Reviews with content warning for Sexual harassment - Funny You Should Ask

When we first meet our journalist, Chani, she is a little ball of anger and embarrassment, most of which is directed at Gabe Parker, irrationally hot former movie star. One fateful interview a decade ago led to a whirlwind weekend between them, but things didn't end the way either of them (or the rest of us) hoped.
Rather than flat up front, their story is told through a series of flashbacks, articles, and snapshots from the present.

While I can definitively say I enjoyed reading Funny You Should Ask, I also found myself regularly rolling my eyes at Chani. I found her immature and incapable of recognizing her own faults, so much so that

Spoiler

Gabe literally calls her on it shortly before the book ends.

I think the structure of their story is thoughtful, and their characterizations include a lot of wit and charm. I just also want to hold Chani by the shoulders and very sternly remind her that she is nearing 40.

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auudrey's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful lighthearted relaxing fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

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mjwhitlock18's review against another edition

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emotional funny

3.5

A slow-burn, second chance romance between Gabe Parker, a movie star cast to play the new James Bond, and Chani Horowitz, the journalist hired to write a profile about him. After a wild weekend that leaves rumors spiraling, they part ways. Now, 10 years later, she gets an offer to write another piece on him. They’re both drastically different people, but some things haven’t changed.

I listened to this on audiobook, and the narrator did a great job using voices to distinguish characters (even if her British accent is subpar). The timeline alternates between the present and a decade ago, which occasionally got confusing when I was listening (might’ve been easier if I was reading a hard copy), but if I gave it enough time, I was usually able to pick up by context.

Ollie is one of my favorite side characters ever. I wish he’d gotten more development, but he’s such a good friend and voice of reality. I appreciate how realistic and flawed the main characters are; Gabe isn’t the perfect golden boy and Chani is a bit cringe tbh. It has some insta-love vibes, which aren’t always my thing. Feels a bit like fan fiction at times, but take it at face value, and it’s a cute, easy, satisfying read.

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thesmutsister_emma's review against another edition

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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

3.75

Almost, But Not Quite
I am about to commit the sin of all reviewing sins... and make a book comparison. When I first started this book, I devoured the first 25% of it the night I got it on Libby. I was so excited, and if you know me, you are aware of why this is the case. I read Love and Other Words by Christina Lauren last year and have been searching for something similar ever since. Despite being a similar setup, as you can tell from the title, lightening did not quite strike twice in this case.

In Funny You Should Ask, we follow Chani and Gabe on two different sets of interviews a decade apart. We see an alternating timeline, observing what happened ten years ago, versus what is happening in present day. I thought this set up was going to be what did it for me because it was one of the things I adored about Love and Other Words, yet I found myself searching for more.

The Characters
Chani: I felt like when it came to Chani's character, there was much left to be said. I did not feel like I could name any of her personality traits other than the fact that she is Jewish, she is a writer, and she enjoys Star Trek (and has a weird thing for dogs' tongues...) It didn't really feel like I was reading a three dimensional character. I felt like a lot of everything that came with her was very surface level.
Gabe: I feel very similarly about Gabe as I did about Chani. I feel as though most of what happened in this book with Gabe was very surface level. Not a lot of it felt much deeper than if someone had yelled "For the plot!"and carried on. There was an attempt to try to explain why Gabe fell in love with Chani the first time around but honestly? It felt very shallow. Not everything has to have this huge, deeper meaning behind it, but this one didn't really make sense. And it really didn't make sense as to why he still cared ten years later. There was not much there other than common interests and physical attraction that gave me any reason to believe these two should still be in love.

Things I Loved
I adored the set up of this. The idea of a weekend long interview and then an attempt to recreate it to revive Gabe's career was such an amazing concept. I also loved Chani's blog posts and being able to see what she had written over the years, as well as what had been said about each of the characters. It was a neat spin to give some more outside info.

Things I Didn't Love
The way that these characters interacted was amazing, I just wish it had gone deeper. Maybe a few more interactions over the years or more the first time around would have helped me fall in love alongside them. I feel like had I read this before other books with this main trope that I would have enjoyed it more.

The Final Verdict
If you are wanting a second chance romance that is a mash up of. Emily Henry and Christina Lauren's writing styles with a little bit of Lucy Score, this is definitely the one for you. Sending all my love to you and Teddy.

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