Take a photo of a barcode or cover
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
slow-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
To start- I’ve seen several reviews already across several sites saying, “this book wasn’t very funny for a book called ‘Funny Story’” or “I was expecting more romcom, less drama”… to be very clear, it is very obvious by the end of the first chapter that the meaning of the word “funny” in the title is used in the context of “ironic” not “haha”. So, with that in mind, she couldn’t have picked a better title, because nothing about the situations and backstories in this book is funny. But if you’re a bit of a cynic, like our main character Daphne, you will find lots of ironic moments all throughout that will make you do that nose breathing laugh 😂 That being said, it’s also Emily Henry- OF COURSE we have several laugh out loud moments sprinkled in amongst the angsts, drama, heartbreak, sadness, etc. The nod to the title at the end is very sweet as well. Loved that.
Okay, now moving on. Funny Story is Emily Henry at her best. I wasn’t sure if she would ever top Happy Place for me emotionally or Book Lovers for me in the swooning department, but with this novel she managed to outdo herself and completely blow her previous works out of the water.
Daphne and Miles are two people who have been repeatedly beaten down by the people who are supposed to love them. And haven’t we all felt that way before? What I loved about this book was the character study of the effect that growing up with this constant feeling can have on us. Will you internalize it and start to doubt yourself, never believing that you are good enough and always cutting yourself down, holding yourself back in order to “protect” the people you love from who you perceive yourself to be? Or will it be more external for you, where you stop trusting everyone around you, stop expecting anything from anyone, and build up your walls higher and higher to stop others from getting in, often running away or hurting them before they can hurt you? This book explores these concepts deeply through our beautiful, messy, flawed, and ever-so-lovable protagonists.
This book isn’t really about romance, though there is romance, and it is technically a romance novel. This is a book about finding self-love, self-discovery/fully realizing your autonomy/ learning how to be a whole independent person on your own (something a lot of people never learn how to do when they spend their entire 20s in LTRs), FRIENDSHIP, and confronting your past so you can move forward with the future you deserve. This is a book about two complicated people who have messy, complicated relationships and their journey through healing after a lifetime of repressed emotion and trauma for both of them.
The way they navigate through will have you laughing, crying, rolling your eyes, and at one point (for me) wanting to scream. I felt all the emotions and swooned all the swoons. I couldn’t have loved this book more. And of course, it really goes without saying, Julia Whalen is, as always, utter perfection. She is HANDS DOWN the best narrator in the business.
Okay, now moving on. Funny Story is Emily Henry at her best. I wasn’t sure if she would ever top Happy Place for me emotionally or Book Lovers for me in the swooning department, but with this novel she managed to outdo herself and completely blow her previous works out of the water.
Daphne and Miles are two people who have been repeatedly beaten down by the people who are supposed to love them. And haven’t we all felt that way before? What I loved about this book was the character study of the effect that growing up with this constant feeling can have on us. Will you internalize it and start to doubt yourself, never believing that you are good enough and always cutting yourself down, holding yourself back in order to “protect” the people you love from who you perceive yourself to be? Or will it be more external for you, where you stop trusting everyone around you, stop expecting anything from anyone, and build up your walls higher and higher to stop others from getting in, often running away or hurting them before they can hurt you? This book explores these concepts deeply through our beautiful, messy, flawed, and ever-so-lovable protagonists.
This book isn’t really about romance, though there is romance, and it is technically a romance novel. This is a book about finding self-love, self-discovery/fully realizing your autonomy/ learning how to be a whole independent person on your own (something a lot of people never learn how to do when they spend their entire 20s in LTRs), FRIENDSHIP, and confronting your past so you can move forward with the future you deserve. This is a book about two complicated people who have messy, complicated relationships and their journey through healing after a lifetime of repressed emotion and trauma for both of them.
The way they navigate through will have you laughing, crying, rolling your eyes, and at one point (for me) wanting to scream. I felt all the emotions and swooned all the swoons. I couldn’t have loved this book more. And of course, it really goes without saying, Julia Whalen is, as always, utter perfection. She is HANDS DOWN the best narrator in the business.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment
Moderate: Cursing, Drug use, Sexual content, Alcohol
Minor: Infidelity
The drug is literally just regular marijuana. It’s not anything crazy or serious and it’s occasional, casual usage, not incessant, lifestyle usage.
