I really wanted to love this book, I've read many books by this author and have loved them all. I think early on, I understood that Sam was a stand in for Pete Davidson and Salem, his ex, was clearly Arianna Grande and the Comedy Hour was obviously SNL. Not really sure who Bree would be in this scenario - perhaps a question that Mr. Davidson himself is probably trying to answer.

I know authors often write romances based on real life celebrities or even the famous characters they are known for playing. I have no real objections to that. I will say, a Pete Davidson inspired romance wasn't really something on my personal wishlist but YMMV and I don't begrudge others what they like.

I think the pacing was a bit off and there was a lot of time and attention spent on Sam's workplace and a fair amount spent on Bree's colleagues as well, and that really impacted the attention paid to the actual romance.

This is a friends to lovers between two life-long best friends who grew up together in a shitty town in Ohio and both have really bad upbringings except all of that is just alluded to and never really explained in a very clear way. We're told that Bree's mom tried to steal her financial aid money from her and we know that Sam has a contentious relationship with his mom due to to how his dad treated them but it's all very vague. And yet, we're supposed to have sympathy for these characters and care about their happiness and their future. I did care about Bree but I had a much harder time with Sam, he came off as very unsympathetic and self-centered. And I get that he apologized but even the manner in which he apologized felt performative (literally, he used his show to do a very public apology on national tv) and attention-seeking and ultimately, disingenuous. I'm sure whatever his backstory is contributed to the kind of adult he was, forever running away from anything real, always half-assing most of his relationships, blowing stuff up in his personal and professional life because he always just expected things to go south. But the thing is, we don't know what his childhood was, we're really just guessing at it. And the friendship between Bree and Sam felt so codependent and needy and frankly unhealthy, that I wish more time had been spent with them being apart and working on their issues separately before they got their HEA. Everything in this book felt a little rushed and the timing felt off, with Sam blurting out his love declaration and them embarking on a relationship that felt very fragile all the while Bree is holding onto the fact that she's considering taking a job that will require her to move from NYC to MI. And the reason she's afraid to tell him is because of how he will react and when he does find out, her fears are realized. It feels unhealthy and dysfunctional to the point that I wanted to root for them but just couldn't quite get there.

I do like that the book makes a point to mention that Sam is finally in therapy but I do wish it had come sooner and before the HEA would have made the ending, at least for me, more viable.

CW: toxic parental relationships

3,5*

If you're looking for a funny book plenty of laughter think again, this is a friends to lover romance, about Sam, a writer and a performer of Comedy Hour, and Bree, his reliable best friend and the one who's always been secretly in love with him.

There's nothing really popping in this story, it just carries you in Bree and Sam lifes, their hard past: their actual struggle in life both with work and love. They just get under your skin.
It's not a life changing epiphanic book, nor some epical romance, but it is a good story about love, about how people cope when hurt, about friendship and choices.

Thanks NetGalley and Montlake for providing this book as an Arc in exchange of an honest review.

Disclosure: I'm mutuals with Emma on twitter. She's one of my favorite people in the romance community.

I thought the whole Pete Davidson/Ariana Grande inspiration would be the biggest hurdle for me to get into the book, but it ended up being my familiarity with SNL that hurt it the most.

There is so much time spent world-building what ultimately looks like a cheap facsimile of the show (and SNL already is the poor man’s version of what it was) that there was little time left for the relationship. And the relationship is toxic and co-dependent so it really needed that extra focus! I love messy, unrequited romance! I love a toxic friends-to-lovers story, but the problem with those is that there has to be thoughtful, nuanced character development both as individuals and together in the partnership for the romance to feel complete and viable. Instead, we have a man who unravels his life and career in a series of increasingly obnoxious public meltdowns, and then he has the sudden realization that he’s in love with the heroine, does the world’s most cringe public grovel/apology, and gets the girl and the career back. This guy is a very hard sell of a hero. And he takes most of the book’s attention away from a heroine who I thought was very interesting and deserved better. That said, hats off to the book because I legit feared that she would not take that new job. Not to wade into the poisoned waters of book twitter discourse, but this book should’ve been longer.

I’ll say this, tho, if Emma Barry can’t sell me on a stand-up comedian MC, no one else can.

