Cover Image: No Funny Business

No Funny Business

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Member Reviews

A cross country road trip with an unlikely comedy duo. Lots of adventures and sexy times!

While I love Olivia’s backstory and character arc, this story struggled with hitting emotional beats. The punched weren’t strong enough to really feel the hit.

And the romance fell flat in the sizzle department- I just didn’t buy the strong feeling described. I so wanted to love this one.

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"If you're in the mood for a book that's big on laughs, Amanda Aksel's 'No Funny Business' is your go-to summer read. It's a rom-com that really packs in the comedy!

Meet Olivia, a stand-up comedian hustling to hit it big. When she loses her day job, a golden chance pops up: opening for the hilarious Nick Leto on tour. Talk about a dream gig! Olivia's all in, ready to grab her big break with both hands. But here's the twist – she's kinda falling for Nick. Talk about complicated!

In a nutshell, 'No Funny Business' is a laugh riot with a side of romance. It's perfect for some sunny, fun reading!"

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I love stand-up comedy and haven't read a book with a comedian as the main character until this and I hope there's more where this came from because it was amazing!

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Sending my apologies for not being able to provide a review. I am unable to offer a review for this book - I had sent it to my kindle to read and the file did not download properly. Unfortunately the book has been archived and I'm unable to re-send it.

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Lately reading rom coms have become a struggle. Perhaps its just timing. Its a case of "its definitely me not the book.." And though I did find a few funny moments, I just could not connect to either of the main characters
There are many positive reviews, Just wasn't a good fit for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing

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I'm not sure if this one was figured out before or after comedians and podcasters became a main focus for contemporary romances, but it wasn't an OMG Amazing read in a crowded market.

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A delightful forced proximity romance with the added fun of some genuinely funny standup comedy bits.

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First of all, reading this made me want to go to a local comedy club and buy two lousy drinks just to support the struggling artists. But then I realized I'd rather stay home where the drinks are cheap and enjoy this book! Nick and Olivia were charming and funny (of course) and this sweet story was just a blast to read.

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Amanda Aksel is hilarious and writes the best stories. This is one of my top favorites from her. I always look forward to her stories and this is one not to miss. Amanda Aksel is an author to watch because she's a hidden gem that needs to be shared more. I interviewed her on my Amazon Live show and she is just a fantastic person as well.

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A cute rom-com about stand up comedy and road trips. While this didn't quite jive with my sense of humor, I appreciated it and found it funny at times.

Thanks to Berkley for the arc.

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Really cute, really funny rom com! I read this book in one night. Loved the main characters and the tension between them.

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No Funny Business by Amanda Aksel caught me off guard. I didn’t expect to like it nearly as much as I did. Earlier this month, I reviewed The Standup Groomsman by Jackie Lau and struggled with the comedy standup, but with Aksel’s novel all the cringeworthy lewd stand-up just wasn’t a thing, which allowed me to relax into the book and enjoy it.

Olivia is a lawyer by day and an eager comedian by night. When she decides to play hooky (“food poisoning”) to appear on stage at night, Olivia’s pushed her luck too far and her boss let’s her go. Much to her surprise, she’s relieved. The show the night before was a success and maybe this is the kick she needs to give comedy a real shot. When her agent lets her know she’s lined up an interview for her in LA on a show, Olivia can’t believe her luck. The only catch is, Olivia is strapped for cash. Again, luck is on her side, because her agent informs her that she’s been offered a spot on a tour. The offer came from Nick the headliner comedian she opened for. Reluctantly, Olivia agrees on one condition, no funny business for these two as they travel from city to city.

These two have chemistry that just worked for me as a reader. I like the way they bickered about the radio and couldn’t stand quirks about one another, but also kinda sorta found them endearing. I also like that things didn’t go as planned and the two embark on a sidenote adventure as they continue their tour in Nick’s Jeep. There is a mutual professional respect between Nick and Olivia that I admired. They bolstered one another professionally without hesitation. That doesn’t always come through in books and I found it refreshing.

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This is my second comedian romance and I have to say this one fell flat for me. I didn't find the jokes as funny as they probably should have been, and at times, I felt like it just wasn't completely believable. It's a quick read, and there is definitely some good banter within its pages as well as some fun moments, but I just think I hoped for a bit more and didn't end up getting it. Not that it's a bad read, just wasn't completely for me. 3.5 stars rounded up.

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⭐️⭐️⭐️

𝙏𝙬𝙤 𝙙𝙤𝙬𝙣-𝙤𝙣-𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙧-𝙡𝙪𝙘𝙠 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙙𝙞𝙖𝙣𝙨 𝙚𝙢𝙗𝙖𝙧𝙠 𝙤𝙣 𝙖 𝙧𝙤𝙖𝙙 𝙩𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙙 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣 𝙖 𝙛𝙚𝙬 𝙜𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙡𝙖𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙨 𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙮.

