extremely relatable, although that might at least partially be because we’re both bi/queer and desi, as is the author, and we therefore share similar experiences and move through the world in a similar manner. I do however think it’s also because of the way the character was written.

I found Naina to be a fully fleshed out, complex person with complex thoughts and feelings. I thought she was someone who felt very realistic and relatable and someone who you could easily run into in your day to day life. She’s written in a way that makes her humanity shine through in a very lovely way. Just like most of us, she struggles with certain things — her job, her pride, the intellectualising of her feelings, her habit of stuffing everything down until it eventually explodes in her face… but she does her best to fix things when they go wrong, to improve and do better. Be better. In a time where characters often have to be perfect and morally correct at all times, I found her to be such a breath of fresh air. She was unapologetically human. Similarity, I found the other characters to be well written and well thought out.

Furthermore, Naina’s struggles with her sexuality felt extremely relatable. The almost universal bi experience of constantly questioning yourself, your attraction to others and feeling guilty or judged or like you’re letting somebody (yourself or others) down for liking one gender or another was portrayed in a very real manner and her struggle with accepting herself and feeling enough felt similarly grounded in real experiences. It was a comfort to read about a character who always had to question whether nor not something was comphet anytime she thought she might like a man! Similarly, it was a comfort to read about how the other characters responded to and reassured her when she was dealing with this. Like Naina’s roommate says: who cares? Stop questioning your queerness! In the end, we like who we like and we can’t change that. It was lovely to see that message delivered in such an organic way.

My only real qualm with this book is that it wasn’t longer because I wanted to spend more time with the characters and their storylines. That being said, the ending felt perfect for the story that was being told and left you on a hopeful note.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to read a story about a queer person of colour in their 20s trying to start over, do better and figure their life out. To anyone who feels lost in life, in love, in general, and who might need the comfort of knowing they are not alone. If you’re a fan of stories like that, this lovely novel is for you.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and 831 Stories for sending me this ARC and allowing me the chance to read and review it!

This was such a sweet and realistic love story! Her ups and downs of navigating a breakup alongside coming to terms with her feelings for David were so relatable. Additionally, as someone who was a NYC transplant a few years ago, the feeling of coming here and making friends and finding love was very realistic. Her feelings were so visceral and while I didn’t agree with some of her choices I understood them and empathized with how she felt. Overall a very compelling and sexy read!

831 Stories are quickly becoming must reads. I've read all the ones that have been released so far and have loved them all. This one may actually be my favorite but the first one was absolutely epic as well. These are super short novellas but still so authentic, so romantic and so well written. If you like romance, give this one a read!


Comedic Timing comes out next week on January 28, 2025, and you can purchase HERE! I love this book!!

"I have to go to the gym now, and you should probably go back to bed. I'm going to text you later. To make plans. To be around each other." He smiles, his eyebrows scrunched. I stand up to walk him out.

Smashed it!
Endearing story about the struggles of labels and the definition of what it means to be queer to yourself, but also to others and how much that should affect your decision making. Charming, multilayered characters which we accompany for a few weeks in NYC. Surprisingly, this 831 Story falls out of the celebrity x non-famous person pattern I’ve become used to when picking up these novellas, nevertheless, it might be my favourite so far.

This was a very fun novella. I loved the New York City setting, and the way it was written made the city come alive. I thought Nainas relationship with David was really fleshed out and I really enjoyed it.

I've enjoyed all of the 831 Stories I've read but this one was my least favorite. The female main character was hard to like most of the time, which I should have expected when the author of You, Again blurbed the book. I will still read all of the 831 novellas but recommend Big Fan the most of their works. While I enjoyed this one by the end, I'm not rushing to read it again or recommend it like their other stories.

Unfortunately, I only made it about 25% through the book before I had to DNF it. The plot and MC were not for me, although I appreciated the representation. I feel like 831 Stories really hit the nail on the head with their first publication and ever since then, I have been a little disappointed!