Review copy provided by the publisher

This was a fun best friends to lovers romance that also skirts the grumpy/sunshine line. As someone who grew up watching sketch comedy shows, I really enjoyed the look into Sam's life as a sketch comedy writer and performer. Bree is our sunshine heroine, and she does amazing work for a non-profit in New York, while Sam is our jaded and, self-declared, asshole comedian.

I've always really enjoyed the whole, I've loved you forever trope, and this book has it in spades along with a razor sharp wit, and great supporting characters that really engaged me. I thought their love story was a really good slow burn, there weren't a ton of spicy moments, but the book really didn't need them. All in all a great romance story between two flawed characters overcoming a lot of childhood trauma.

Thanks to Montlake Publishing for providing me with an ARC of this book.

Funny Guy is a childhood best friends to lovers contemporary romance. Famous comedian Sam is fresh off a front page newsworthy (and chart topping tell all song) breakup. His best friend, urban planner Bree has been in love with him since childhood. When he retreats to her couch to hide from the bad press surrounding his ex’s hit song expose, Sam and Bree are forced to confront their long hidden feelings for each other.

This book made my heart ache for both Sam and Bree as they fumbled around their feelings. Their lives were so entwined that it was easy to see why neither would want to rock the boat and confess to feeling more than friendly towards the other. Most of the book was really sad as they struggled to communicate.

Their happily ever after was hard won, and even though this is a book about a comedian and a late night comedy show there weren’t many funny moments. It was a heartfelt and emotional romance with two realistic characters that you are rooting for to win.

If you're looking for a cute childhood-friends-to-lovers romance then Funny Guy's worth giving a chance. Emma Barry's writing is easy to digest and her characters are very charming. I'm a sucker for celeb MCs, so I was hyped to find out that Sam was a comedian. I love how his career was explored.
Definitely don't go into this thinking it'll be some memorable twist on tropes. But do read if you're looking for something to satisfy your friend-to-lovers itch.

A solid friends to lovers contemporary romance that suffers a little from a lack of engaging characters. Charming a-hole Sam is the toast of the entertainment world when he isn't scorching his own reputation by lambasting total strangers in coffee shops and going off on his co-workers at "Comedy Hour" (Saturday Night Live) and Bree is his long suffering best friend who's been "secretly" in love with him since they were children together bonding over their equally broken homes.

I genuinely enjoyed this. The banter and deep friendship between Sam and Bree is the strongest part of the book. Unfortunately the actual story around them isn't as strong. We're not really given enough of a grounding in how they've gotten where they are, the what came before that might make the reader more invested in their success now and the flowering of their friendship into something more. And when things go south as they always do in these stories it feels too much like a plot device and not enough like an actual conflict.

All that said this is a charming and funny read that makes up for what it lacks in substance with sweet, and often quite sexy romance.

I just adore everything Emma Barry writes. I think she has such a unique voice and her characters are so well-drawn, particularly the heroes. I loved Funny Guy. It checked all the boxes for me in terms of what I want in a romance and I read it in two days. Not 100% sold on the cover, but that’s just me.

I was struggling in the beginning, but after chapter 5 I was into it.

Sam is a comedy star in a television show, and sees himself exposed to the world when his ex-fiancée releases a song called “Lost Boy” exposing all his acts throughout their relationship. He uses his own feelings and crappy stories to make fun on TV, it’s his coping mechanism, to pretend he is okay with everything, but the only place he doesn’t have to pretend is when he is with Bree, his childhood best friend.

Bree has loved Sam since they were kids, but never had the courage to declare her love to him. When she sees the opportunity to work in another state, she sees it as a way to leave Sam and get over her feeling, which she very much knows it’s not reciprocated.

I loved their relationship development, while reading you could feel how much they love each other even just as friends, and upgrading it to a relationship was somewhat cute and sweet, because it took him so long to realize he loved her, even before they saying it to each other.

While reading it, I felt like something was missing and I can’t still figure it out what, made some chemistry between her friends?? The fact that she held up a secret from him all this time, idk.

I feel sympathy for those who love their best friends but never had the courage to express it, it’s the best kind of love, when you don’t have to pretend around someone, and feeling like the person is everything you’ve asked for.

Loved the book, totally rom-com style, but I still hate third person writing. Sorry.

A good read -- I thought the characters were well-developed and I really enjoyed their dynamic/chemistry.

