Today’s review is about FUNNY FEELINGS by Tarah DeWitt, a contemporary romance that I couldn’t put down. As someone who rarely reads this romance subgenre, I couldn’t put this one down. I loved everything about it.

Author: Tarah Dewitt
Series: None
Age Category: Adult
Publisher: Self-Published
Publish Date: April 28, 2022
Print Length: 368

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Official Synopsis

When falling in love is the punchline…

Farley Jones is being forced to date Meyer Harrigan, the man she has come to love, in order to make all of her stand-up dreams come true.

It’s agony— a tragedy, even. In lieu of flowers, please send cash…

Meyer and his daughter Hazel have been everything to her since they came into her life three years ago. So, all joking aside, the stakes are especially high when it’s not only her career, but both of those relationships on the line.

A former stand-up star himself, Meyer has been vital to the trajectory of her career since he began managing her… Since he became her closest and most treasured friend, in the process.

This friendship is the only reason why, when the biggest opportunity of Farley’s career includes thrusting him back into the spotlight to stir up publicity, he agrees— in spite of his grumpiness, his protectiveness over Hazel, and his disdain for public attention.

It doesn’t take long for their act to bring all those other funny feelings out into the open, and, like most matters of the heart, it quickly begins to feel like anything but a joke.

Funny Feelings is a swoony story about friendship, love, and looking for the laugh in life. It touches on the creative spirit and all that comes with sharing that gift, and how oftentimes the comedians in our lives are the most sensitive, or struggling. It features two friends, one incredible little girl, and a kaleidoscope of feelings along the way.

My Review

I absolutely adored this book. I never describe myself as a friends-to-lovers fan. But take it from me, an enemies-to-lovers addict, that the former trope is incredibly well done in FUNNY FEELINGS. It’s a story that the author wrote for all the women that society deem as “too much” or “too offensive.”

“You’re not as unstable as you think. I believe you’re just more honest than most people are brave enough to be.”

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In FUNNY FEELINGS, Farley is a comedian who is generally unapologetic about her rambunctiousness and dirty jokes. And naturally there are times of insecurity during which she makes jokes to cope. I loved how vivacious and kind and gregarious Farley is, the foil to Meyer’s self-imposed reservedness.

There wasn’t a single moment in which I was bored reading Farley’s and Meyer’s stories and how it all comes together. The fake dating trope was expertly done, mostly, I think, because there wasn’t a miscommunication trope. The lack of this trope was definitely one of my favorite things about this book because the two leads have open and honest conversations with each other. The intimacy and vulnerability of these conversations really endears the characters to the reader. This openness is helped with the positivity around the benefits of therapy, in which both leads partake. I don’t think everyone needs to see a therapist to develop the skill to have honest conversations, but it clearly benefitted Farley and Meyer.

“Because isn’t that the dream? To have a heart that’s less burdened simply because of who you share it with?”

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The dialogue between Farley and Meyer is fantastic as is the tension between the two of them. Their chemistry is evident, even when they’re forcing themselves to stay in their professional lanes. Their situation (i.e., fake dating) also felt believable, which I think made me enjoy FUNNY FEELINGS even more.

I loved the disability representation in this book, written as Hazel, Meyer’s 10-year-old daughter who is deaf. The joy described on Hazel’s face when a stranger (Farley) unexpectedly started signing to her was so heartwarming. My only quibble with Hazel’s character is I think the author wrote her as a little too mature for her age. It’s certainly within the realm of possibility, though.

If I haven’t yet convinced you, the writing is also engaging. There are some monologues, but they don’t feel lengthy and dry. The author describes their world and lives in the perfect amount of detail and I never felt bogged down by information dumps or confused by information omissions.

I feel like I’m babbling in this review because this book surprised me with just how much I loved it as I’m not really a romcom reader. If you enjoy contemporary romantic comedies with relatable characters, then jump on this book. FUNNY FEELINGS provides that sense of connection and unabashed acceptance we yearn for, some more loudly than others.

Rating: 5
Content warnings: death of a loved one (off page), strong language, sexually explicit content, toxic parent, absentee parent
Reading format: Kindle e-book