emotional
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:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cursing, Drug use, Sexual content, Alcohol
emotional
funny
hopeful
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
You know I was a bit on the fence with Emily Henry's books. I loved "Beach Read". I enjoyed "People We Meet On Vacation". I wasn't a fan of "Book Lovers" and I thought "Happy Place" was fine. So her latest releases weren't spectacular to me, but she's still an auto-read author for me because I do enjoy her writing and the way she writes banter. Now with that being said, it has been a while since I've consumed one of her books so I don't know if it's just me but her writing felt different in this book. And I'm not sure if I feel good or bad about it. It's certainly not bad, but it doesn't make me feel over the moon about it either. However, I don't feel indifferent or neutral towards it either. I don't know. There were some parts where I wasn't a fan of her writing and there were other parts where I relished in it and ate it up. For the most part, as I was reading, her writing felt like she was talking to me, like we were chatting and she was telling me an overly detailed story, which isn't a bad thing. I feel like the informalness of her writing at times made the book more relatable. Everything felt like how a real person would say or act while still remaining true to certain romance tropes (although I really wished she utilized the one-bed situation; I didn't realize how much I loved the "one-bed trope" until I love the couple; this book was definitely not prioritizing tropes which isn't a bad thing but it's just something to keep in mind when going into it).
But anyway, all that writing talk aside to say that I really enjoyed this book. And I'm really glad I did. To be honest out of all her books I think these characters are the ones I relate to the most. I don't know how she does it but literally, the first 10% of this book had me laughing, getting angry, and tearing up a bit. I find Daphne's and Miles's initial encounters with one another hilarious. And I really enjoyed their dynamic throughout the entire book. I LOVED both of them! Miles was a sweetheart through and through. He is an acts of service and quality time king! And oh my gosh he's so thoughtful towards her even before they start to develop romantic feelings for each other (not to mention he's an absolute gem at reassurance). He would do little things for her and it just melted my heart to read because I'm a sucker for thoughtfulness and consideration. He literally had me smiling and giggling like a little schoolgirl. I smiled SO much during this book! I really enjoyed reading about Daphne and her struggles and just how her situation with her parents and Peter truly affected her and how she views her place in other people's lives. I found her perspective to be so relatable; always feeling like you're always "second" and having that constant feeling that people who want to hang out with you are only doing it out of charity or because they're doing you a favor. I also related so much to her constant fear of abandonment which in turn leads her to unintentionally become reclusive to other people in fear that they'll hurt her or leave her. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about her internal struggles and her self-discovery journey from becoming a "we" to an "I" (if you know, you know).
I would have to re-read her other books, but I am most definitely confident in saying that Daphne Vincent is most definitely my favorite Emily Hentry female lead. In addition to being my favorite female lead, I think Miles may have to be my favorite male lead from her (sorry Gus). I found it refreshing how he wasn't a caricature of the perfect male lead, even the way he was described was realistic. Someone commented on this book saying that their main grievance with it was that we didn't get to know enough about Miles, which is fair. And I do wish we could more of him and his backstory, however, I personally think the stuff that we did get about him was sufficient. Not only do I love him because of the way he treats Daphne, but I also feel in love with his charisma and his ability to be a people person. Similarly to Daphne I personally relate so much to Miles's internal struggles as well. He has trouble trusting himself and his own judgment due to some very faulty parenting and feels like his own place in other people's lives is redundant. He finds it easy being the happy-go-lucky guy because it's easier to not disappoint people who only see you on a surface-level stance. And this is what I admired about Miles and Daphne's dynamic the most. He SAW her and she SAW him! And I understand that certain readers may think they won't last (which is totally understandable), but I love them so much that my hope for them transcends all doubt.
I also genuinely enjoyed the friendship between Ashleigh and Daphne in this book, especially in the last quarter. They really showed up for one another and their little reunion most definitely had my eyes watering. (and i love the relationship between her and her mom; emily henry is so good at writing child-parent dynamics)
As I mentioned before with her writing there are just so many quotes in here that I just wanted to tab, highlight, and underline. And it's not due to the lyricalness of her quotes, but the RELATABILITY that they held. There are SO MANY quotes or pieces of dialogue that I relate to in this book, it's insane! I felt like she was speaking to me when she wrote this. I seriously see myself re-reading this book and doing just that. I seriously read this book at the perfect time!
I enjoy this book so much that even the 3rd act conflict didn't bother me (too much). Now not gonna lie, when I read it I was both sad and upset (because I love Daphne and Mile so much). I seriously wonder how we were gonna come back from this, but I personally think Emily Henry did a good job in tying things together and having it make sense.