I really enjoyed Barry's previous romance Chick Magnet so I was really looking forward to this one - and I wasn't disappointed! Setting up the MMC as a kind of handsomer Pete Davidson was genius and I loved it. Sam is a famous stand-up comic on a weekly comedy TV show (essentially SNL) but he's also a guy with a lot of problems - not surprising given his shitty upbringing in a poor and broken household. His co-dependent relationship with childhood friend Bree is also not surprising, and I really enjoyed how the plot unfolded as they discover they mean more to each other.

When Sam's ex (a Taylor Swift-style pop star) writes a song that eviscerates his personality and becomes a huge hit, it hurts his pride and he immediately flees to Bree's apartment to dodge the paps and lick his wounds. Bree knows that she shouldn't be so dependent on her relationship with Sam - he's always been a huge part of her life - and is thinking of physically moving cities for work to gain some distance and independence (and hopefully get over her lifelong crush on her friend). The pain of being in love with your best friend is a huge part of her lifeand it hurt my heart!

When Sam suddenly realizes he actually LOVES his best friend, it's like a lightning strike and things quickly become complicated. Bree can't believe all her daydreams about being in his arms are coming true, but she is still considering a massively great opportunity for her career which would mean leaving New York. She doesn't want Sam to hold her back, and dreads his reaction to this news.

I raced through this book, I absolutely adored every bit of it. There's quite a lot of trope-y moments - celeb romance, forced proximity, a splash of fake dating - but it all works really well. I was fully invested in Sam and Bree and their love story and will definitely read more from this author.

Bree had been in love with her best friend, who happened to be a famous comedian on the hit show, Comedy Hour. Despite her attempts to move on, her feelings for Sam kept her from pursuing relationships with other men. Eventually, she decided to start a new job in Michigan, but she dreaded telling Sam about her plans.

As Sam's career took a nosedive following a viral song that exposed all his flaws, he turned to Bree for support. Staying on her couch, he realized that he had deeper feelings for her than just friendship, but his destructive behavior threatened to ruin everything.

Despite the challenges, Bree stood firm in her decision to prioritize her own goals and dreams, and she refused to let Sam's issues derail her plans. The story ultimately culminated in a satisfying happily ever after, which celebrated Bree's newfound self-worth.

One unique aspect of the book was its comedic theme, with Sam's profession as a comedian adding a fun twist to the friends-to-lovers trope. However, the lack of chemistry between Sam and Bree, combined with the distracting image of a celebrity lookalike, detracted from the overall reading experience.

I voluntarily read and reviewed a copy of this book, provided by Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I was kinda meh about this book. I didn't really feel any tension or pull between the characters, and it just seemed sort of boring for chunks and chunks of the story. I normally love friends to lovers, but this one seemed, I dunno. I just wasn't into it. It was definitely funny at times, so that was good!

This review is for the e-ARC, Funny Guy, by Emma Barry. This book was just okay. I liked the beginning - I appreciate characters that are thought out thoroughly. My problem is that I just don't feel like Bree and Sam are a good couple. I did not root for them to get together, and I only ever saw them as really good friends who happened to hook up. I liked the development of the main characters outside of each other, but when they were together I really didn't see much growth. When they got together and throughout the middle-end of the book really dragged for me. I wasn't sucked into their lives, I had to make myself finish the book. There was an HEA, though. There were a few phrases/words that confused me. I know that since one of the main characters is a comedian, it might have been a joke, but the phrase "put the cart before the house" was used. If it was a joke, I didn't get it. Also, I don't know if the author is allowed to name actual brands, but "Lily Pulitzer" was mentioned, and that's spelled "Lilly." During one of the spicy scenes the author also used the word "devested," and I'm assuming she meant "divested."

Bree and Sam are childhood friends. She has been in love with him for years, and when she finally decides to move across the country to her dream job, he realizes that he loves her too. After two years of pure bliss Sam finds out that Bree is moving and they break up. Sam is a comedian known for not being able to have stable relationships and keeps getting in trouble with the press, to the point of losing sponsors. Realizing that he was being unfair with Bree, he decides to make a special Christmas episode in his comedy program, to try to get their relationship back.
It's a sweet love story where childhood friends fall in love. Not exactly original and funny as I expected, but I liked it anyway.

Thank you so much to NetGalley for this ARC. The opinions above are my own and given freely.

