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Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

Funny Story by Emily Henry

9 reviews

kelly_e's review against another edition

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funny hopeful lighthearted
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Title: Funny Story
Author: Emily Henry
Genre: Romance
Rating: 4.00
Pub Date: April 23, 2024

T H R E E • W O R D S

Refreshing • Chaotic • Cheerful

📖 S Y N O P S I S

Daphne always loved the way her fiancé Peter told their story. How they met (on a blustery day), fell in love (over an errant hat), and moved back to his lakeside hometown to begin their life together. He really was good at telling it…right up until the moment he realized he was actually in love with his childhood best friend Petra.

Which is how Daphne begins her new story: Stranded in beautiful Waning Bay, Michigan, without friends or family but with a dream job as a children’s librarian (that barely pays the bills), and proposing to be roommates with the only person who could possibly understand her predicament: Petra’s ex, Miles Nowak.

Scruffy and chaotic—with a penchant for taking solace in the sounds of heart break love ballads —Miles is exactly the opposite of practical, buttoned up Daphne, whose coworkers know so little about her they have a running bet that she’s either FBI or in witness protection. The roommates mainly avoid one another, until one day, while drowning their sorrows, they form a tenuous friendship and a plan. If said plan also involves posting deliberately misleading photos of their summer adventures together, well, who could blame them?

But it’s all just for show, of course, because there’s no way Daphne would actually start her new chapter by falling in love with her ex-fiancé’s new fiancée’s ex…right?

💭 T H O U G H T S

There is no denying the popularity Emily Henry's book garner, yet none of them have been that memorable for me - until now. I was so excited when my local library finally got some new books that I immediately checked this one out before anyone else could. I read it on the train during my recent solo getaway to Quebec City and it was a case of the right book at the right time.

I wanted to escape into this universe so badly and become Daphne's bff. From the charming small town setting, to the endearing, well-crafted cast of characters (minus Peter and Petra), to the witty banter and laugh-out-loud moments, this book felt like a hug. Fake dating can oftentimes be a struggle for me, yet it wasn't overdone here. Daphne and Miles' chemistry was believable and I loved all of the little details, like Daphne being a librarian and Miles' job at the winery.

What Emily Henry does so well is go beyond the romance. In fact, I wouldn't say the romance is the central focus at all here. Rather she explores past childhood trauma, very real insecurities, and making new friends as an adult - all topics that I related and which connected me to the story on a deeper level.

With Funny Story I finally understand all of the hype surrounding Emily Henry's books - this is easily my favourite (thus far) and will encourage me to continue to pick up her new releases in the future. It was a quick and enjoyable experience, especially tandem reading with the audio read by Julia Whalen who brings the characters to life with her narration.

📚 R E A D • I F • Y O U • L I K E
• fake dating
• witty banter
• endearing characters

⚠️ CW: abandonment, infidelity, cursing, drug use, alcohol, divorce, death, grief, sexual content, emotional abuse, toxic relationship, child abuse, gaslighting, panic attacks/disorders, vomit, classism, death of parent

🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S

"You’re the first person who’s really seen me. Past what I want people to see."

"You can't force a person to show up, but you can learn a lesson when they don't."

"But no one person can be everything we need." 

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daniofthewood's review against another edition

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funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5


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victoriousone's review against another edition

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funny hopeful fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes

4.5


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fanboyriot's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

♡ Fake Dating
♡ Roommates 
♡ Unexpected Friends to Lovers

This was honestly such a funny book.  The humor was amazing, I laughed so much.

Daphne moves in with Miles after their significant others break up with them to date each other, childhood friends who just had to break off a wedding and crash two lives apart.  Though without spoiling things, it works out in both Daphne and Miles favor.  So what better way to get back at their trash ex’s than to fake date each other?

Miles and Daphne had such a great dynamic, they were hilarious together, friends before anything else genuinely worked so well.  Both of them learning how to trust people again, healing from heartbreak and their past.

While this did have some more serious moments character history and their childhood traumas coming into play with their lives still.  I thought the character development with this was done really nicely.

For the most part things are lighthearted and a simply funny enjoyable read.

Spice Level: 🌶️🌶️ (2/5)
Angst Level: 💧(1/5)
POV: First Person
Release Date: 23, April 2024

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shamaramill's review against another edition

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funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75


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khloereads86's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This one was really good, definitely still got the feelings but I think after Happy Place nothing is gonna be the same for me. 

It was really cute tho, the characters were quirky and well-fleshed and worked well together. The background characters were sweet too, I wasn’t sure about Ashleigh at first but ended up loving both her and Julia and I think they added so much to the story. 

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theinstabookworm's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

After DNFing BOOK LOVERS and not loving HAPPY PLACE, I went into this with lower expectations, which made me love this even more. There were some cheesy name choices (Pam/Jan, Peter/Petra) and if I never see the word "chortle" again, it will be too soon, but this is my new favourite Emily Henry book. The characters had so much depth and were so relatable. We didn't need full chapters in Miles's perspective because we got so much of him in other ways, like the way he treats Daphne so well and is so in tune with her. Their chemistry was so good. I also loved Daphne's banter with Ashleigh and Miles. It was perfect. And all the bookish references throughout the book were great too. And the found family aspect was just the cherry on top. I think, at this point, I'll read any adult fiction book Henry writes.

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beatriks's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Emily Henry did it again. 
I absolutely loved the story and its characters. 
You might expect a standard romance with fake dating, but Emily gives her stories so much depth and makes it feel real. 
Also, she touches more topics, family relationships and how your upbringing shapes you, adult friendship and the struggles of adult life. 
Also, some parts are so funny, starfish …

🎤 Jennifer Whelan does a great job narrating the book. I love her Julie a lot!

 spoiler from the end of the book 
I celebrated it so much when Daphne stood up to her father on the phone at the end of the book 💥




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erynlasbelin's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.75

Delightful as always.

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