I think the first 25%-30% and the last quarter of this book were my favorite. I was so invested and tearing up so much during the last 100 pages of this book. I was seriously holding on for dear life hoping everything was gonna be okay. Now I know how much I'm raving about this book you'd expect it to be a 5-star, however, (and I think this is a personal issue) I like to note that although the premise of this book still holds true there still isn't much plot to this book. We're just watching Daphne's life after what Peter did to her. So, therefore, I found certain mundane parts of this book to be pretty boring. And because I love Miles and Daphne and literally eat up every scene that they're in, I found myself wanting more of them when those mundane parts would come in. Also, liked I stated before there were just certain parts in the writing that weren't clicking with me for some reason. And I do feel like the book was a bit too long. I think I would've given this book 5-star if the romance between Miles and Daphne was the main focus and we were following both of their journeys towards self-discovery because I do really wish we got a bit more on Miles. Nonetheless, I still thoroughly enjoyed this book, obviously. I could read about Daphne and Miles forever. I kid you not, when I finished this book I was lowkey perplexed that it was over I was sad that the story was over and that wasn't gonna get any more of them (i highkey wanted to see them date for real; cuz lowkey this book was just build up for their relationship). And I think if I were to re-read this book and take my time with it I might just appreciate those mundane parts of the book for what they are. All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed this book (obviously) and I'm so glad I gave Emily Henry another chance; I can't wait for her future releases to come!
Spice Rating: 🌶️🌶️/5
But anyway, all that writing talk aside to say that I really enjoyed this book. And I'm really glad I did. To be honest out of all her books I think these characters are the ones I relate to the most. I don't know how she does it but literally, the first 10% of this book had me laughing, getting angry, and tearing up a bit. I find Daphne's and Miles's initial encounters with one another hilarious. And I really enjoyed their dynamic throughout the entire book. I LOVED both of them! Miles was a sweetheart through and through. He is an acts of service and quality time king! And oh my gosh he's so thoughtful towards her even before they start to develop romantic feelings for each other (not to mention he's an absolute gem at reassurance). He would do little things for her and it just melted my heart to read because I'm a sucker for thoughtfulness and consideration. He literally had me smiling and giggling like a little schoolgirl. I smiled SO much during this book! I really enjoyed reading about Daphne and her struggles and just how her situation with her parents and Peter truly affected her and how she views her place in other people's lives. I found her perspective to be so relatable; always feeling like you're always "second" and having that constant feeling that people who want to hang out with you are only doing it out of charity or because they're doing you a favor. I also related so much to her constant fear of abandonment which in turn leads her to unintentionally become reclusive to other people in fear that they'll hurt her or leave her. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about her internal struggles and her self-discovery journey from becoming a "we" to an "I" (if you know, you know).
I would have to re-read her other books, but I am most definitely confident in saying that Daphne Vincent is most definitely my favorite Emily Hentry female lead. In addition to being my favorite female lead, I think Miles may have to be my favorite male lead from her (sorry Gus). I found it refreshing how he wasn't a caricature of the perfect male lead, even the way he was described was realistic. Someone commented on this book saying that their main grievance with it was that we didn't get to know enough about Miles, which is fair. And I do wish we could more of him and his backstory, however, I personally think the stuff that we did get about him was sufficient. Not only do I love him because of the way he treats Daphne, but I also feel in love with his charisma and his ability to be a people person. Similarly to Daphne I personally relate so much to Miles's internal struggles as well. He has trouble trusting himself and his own judgment due to some very faulty parenting and feels like his own place in other people's lives is redundant. He finds it easy being the happy-go-lucky guy because it's easier to not disappoint people who only see you on a surface-level stance. And this is what I admired about Miles and Daphne's dynamic the most. He SAW her and she SAW him! And I understand that certain readers may think they won't last (which is totally understandable), but I love them so much that my hope for them transcends all doubt.
I also genuinely enjoyed the friendship between Ashleigh and Daphne in this book, especially in the last quarter. They really showed up for one another and their little reunion most definitely had my eyes watering. (and i love the relationship between her and her mom; emily henry is so good at writing child-parent dynamics)
As I mentioned before with her writing there are just so many quotes in here that I just wanted to tab, highlight, and underline. And it's not due to the lyricalness of her quotes, but the RELATABILITY that they held. There are SO MANY quotes or pieces of dialogue that I relate to in this book, it's insane! I felt like she was speaking to me when she wrote this. I seriously see myself re-reading this book and doing just that. I seriously read this book at the perfect time!
I enjoy this book so much that even the 3rd act conflict didn't bother me (too much). Now not gonna lie, when I read it I was both sad and upset (because I love Daphne and Mile so much). I seriously wonder how we were gonna come back from this, but I personally think Emily Henry did a good job in tying things together and having it make sense.