This was a super quick read with some banter thrown here and there. I thought it was super interesting and unique that our MC works at a Law Office but does stand-up comedy as her passion.

As the MC, Olivia gets fired from her job for not being 100% committed, so she leans towards the comedic side. Olivia ends up looking for more gigs, and she finds herself journeying cross country to try out for a late-night TV job. The only catch is she must go with Nick while keeping things professional - seriously though, “no funny business”.

I wanted to enjoy this one a bit more than I did, I liked the uniqueness of the story, however, the actual romance just fell flat for me. It didn’t feel like a romance story but more of a coming-of-age with a romance on the side.

I also wish I enjoyed the comedic jokes a bit more. I found them a bit cringe, but that’s just me personally.

While the story as a whole was interesting, I didn’t find it to be very memorable or long-lasting. It was one of those stories you tend to forget about the next day… although, I did love the Elvis Presley references.

On the bright side, there wasn’t too much steam… so if steam is your thing, this may not be for you. My absolute favorite thing about the book was the whole road trip. I enjoyed following these characters through their journey and the stops they took.

I will say this book didn’t have as many jokes as I would’ve expected, considering the premise. I was expecting a bit more humor, but overall the story was a solid three-star.

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No Funny Business ended up being a pretty fun, sweet road trip romance, despite me feeling a little unsure of it at first (it took a bit to connect with the main character for me). There's a lot of references to famous comedians and their acts (as well as classic rock), which adds a bit of extra fun for readers who enjoy that. It was great to watch Olivia and Nick's connection develop as they let each other into their inner worlds.

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Lawyer Olivia really, really wants to be a successful stand-up comedian. She’s been doing gigs around the clubs of New York, and gets a break when she is called in last minute to open for a more experienced comedian, Nick Leto.
Just as she is let go from her law firm for not being committed enough, Olivia’s invited to join Nick on a comedy tour across the US and the opportunity to audition for a Late Show TV spot. She jumps at the chance, while making it clear there won’t be any funny business between them.
It was an entertaining ride as we joined the two comedians on the road, from the rundown motels to the burgers at every stop. I particularly liked the fact that the romance took a back seat to Olivia learning how to hit her comedic straps.

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Thank you to @netgalley @berkleypub and @berkleyromance for a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Thank you to @prhaudio for a free download of the audiobook. And thank you to @berittalksbooks and @dg_reads for including me on this buddy read.

This book took me a bit to get into, but then I couldn’t put it down. Olivia, a real estate attorney, was let go from her job for not taking it serious enough. She turns to her passion of stand-up comedy where she goes on tour with the hunky Nick Leto gearing up for an audition for a spot on a late-night talk show in LA.

To keep the mood light, these two constantly compare themselves to Jerry and Elaine on Seinfeld as they travel across country from NYC to LA. They found themselves in several funny situations and the banter between the two was entertaining. You see Olivia grow in her confidence as a comedian and they both remove walls from past hurts.

4 stars

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This is a solid three-star romantic comedy. I thoroughly enjoyed being immersed in the world of stand-up comedy and really enjoyed the flirtation between the two main characters. I did expect the book to be funnier. There is really only one scene in which we get to hear a character actually make jokes, and I wanted much more of those. It's definitely a pleasant read, about a profession not often included in fiction, but readers expecting a lot of laughs may be disappointed.

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Not my sense of humor, I guess, because I wanted to get to read the stand up sets, in the way Marvelous Mrs. Maisel lets you see the character performing her stand up routines, but overall this romance about stand up comics on the road together did not tickle my funny bone.

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Lawyer by day, comedian by night. Olivia Vincent dreams of a full-time career in comedy, and she's been working every spare moment she has to make it happen. But when it ends up costing her her day job is she really ready to make comedy her career?

She gets a gig opening on tour for seasoned stand-up Nick Leto which sounds like a dream but ends up challenging her in more ways than she could have imagined.

Olivia is driven, smart, and of course, hilarious. I found myself really rooting for her to succeed, and she was so well-written that I felt as if I knew her in real life. I didn't always love Nick, but he did grow on me by the end.

I enjoyed this story so much. There is a lot of humor, as you'd expect from a book about comedians, but there is a lot of heart-wrenching struggle and ultimately growth as well. The emotions and pacing of the story felt perfectly balanced, and it's a book that has stuck with me...I find myself thinking about the characters even weeks after finishing the last page.

If you need a good book that will make you both snort-laugh and tear up I recommend this one wholeheartedly.

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