I appreciate that Emma Barry’s books introduce me to worlds and situations I don’t already know much about (in this case, sketch comedy), and not only get me to care about those worlds more than I ever thought I would, but they also tell a beautiful love story in the process. Her metaphors- perfection! I’d say read this if you like stand-up comedy and Saturday Night Live, but I went into this not being a huge fan of either of those two things and still came away loving the book!

Review copy courtesy of NetGalley

I went back and forth on enjoying this romance, which was clearly inspired by Pete Davidson and SNL. It was hard sympathizing with a hothead guy clearly in his own way, and the romance wasn’t as sweet as I wanted. It was enjoyable for those who enjoy celebrity romances.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Thank you NetGalley.

Funny Guy is a friends-to-lovers romance.
Sam and Bree are childhood friends who end up needing to live together in a small apartment in NYC. Bree has known she's in love with Sam... forever? But she hides her feelings thinking they won't be returned. [ typical ]
While living together, their dynamic changes just a tad... which makes Sam realize he just may be falling for Bree. Surprise, surprise.

The book is cute. Wholesome really. It's fairly slow at times but overall, it's mostly engaging and easy to read.

Thank you Montlake for an eARC; all thoughts and opinions are of my own.

The way this book broke my reading slump. (I mean I haven't read anything since then either, but like that's entirely on me and not the book). It was different and fun and a friends-to-lovers romance!

Sam does comedy for a fake SNL show, but his life is also a mess because he has thought control problems and control problems in general. Bree has been in love with Sam for forever and works as an architect, but is bored and wants more from work. Quick run down: Sam's engagement, a hastily done one too, ends in a big split and accompanying song (that happens when you get engaged to pop stars) and ends with him on Bree's couch away from paps--again. Bree is STABLE, like I wish I was her. ~emotions~ happen and yeah, fill in the rest.

I really enjoyed the premise of this book for many reasons. 1) who hasn't been keeping up with Pete Davidson over the past few years? 2) CHILDHOOD FRIENDS-TO-LOVERS, 3) The side characters and plot and the characters in general were very fun and interesting.

I loved all of the pent up emotions and such coming from Sam and Bree. Sam's moments of realizing he was in love with Bree were chef's kiss. The teetering moments on the brink of saying things. Those are the best moments. I also adored Bree. She is so cool. I felt like Sam and Bree's dynamics were also well crafted and framed.

To me what was missing was the history. There was a lot of discussion between Sam and Bree's past together. There were hints at the various traumas that they had endured. But there was never any deep discussion. If there had been a few flashbacks, not necessarily to the specifically awful times but maybe the pieces that deepened their relationship? Like when Bree realized she was in love with Sam or the first time one of them did something big? Idk, but I felt like I was told they had grown up together so many times without actually feeling like they did?

Also, this might be connected to the previous thought, but while reading there also felt like there was a screen between us and the characters. In Barry's earlier novel I felt so connected with the characters. They had life and excitement. And these ones just felt less. It could entirely be a me thing. I liked the characters enough in theory, but I never got that engagement I wanted. Perhaps because they were both passive characters?

Long story short, I do recommend this book. It brought me out of a reading slump that I had for a while and I finished it within a day. It was very unique in its characters and all of the smaller pieces to the plot, which I loved. Plus, friends-to-lovers? CANNOT be beat. Even with my few moments of reserved feelings, I enjoyed the book and think it's a great read.

This is the second book I've read this year where one of the plot points is a knock-off Saturday Night Live. Not sure what that says about me, but...I thought it should be mentioned.

Sam and Bree have been best friends since the age of 5. Now, as adults, they live and work in New York, both escaping terrible childhoods and creating their own family unit. Bree works in urban development, and Sam is one of the stars of the aforementioned "Comedy Hour".

Bree has long harbored feelings of love toward Sam, but Sam is the man about town, dating models and pop stars. When his latest ex-girlfriend, Salem, writes a catchy hit song, "Lonely Boy," about him, Sam's world is turned upside-down. Needing to hide from the paparazzi, Sam stays with Bree for along weekend and they grow closer.

Is this a classic friends-to-lovers tale? Yeah.
Did I still enjoy the hell out of it? Also yeah.

Despite being what I would normal categorize as "chick lit", this book provided depth, humor, and much-needed romance. Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book.