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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:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment
Moderate: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity
Minor: Cancer
emotional
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Abandonment
Minor: Child abuse, Emotional abuse
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I liked this one from the start, and I liked learning about the characters. The third act kinda got under my skin, but I guess that's what third acts do--particularly to me.
There is some childhood trauma and unhealthy family dynamics on both sides, so get ready to revisit your abandonment issues and why you feel so unlovable. Just me?
Emily Henry knows how to write a monologue!
There is some childhood trauma and unhealthy family dynamics on both sides, so get ready to revisit your abandonment issues and why you feel so unlovable. Just me?
Emily Henry knows how to write a monologue!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment
Moderate: Drug use, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Alcohol
emotional
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
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Sexual content
adventurous
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Daphne was jilted by her fiancé, Peter, the day after his bachelor party. Peter realized he was in love with his forever best friend and fellow bachelor party attendee, Petra. Peter had told Daphne that he loved Petra like a sister, but when Petra revealed her long-held love for him, he did the same. Since Daphne moved to Waning Bay to live with Peter, she had to find a new place to live. Most of the people she knew in town were Peter’s friends or family. While she was worrying about lodging, Miles, Petra’s boyfriend arrived looking for Petra. Since Daphne had no other options she could think of, she asked if she could move into Miles’s apartment while she looked for a place of her own.
This was all kinds of cute. Miles was the sweetest guy. He tried to make Daphne feel welcome and showed her sights around town that Peter never offered to her. He seemed to be friends with everyone. Daphne was also wonderful. She was a librarian and loved working with children and teens the most. Both were very supportive of the other and went out of their way to be kind and a good friend. I loved the secondary characters so much. Julia, Miles’s little sister, was a kick. She brought them out of their funk by getting them out of the apartment. Daphne’s co-worker, Ashleigh, was also amusing. I loved the monthly poker game she had with friends of her late mother. As expected over time, both Miles and Daphne fall for each other. The third act break-up was a little messy for me and I wished Henry had tweaked it a bit to make it read more straightforwardly. Overall, it was one of my favorites by Henry.
Both Daphne and Miles had unresolved family trauma caused by a parent (her- father him- mother) which factored into some of the choices they made in the story. If this is a content area that is concerning for you, please check out content warnings online.
This was all kinds of cute. Miles was the sweetest guy. He tried to make Daphne feel welcome and showed her sights around town that Peter never offered to her. He seemed to be friends with everyone. Daphne was also wonderful. She was a librarian and loved working with children and teens the most. Both were very supportive of the other and went out of their way to be kind and a good friend. I loved the secondary characters so much. Julia, Miles’s little sister, was a kick. She brought them out of their funk by getting them out of the apartment. Daphne’s co-worker, Ashleigh, was also amusing. I loved the monthly poker game she had with friends of her late mother. As expected over time, both Miles and Daphne fall for each other. The third act break-up was a little messy for me and I wished Henry had tweaked it a bit to make it read more straightforwardly. Overall, it was one of my favorites by Henry.
Both Daphne and Miles had unresolved family trauma caused by a parent (her- father him- mother) which factored into some of the choices they made in the story. If this is a content area that is concerning for you, please check out content warnings online.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Abandonment
Moderate: Infidelity, Toxic relationship, 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
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Abandonment, Alcohol
emotional
funny
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Emily does it again. She makes me fall in love with characters that are so real, I feel like they’re mirrors of myself or friends I’ve made throughout life. I loved Daphne and Miles. Not only is it apparent he fell first, but he also fell harder. I love that for Daphne. I really like the peaks of family drama that came through in this one! I liked that sometimes, people are just shitty and we have to deal.
I loved how fun and petty this felt at times. That first kiss was iconic.
This one may be my favorite. Don’t tell Beach Read.
I loved how fun and petty this felt at times. That first kiss was iconic.
This one may be my favorite. Don’t tell Beach Read.
Content Warnings
Minor: Emotional abuse, Grief, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
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
Emily Henry has done it again (how does she keep catching magic in a bottle I don’t know?!). I read recently that many books dubbed romance miss the whole “falling in love” part of it and seem to be automatically in love the second the lock eyes. But I love reading about the messiness of it all. The getting over your own long held misbeliefs about yourself, your life, your relationships in order to allow yourself to be loved the way you should but never believed you would be worthy of.
THAT’S Emily Henry’s writing, especially in the case of Funny Story.
Henry nails down the psychology of the characters and the growth that needs to happen in a million little pockets, in a million different ways in a character’s life (not just in the realm of romance and relationships) in order for the character to be in a better place at the end of the book than where we started off. It’s more so about the character’s individual arc, the acceptance of love/romance is a wonderful byproduct of this.
I will never stop singing Henry’s praises, her books are funny (actually funny, I caught myself laughing out loud more than a few times), deeply romantic, emotional and SMART. And Funny Story embodies all of this.
THAT’S Emily Henry’s writing, especially in the case of Funny Story.
Henry nails down the psychology of the characters and the growth that needs to happen in a million little pockets, in a million different ways in a character’s life (not just in the realm of romance and relationships) in order for the character to be in a better place at the end of the book than where we started off. It’s more so about the character’s individual arc, the acceptance of love/romance is a wonderful byproduct of this.
I will never stop singing Henry’s praises, her books are funny (actually funny, I caught myself laughing out loud more than a few times), deeply romantic, emotional and SMART. And Funny Story embodies all of this.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Abandonment
emotional
funny
lighthearted
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
Minor: Emotional abuse