Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

Chani Horowitz is a writer and celebrity interviewer. Gabe Parker is one of Hollywood’s most famous A-list actors. Ten years ago, under the premise of an interview, Chani and Gabe spend one weekend together, which changes the trajectory of both their careers and their feelings towards each other irreversibly. Now, ten years later, Chani and Gabe take the chance to meet again. Can they reconcile their pasts and the years they spent apart?

I have to admit, what initially attracted me to this book was the kitschy cover, which stands out nicely from the cartoony pastels of minimalism of other romance books. The premise was right up my alley as well: one special weekend, a decade of pining, and the inevitable reunion where everything they’ve felt over the last 10 years will be laid out on the table. I came in wanting yearning and angst, and I think all in all I can say I got what I wanted.

Chani and Gabe are both instantly likable characters, and from the second they met the chemistry was palpable. I was skeptical that a three-day weekend could be meaningful enough that two people could realistically spend ten years hung up on what it meant to them, and yet this book was able to convince me. I love how well Sussman fleshed out both Chani and Gabe’s characters. Their struggles (divorce, drug abuse, insecurities) felt strikingly human. Their conversations were a perfect mix of between witty banter and serious connection, and I was fully convinced that they experienced something special in the seventy-two hours they were together. Their dynamic doesn’t fall into any obvious romance tropes, which made it all the more interesting to see how well these two were able to connect with each other.

The only things I have to complain about is that I wish there was more of it. Their reunion, although executed adequately, was slightly rushed and honestly had a LOT more potential for exploring these two characters. The timeline was also confusing at times, there were a couple instances where the sudden jumping between present and past had me forgetting where we were in the timeline. Overall though, I really enjoyed reading about these 2 characters. 4 stars!

I absolutely loved this one. Can’t wait to read more by this author. This completely blew me away. I fell in love with the characters instantly and couldn’t put it down.

I found this one to be cute and funny, but I did get confused a few times by the timelines. I wasn't sure where we were.
I liked the look back on their first meeting and how that affected this second meeting.
Cute but a little confusing to follow.

Thanks NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!

I truly struggled to finish this novel. The premise sounded right up my alley but the execution wasn’t there. I constantly found myself confused by the different narration timelines. I also didn’t understand how the characters fell in love so quickly. I love a good romance but unfortunately this one fell flat for me.

I’ve read books with a similar premise so I was worried this would feel derivative and inferior and at first I was pleasantly surprised but then I found myself bored. I think a large part of that is the choice of formatting this book. It jumps around chronologically between the first meeting between Chani and Gabe and then set ten years later. I think that ruined the momentum of their story. At critical points there would be time jumps that would be confusing about where the story had left off. Even worse, there are all too frequent story articles between chapters that actually give away content before the reader has gotten the longer version. Once you’ve read the condensed version there’s no interest in reading the detailed version. It’s very strange for an author to choose to put in actual plot spoilers.

The beginning is fun and is a great light hearted story as the would be writer gets the chance to interview her crush, the mega star Gabe Parker, but unfortunately after that it starts to go so downhill I left this book unread for days at a time. Which is a lot for a bookworm like myself. Chani becomes annoying as a character, especially one so much of the story depends upon. She has a lot of bitterness about her life choices, which is obviously well deserved as is made clear by the all too frequent references to them. Gabe comes across far better and far more interesting, however he, and any romance between the two, gets very little page time. Their story felt drawn out and yet rushed at the same time. This book felt like a great premise with half of the duo well considered which is not enough to carry a story. I much preferred The Seat Filler which has a similar premise but much better execution. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I requested to read and review this book for free from Delacorte Press. This book has a lot going on. And you may struggle at first with the background and the back and forth from present to past. But stick with it the book is worth it. The ending is what I think it should be. The storyline has drama, romance, mystery. Can two people from different sides of the life instantly connect? The two main characters Gabe and Chani have a lot to do with book but don't dismiss the few supporting characters because they help plan a part on his this will work out and the in between. Misunderstanding can be dangerous. Love has no time line. And life has a way of making things happen when they need to. This book can be read anywhere but would recommend a mature reader.

This book has an interesting premise, just something about it didn't quite vibe with me and it seemed a bit snoozy to dive into the action. It's definitely well-written and descriptive, just something about the story felt a bit snoozy to me. Some of the time jumps seemed out of place and left me confused, however, I was intrigued by both POVs, I just wasn't a total fan of its organization.

