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Book 22 - Funny Story by Emily Henry

Daphne gets dumped by her fiancé for the childhood best friend he promised was never a romantic interest. She moves in with Miles, the other jilted party in the love square. I’ll admit there’s nothing overly new or surprising in the book, but the character banter is so engaging, it pulls you through. Daphne has to work through abandonment issues and forge a life on her own instead of as a “we.” She loves her job as a children’s librarian, but she originally moved to the town to be with her now ex, and she doesn’t have much of a life without him. Miles listens to sad songs even when he’s happy. Living together is awkward but relatively harmonious. When Daphne runs into her condescending ex, she panics and pretends she’s dating Miles. He goes along with it, and after a passionate kiss, the lines between truth and play-acting get blurred. AKA classic fake-dating troupe. Daphne has a quiet fierceness that I liked. Really, it’s just the writing. The story is pleasant enough but the word choices and dialogue are a joy to read. I don’t think the title is trying to promise the reader that the book is actually funny (although there are some humorous moments, it’s not really a comedy). It’s simply a reference to the answer of the standard new-couple question, “How did you meet?”  (9)

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