I think the first 25%-30% and the last quarter of this book were my favorite. I was so invested and tearing up so much during the last 100 pages of this book. I was seriously holding on for dear life hoping everything was gonna be okay. Now I know how much I'm raving about this book you'd expect it to be a 5-star, however, (and I think this is a personal issue) I like to note that although the premise of this book still holds true there still isn't much plot to this book. We're just watching Daphne's life after what Peter did to her. So, therefore, I found certain mundane parts of this book to be pretty boring. And because I love Miles and Daphne and literally eat up every scene that they're in, I found myself wanting more of them when those mundane parts would come in. Also, liked I stated before there were just certain parts in the writing that weren't clicking with me for some reason. And I do feel like the book was a bit too long. I think I would've given this book 5-star if the romance between Miles and Daphne was the main focus and we were following both of their journeys towards self-discovery because I do really wish we got a bit more on Miles. Nonetheless, I still thoroughly enjoyed this book, obviously. I could read about Daphne and Miles forever. I kid you not, when I finished this book I was lowkey perplexed that it was over I was sad that the story was over and that wasn't gonna get any more of them (i highkey wanted to see them date for real; cuz lowkey this book was just build up for their relationship). And I think if I were to re-read this book and take my time with it I might just appreciate those mundane parts of the book for what they are. All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed this book (obviously) and I'm so glad I gave Emily Henry another chance; I can't wait for her future releases to come!
Spice Rating: 🌶️🌶️/5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Grief
Minor: Cursing, Drug use, Alcohol
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Sexual content
Moderate: Alcohol
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Characters: 3
Connection to the book/Enjoyment: 3
Setting: 3
Plot/Overall Story: 3
Writing: 4
Every point= 0.25 stars, max per category 4 points
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cursing, Infidelity, Sexual content, Abandonment
Minor: Drug use, Alcohol
emotional
funny
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
Daphne ends up becoming roommates with her ex-fiancee's new fiancee's ex-boyfriend. Despite not previously getting along, their forced proximity leads to a fake dating situation which develops into more. The secondary characters were supportive and funny. There were lots of family issues on both sides which weren't necessarily resolved, but the main characters grow through them.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Sexual content
Minor: Cursing, Alcohol
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-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
Emily Henry delivers another addicting escape into someone else's problems, and once again gives us more than we bargained for. The protagonists are instantly loveable, and the 'voice' of Daphne is one that frequently elicited laugher raucous enough for my husband to give me a curious side-eye. Of course, because it's a Henry book, the humor is balanced beautifully with all the trappings of working through trauma. Funny Story was an absolute delight!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Cursing, Alcohol
Minor: Drug use
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
sad
fast-paced
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Abandonment, Alcohol
Moderate: Cursing, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, Classism
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Emily Henry is my queen! 👑 Everything she writes is always equal parts funny and heartfelt. Funny Story goes beyond the standard fake dating trope to tell a deeply meaningful story about love; romantic, familial, and platonic. I really enjoyed Daphne’s journey of self-discovery. Her character arc was extremely satisfying. I also loved the layers to Miles. His character was surprisingly soft. As always, the side characters and the communal setting were as much a testament to the love story as the main characters. I’m already looking forward to rereading this.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Cursing, Toxic relationship
Minor: Vomit, Alcohol
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
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
Julia Whelan remains QUEEN OF AUDIOBOOKS. Love her so much and this was an easy listen because of her.
I liked this story just fine, but I didn't love it the way I expected to. Like all of the previous EH novels I've read in the past, it hits on some heavy hitting topics and has depth in ways that a lot of romcoms miss. But interestingly enough, I don't think I would classify this book as "funny" at all, and I guess I was expecting more humor with the title having FUNNY in it?
The setting of the story may have been my favorite part and it definitely has me excited to visit Michigan this summer! The town felt like a character in and of itself, it felt very Stars Hollow in a way. Some of the characters throughout the town really made it fun, too. I do wish that the setting of Daphne's work, the library, had been better fleshed out.
I liked Miles a lot (despite his constant wearing of Crocs) and I found him very endearing. I wish we had seen more growth in Daphne throughout the story, but she also was a very realistic, believable character. I wish we had gotten more of Julia.
Overall, it was a decent book and I wasn't bored, but it's not my favorite romance I'll read in 2024.
I liked this story just fine, but I didn't love it the way I expected to. Like all of the previous EH novels I've read in the past, it hits on some heavy hitting topics and has depth in ways that a lot of romcoms miss. But interestingly enough, I don't think I would classify this book as "funny" at all, and I guess I was expecting more humor with the title having FUNNY in it?
The setting of the story may have been my favorite part and it definitely has me excited to visit Michigan this summer! The town felt like a character in and of itself, it felt very Stars Hollow in a way. Some of the characters throughout the town really made it fun, too. I do wish that the setting of Daphne's work, the library, had been better fleshed out.
I liked Miles a lot (despite his constant wearing of Crocs) and I found him very endearing. I wish we had seen more growth in Daphne throughout the story, but she also was a very realistic, believable character. I wish we had gotten more of Julia.
Overall, it was a decent book and I wasn't bored, but it's not my favorite romance I'll read in 2024.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Cursing, Abandonment