This basically fulfills your celebrity crush daydreams. Flipping time periods worked really well, it was like a jigsaw puzzle that as you read more all the pieces came together in the perfect order. The wrapping up at the end wasn't as enticing and addictive but still good. I really want to go dancing now, yum.

Chani is thrilled to get the opportunity to interview Gabe Parker. He is the on screen heart throb she can’t wait to learn more about. The interview is off to a rocky start however. Her questions suck, and his answers leave much to be desired. When he invites her to a movie premiere the next night however, Chani of course says yes. Maybe she will find more for her story…

When @Beccafreeman raved about this book I knew I needed to get myself a copy! I don’t have the same love for The Idea Of You that she does, but we generally agree on most books! I will start by saying that I read about 50 pages of this book, and then was finishing a different one but when I picked it back up, I finished it in one evening. The celebrity + normal person love story is always an interesting story and this book was no exception. I didn’t love the articles throughout the book, it took me out of the story a bit, and I felt like it was just repeating what we had just read or were about to read, but it’s a small part of the book overall. In the end, I really enjoyed this one and flew through it once I got into the story.

I really enjoyed this book! I loved the juxtaposition of the timeline from ten years ago concurrent with today’s events. I enjoyed the articles sprinkled in that gave insight into topics brought up in other parts of the book. I thought this book was really cute, funny, and heartwarming, and sweet!

Book tropes: right person/wrong time, Hollywood superstar and normie relationship, slow burn romance.

Chani Horowitz is tasked with interviewing Gabe Parker, famous actor starring in the upcoming Bond movie. She is quickly starstruck when meeting her childhood celebrity crush and finds him not only physically attractive but very sweet and attentive in person. He invites her to spend a weekend with him by attending a film premiere and after party on Saturday and a house party at his place on Sunday. Her piece on Gabe Parker is very successful and leaves everyone wanting to know the secret details of their weekend but she insists nothing unprofessional happened between her and Gabe Parker. Soon after the article is released, Gabe runs to Las Vegas and marries his costar and former model. Ten years pass, and Chani is assigned another interview with Gabe Parker. Can they finally address what happened all those years ago?

I loved this book. I thought it was well written and did great at captivating the readers. I really enjoyed the banter and the quirky remarks between Chani and Gabe. I loved Gabe and was rooting for his success. I loved the flow of the book but wish we had more background on their reunion and more details on what happened next. I will say that at times the jumping back and forth between timelines without proper titles to indicate which timeline the chapter was about was hard to follow at times, appearing very suddenly. Overall I highly recommend this book!

Oh god, this might become one of my favorite books of 2022, or even Of All Time! I got invited to review this all the way back in November and never got around to it until now, but god I wish I picked it up sooner! I found everything about this novel to be so poignant and heartfelt and just amazing. The writing style actually reminded me a little of Sally Rooney but with a little less presumptuous. Don't get me wrong, I love me some Sally Rooney, but I truly enjoyed that Sussman's writing wasn't trying too hard to sound preachy. Chani and Gabe are both filled with such longing and anger and disappointment and love, and you can't help but love them back and root for them. Ollie honestly stole the show though, if I'm being honest. He brought such wonderful insight into both Chani's and Gabe's life and my only wish for this novel was that we got just a little more of him. Funny You Should Ask is easily one of the best books I've read so far this year. If you haven't read this yet, you are severely missing out.

Synopsis:
When Chani, a young writer, gets hired to write a profile of her celebrity crush and the newly cast James Bond, she knows this opportunity will open big doors for her career. When what was supposed to be just one interview with the famous Gabe Parker turns into a weekend full of jello shots, a red carpet movie premiere, and Hollywood house party games- the tabloids are left to question..what really happened that weekend between Chani and Gabe?

Written in alternating timelines between then and ten years later- Chani still gets questioned about THE profile of Gabe, the one that skyrocketed her successful writing career 10 years prior. When Gabe’s PR team reaches out to Chani to recreate the interview for positive publicity, she hesitantly agrees. Because after everything that’s happened, she needs to know if he still thinks about that weekend too.

Thoughts:
I really enjoyed this book so much! This would be a perfect book for anyone that is going through a reading slump because of the alternating timelines and the multiple media segments scattered throughout- it’s highly engaging and found myself laughing out loud during some parts *cough cough* (dog bed).

I fell in love with Sussman’s writing style- it’s both humorous and addictive! This is a messy, complicated love story with morally-grey love interests. Some of their actions are not my favorites to see in romance novels, and even at times, I had mixed feelings about these characters, but in the end, I found myself rooting for them to get it together!!

I do wish that the media intertwined throughout the book had dates on it, just to help with the timeline. Although I understood generally when things were, 10 years is a long time and I would have enjoyed seeing when some things were spaced in relation to others; A lot happened that weekend and a lot happened in those 10 years both publicly and personally for these characters, and I feel like a couple of those events/components were mentioned but not fully fleshed out.

With that being said, this was a fun read and I will absolutely look into picking up Sussman’s other books!! Thank you to Netgalley, Random House Publishing, and Elissa Sussman for this copy in exchange for my review :)

Posted to Goodreads and Storygraph

"it’s you"
that’s how i felt with ‘funny you should ask’. i fell in love with this book from the first page. the premise itself had me hooked so i’m glad the book lived up to my expectations and even exceeded them. lately i’ve read books about hollywood, specifically romance books about actors. something i loved about this book in particular is how real the connection between chani and gabe felt. what they shared was real and them falling in love felt believable. i liked how there’s three parts and how we get to see the then and now, as well as the news articles and chani’s newsletter/blog. overall, this was a great book that had me shedding a few tears. thank you netgalley and the publisher for sharing an advanced copy of this book!

I started this book a while ago and then put it down, and didn't pick it up for a while. I wish I would've kept reading because I really enjoyed this book and flew through it!

You start by learning the back story of Chani, and how she came to write a story about her favorite celeb Gabe Parker. Then we jump back and forth throughout the weekends that she spent interviewing him, 10 years ago and now.

I love a back and forth in the story. I really enjoyed that this storyline went through each day, then and now, it was a very interesting plot layout. You come to have a soft spot for Gabe, and feel for Chani. Like many romance/rom coms, you want the best for the two in the end.

And obviously, you fall in love with Gabe's dog, and Ollie throughout the book.

There were many times where I had butterflies thinking about the lovely things that were happening between the two!

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This second chance romance was the perfect read for Valentine's Day. Chani and Gabe had excellent chemistry on the page and I loved the dual timelines and that both took place over a four day period. This isn't your normal fuzzy romance though, this story deals with some heavy issues like depression, self esteem, divorce, addiction and infidelity to mane but a few. But in between all that heartache was a lot of growing up and love. I loved watching our main characters change and mature over the ten years. I loved how the author incorporated the blog and magazine/newspaper articles. This was such an entertaining book that was heartfelt and heartbreaking but oh so romantic too...what a unique premise as well. And a special shout out to that wonderful cover!

If you have read THAT infamous GQ profile of CEvans one or 2 or 5—whatever, some totally normal number of—times, entranced by the crackle, the teasing possibility, the “what if” of it all, then you’ll likely revel in Elissa Sussman’s FUNNY YOU SHOULD ASK.

There’s an irresistible allure to its set-up: a normal, flawed, average-ish woman is thrown in with a gleaming, Dorito-shaped Hollywood heartthrob, and finds that even heartthrobs are human. And that this one, in particular, is also an “aw shucks, mom” boy-next-door behind the pomp and circumstance of his fame. Their spark is something. Or maybe it’s nothing. It becomes a thing for public consumption, speculation, and then it becomes an unanswered question. For ten years.

Until the two are thrown together again, two divorces and some wildly diverging career trajectories later.

This one had a heady vibe similar to Zan Romanoff’s Grace and the Fever (a 2017 novel about a girl and a boy in a band; not, it must be clarified in 2022, about a girl and a viral pandemic). FUNNY YOU SHOULD ASK is fun & frothy, a deliciously indulgent snack, and I gobbled it down in a single sitting.

[grid post link to come closer to pub date]

I'm usually not a fan of romance, but this one was excellent, It felt fresh, and the characters were relatable. I will definitely be recommending this book to a lot of people, especially my friends who loved The Idea of You by Robinne Le,e, these books had a very similar vibe!

Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

This was a cute book with likable characters. The story goes back and forth between two weekends 10 years apart. A reporter and her celebrity crush she is doing a profile on. I really enjoyed the time jumps and alternating timelines and how the story was pieced together.

Overall it was a quick fun read and I think it will be a hit for those who enjoy the second chance and miscommunication tropes.

Funny You Should Ask is an entertaining romance novel about Chani, a journalist who writes a story about Gabe, an actor, that goes viral after she shares details of their weekend together. Then, 10 years later she is asked to interview him again. The reader finds out more details of their past as the book goes on. It also includes Chani's articles, as well as articles and posts written by others, so it's fun to see the different perspectives and what Chani includes and omits. It's a charming story, and the 2 leads are very likable and relatable, considering one of them is a famous movie star. I am totally confused about the title, I did a search and this phrase, while not completely off base, is not used in the book once. But the cover art is lovely. This book is not going to change your life, but it's an entertaining read, and would make a great movie!

This was a really fun romance to read. Chani Horowitz interviewed a movie star 10 years ago and launched her writing career. Now they are reuniting for a second interview. So much has changed in both of their lives. Is the spark that was there 10 years ago still something that can be kindled? Funny and heart warming.

I do love a good second chance romance story and this one did not disappoint. It was fascinating to see the two main characters reunite after many years pining. They had both matured in the meantime. This is a fun and entertaining story.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Funny You Should Ask by Elissa Sussman was an okay read, but a cute read nonetheless. There were a lot of interesting characters and the prose was good, but it was a slower read.

I read this book fairly quickly, but it still felt like a slow read to me. I think that’s often true of the back-and-forth between past and present. I just want to know what is happening now and can pretty easily imagine how things fell apart before, without dedicating half the book to recounting it. I almost feel as though this particular story would have been better served with a prologue of what happened 10 years ago, and then telling the the rest of the story more linearly in the present. I found myself wishing I could be in Gabe’s head some of the time, because while I didn’t find Chani unlikeable, I found her POV pretty repetitive.. And at times it felt like more effort was being put into keeping us in the hook about what ~really~ happened that weekend than actually spent the reader what these two see in each other. Because despite being in Chani’s POV the entire time, I got to the end of the book and still didn’t know exactly why her twenty-something self had fallen in love with Gabe. She spends so much time thinking about how she could exploit the situation but doesn’t, or how this is so unprofessional, or how he probably doesn’t even like her but just wants good press, and very little time thinking about what she sees in him beyond his celebrity. And of course we can assume that Gabe fell in love with Chani’s drunken quirkiness, but I don’t know. In the Present, I understood a lot more of what they saw in each other (or at least what Chani saw in Gabe) but since their present relationship really depended on that past chemistry/history, I just felt like there was something to be desired.

Overall, I thought <i> Funny You Should Ask</i> was a fun, fluffy rom-com. Ten years ago Chani, a young journalist trying to make her mark on the world, was sent to interview Hollywood's hottest male actor. Sparks fly and Chani's article goes viral. However, that's only half the story of what occurred when the two met. When the pair meet up again ten years later they have to come to terms with their feelings for each other and what happened that weekend.

The book is really fun, but at times Chani feels a little too Mary Sue (everyone loves her! Instantly!), and the supporting characters can be a little flat. Her ex is so awful, it makes you wonder why Chani would stay with such a knob for 10 years (we don't find out).

If you're a fan of Hollywood gossip, the story definitely seems based on the infamous Channing Tatum interview where he takes the interviewer camping.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC of the book.

This book was very slow for me. I was surprised that even being a miscommunication trope, it wasn't as enjoyable. Needless to say I put it down and tried again after 4 days. I enjoyed the story, don't get me wrong and the writing but didn’t relate or like the characters. It was a very slow burn.

"Funny You Should Ask" had a really great premise. I was really excited for some "famous-non-famous" relationship as well as a a rekindled romance. I was really excited to start this one, BUT, I was not as happy with the end result as I anticipated. The book features the miscommunication trope, which is not a fan-favorite by any means. This is definitely a slow-burn, which I can normally get into if done well, but it just wasn't working for me in this one. Those who are a fan of those elements I just mentioned are in for a treat though. All in all, in my opinion, the book fell short.

This is a story about expectations.  Chani Horowitz feels like she is falling behind her classmates from her MFA program, including her ex-boyfriend.  While they are securing book deals, she is spending most of her time writing fawning celebrity profiles.  Her latest assignment -- to profile her celebrity crush, movie star Gabe Parker who is about to take on the role of James Bond -- seems like it will be more of the same.  Much to Chani's surprise, she and Gabe seem to develop a connection that transcends the interview.  Instead of a single afternoon, they end up spending the entire weekend together.  Chani leaves Gabe's house at the end of the weekend wondering what to make of their relationship.

But things don't go quite as she expects.  She and Gabe never really reconnect.  But she does write a profile of their weekend together that catapults her career to the next level.  Chani becomes a successful essayist and a much sought-after writer.  Ten years later, Chani is divorced and frustrated by how much her career has been defined by "The Profile" of Gabe who, after initial success as James Bond, has seen his movie career stall.  When Gabe's team reaches out to ask Chani to conduct a second interview of Gabe as he seeks to relaunch his career with a new movie, she is skeptical.  But she can't resist the opportunity to reconnect with Gabe and finally get to the bottom of what happened that weekend a decade ago.

I really enjoyed this book! The premise is terrific, and very well executed.  The structure of the story -- switching between Chani and Gabe's initial meeting and their second interview 10 years later -- worked well for telling this story.  Chani and Gabe are both compelling, and flawed, characters, and I was highly engaged as the story unveiled what their lives has been like over the decade between their two meetings -- and the mystery of what had happened after the magical first weekend.  I very much enjoyed the author's previous book, Drawn That Way, and this one was, if anything, even better -- the author has a real talent for crafting authentic and intriguing characters.

Heartily recommended!