“Funny you should ask” was…. Slow. I kept at it, thinking it would engage more. It never fully sucked me in. Chani, a writer with no self confidence (which we have to hear about over and over again because she never gets any, even over 10 years). Gabe, an alcoholic actor. Their story is told in sections of THEN (10 years ago when Chani wrote an article about Gabe) and NOW when they reconnect. It has articles (both the infamous one from Chani and others) throughout to help give context. Chani’s “viral” article to me seems rather tame. And honestly, the whole premise was…not believable to me. I wanted to like this one. I just couldn’t.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Chani Horowitz was chosen to interview Gabe Parker, the actor chosen to be the new James Bond. The interview takes place over 3 days with Gabe and Chani spending a lot of time together, having a long lunch, attending a movie premiere and even attending a Hollywood party at Gabe's house. They seem to have a spark, but right after the interview, Gabe marries his co-star, which leaves Chani heartbroken. She goes on to marry the man she is dating.

Fast forward ten years, and Chani, who is divorced, is again asked to interview Gabe, who is also divorced. After a lot of back and forth, that includes a lunch and the diner where the first interview took place, and a trip to Montana in a private plane, they decide they should be together and get married.

This book was so hard to read. It went back and forth from past to present and had newspaper articles inserted in, along with Chani's original article. There were characters who only showed up once, but who could have had a bigger role in Chani and Gabe's stories. The story line is good, but it is just the way that the book is put together. It was sometimes hard to keep up with what was going on with the characters.

A cute romance that, ultimately, I found charming. But, the novel has two fairly significant flaws for me. First, the narrative springs back and forth in time in a confusing way. I was lost a couple of time in the first third. Second, the reader must take a giant leap of faith about the intensity of the feelings here after such a short acquaintance.

Funny You Should Ask by Elissa Sussman is a second chance romance told in two timelines ten years apart. Chani is a writer and she's asked to interview the next Bond. When she meets Gabe, she totally fangirls and winds up spending three days with him, and completely denies for ten years than anything happened.

After Gabe's career flames out, Chani is asked to interview him again, so their next meetup isn't quite the same as the first. I found the timeline switches to be confusing, there were times I wasn't sure what timeline I was in when they switched. There were some cute, romantic parts to the story and I loved the scenes that Oliver was in. It was a cute story. Thanks to the author, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Dell and NetGalley for an ARC of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

Well. Well well well. What a surprise. I mean, I knew the outline of the plot and I figured it would be fun to read. But, damn. I felt stuff I didn’t expect to feel. I was moved more than once, not just by the portrayal of the “love,” but also by all of the insecurities and worries expressed so truly by the characters. I also really dug the settings in LA and Montana. And, of course, the bookstore, Cozy. What a lovely thing that would be to stumble across on a perfect day. 💜📚

Sigh. Another improbable meet-cute, unrequited insta-love romance bites the proverbial dust for me. I’ll take “book plots that would never really happen for a thousand,” please, Alex.

There wasn’t necessarily one giant flaw here that kept me from enjoying Funny You Should Ask; it was just a lot of little things that all stacked on top of each other to make it kind of an annoying read. I didn’t finish the book with any kind of warm fuzzies toward it. And it was a romance, so I should have.

I wrote a 700-word review, explaining all of my little complaints, and that felt harsher than necessary, so here they are in list form instead.

- confusing shifts in timeline made the story hard to follow
- the narrative format of blog entries, articles, and interviews made it feel more "tell" and less "show" (and added to the confusing timeline)
- why are Chani and Gabe so mad at each other? they literally barely know each other. these grudges feel childish.
- not enough Ollie
- there are a few digs thrown in at GoodReads reviewers; is that necessary?
- literally no chemistry or sizzle here whatsoever. by the 80% mark in the book, Gabe and Chani have kissed exactly once and it was 10 years ago.
- they're in love after a grand total of 6 days together? ew. that's not love, it's codependency. again, childish.

——

ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!

The whole time I was reading the book, I kept thinking this is one to recommend for TJR fans. It's the perfect second-chance love story with messy characters, humor, fame and gossip.

The story takes place over the span of 6 days: three in the past and three in the present. The protagonist, Chani Horowitz, is a journalist who is hired to write a piece about movie star Gabe Parker who has been cast as the new James Bond. What starts out to a routine interview, turns out to be a weekend full of intense feelings and media gossip that in turn has an impact on her writing career and relationship. Now, ten years later Chani is asked to interview Gabe again after having minimal contact. This time, will their weekend together end differently?

I adored Chani and Gabe's relationship and the chemistry between them right from the beginning. However, what made this book stick out to me was how it included articles, gossip columns, book reviews and blog posts that gave you clues as to what happened between Chani and Gabe during their time apart. I do wish that these posts included the dates as to when they were written as I sometimes got confused inserting the event into the timeline. Also, some of the story was a bit unrealistic and too quick, but it did not stop me from being invested in the story.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing for this advanced copy. Pub Date: 4/12/22

Despite a little bit of confusion with the timeline because of the back and forth mixed with various articles, this story was beautiful and real. I loved the honesty of Chani and Gabe. Oliver was a fantastic character and I think he could have had more page time.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thanks to NetGalley for an early read of this romance. If you’ve ever had a fantasy of your celeb crush and you getting together (who hasn’t?!), this one’s for you. When Chani interviews Gabe Parker, the next Bond, they have a memorable weekend that sets of her writing career. Their relationship picks up 10 years later, after marriages, divorced, rehab, when she has to interview him again.

It was fun to read about two people who had an initial spark, but the timing and the circumstances took them away from one another, to see each other again. There is fun because of the fantasy of Hollywood / celebrity, but the reality of missed connections, long lost crushes, and human behavior make this feel rooted in real life. Reads like a fun rom com - appropriate for Gabe Parker the movie star!

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4388140954

I requested to read “Funny You Should Ask” by Elissa Sussman based on its premise of a writer, Chani, who is tasked with writing a story on her celebrity crush, Gabe Parker. Yet, the piece turns personal when Chani and Gabe spend the weekend together, leading the media to query “did they or didn’t they.”

Ten years later, Chani’s career is flourishing, but her personal life not so much. When Chani has a chance to do a follow-up interview with Gabe, she seizes the opportunity.

Interspersed with the dual story lines, we get pieces of Chani’s article as well as excerpts from her blog. I found “Funny You Should Ask” to be a sweet story, but parts of it I read almost too quickly because I simply wanted to get to the end. I liked the characters, but did not feel invested in them. But then do we watch Hallmark movies for the character development?

Thank you the Elissa Sussman, NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC of this novel.

I loved this book. The way time passed, and the interspersing of writing from articles for context were both incredibly well done to further the story. It broke and rebroke my heart multiple times.

Oh how I adored reading this book! It was funny, it was deeply real, and it was full of characters who were messy and complicated and so endearing. Chani was such a solid protagonist, and I loved the way the book encapsulated her very complicated feelings on her career and the article that made her famous, speaking to industry sexism and the moral chaos of celebrity interviews, but also to the question of what her life would be like without Gabe Parker, even though she only actually knew him for a few days. I loved the way the book was laid out, switching between past and present while also being interspersed with Chani's writings, as well as other reviews and tabloid articles. It painted such a good picture of Chani and Gabe and the world around them. And let me just say, I loved Chani and Gabe together, and I loved the tension of having a massive time gap between their interactions while also having both their lives fundamentally changed by their first meeting. There's far more tension of waiting for something to happen than there is steam in this book, but I found that it made every interaction between the two of them even more high stakes as they figure out where they're headed together. (Which I found to be excellent!!) I also want to give this book some bonus points for having a Jewish main character, with a Hebrew name that the love interest takes the time to actually pronounce correctly, and who actually mentions her Jewish identity (and not just once, in passing as so many books do).
Overall, I found it hard to put down and I truly loved reading it. I highly recommend!

3.5*

TJR fans, this one is for you!

<i> Funny You Should Ask </i> follows Gabe Parker and Chani Horowitz in this dual timeline celebrity-journalist second chance romance. Sussman's debut adult novel hits the mark with this funny, unique, and moving romance. We follow Chani Horowitz, a post-grad struggling journalist who gets the assignment of her dreams, an interview with the new James Bond, Gabe Parker. Sussman carefully unfolds this story in two timelines, the past during their first interview and their present, 10 years later when they reconnect for the interview that went viral. I enjoyed the not-so-mysterious mystery of what happened during the first interview and seeing how Gabe and Chani would deal with the aftermath. The highlight of the novel was the tone/narration. It very much reads like a celebrity gossip piece, but in the best possible way. It reminds me of <i> Daisy Jones and the Six </i>, so fans of made-up celebrity historical romances would really enjoy this one! I also think people who grew up reading self-insert fanfiction would like this too because it felt like such at times. I mean, an average journalist interviewing her celebrity crush who falls in love with her? Come on.

I have always been hesitant about second chance romances because they tend to always be down to timing and this is no exception. This makes sense because how could an average joe and a celebrity truly work out? We never find out as most of the novel is about if they will get together. Sussman also adds a dash of infidelity which I could have done without. Granted, there is no physical cheating, emotional cheating is just as bad, if not worse. Luckily, it didn't get as cringey as I thought it would and Sussman's background characters add much-needed breaks in the repetition of will-they-wont-they.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC.