Funny Story

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER ∙ A shimmering, joyful novel about a pair of opposites with the wrong thing in common, from #1 New York Times bestselling author Emily Henry.

A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK OF 2024

Named a Must-Read Book of 2024 by TIME ∙ NPR ∙ ELLE ∙ Parade ∙ Woman’s World and more!

Daphne always loved the way her fiancé Peter told their story. How they met (on a blustery day), fell in love (over an errant hat), and moved back to his lakeside hometown to begin their life together. He really was good at telling it…right up until the moment he realized he was actually in love with his childhood best friend Petra.

Which is how Daphne begins her new story: Stranded in beautiful Waning Bay, Michigan, without friends or family but with a dream job as a children’s librarian (that barely pays the bills), and proposing to be roommates with the only person who could possibly understand her predicament: Petra’s ex, Miles Nowak.

Scruffy and chaotic—with a penchant for taking solace in the sounds of heart break love ballads—Miles is exactly the opposite of practical, buttoned up Daphne, whose coworkers know so little about her they have a running bet that she’s either FBI or in witness protection. The roommates mainly avoid one another, until one day, while drowning their sorrows, they form a tenuous friendship and a plan. If said plan also involves posting deliberately misleading photos of their summer adventures together, well, who could blame them?

But it’s all just for show, of course, because there’s no way Daphne would actually start her new chapter by falling in love with her ex-fiancé’s new fiancée’s ex . . . right?

Emily Henry is the #1 New York Times and #1 Sunday Times bestselling author of Happy Place, Book Lovers, People We Meet on Vacation, and Beach Read. She studied creative writing at Hope College, and now spends most of her time in Cincinnati, Ohio, and the part of Kentucky just beneath it. Find her on Instagram @EmilyHenryWrites.

“This book pulls out all of Henry’s signature stops: sparkling banter, thoughtfully rendered family trauma and a charming community of side characters.”—The New York Times

“Emily Henry has made a name for herself as among the hottest romance writers in the game right now.”—People

“Funny Story is Henry’s latest romance—and her steamiest one so far. It’s a mixture of will-they-won’t-they in a way that makes you really want them to. . . . Daphne and Miles are characters you can empathize with and root for.”—Associated Press

“A rising-star writer of literary romance, Emily Henry has garnered a devout readership by consistently delivering dreamy modern love stories. Building on a run of best-sellers—from Beach Read (2020) to Happy Place (2023)—in which Henry found innovative ways to subvert tropes of the genre, Funny Story puts the author’s signature spin on the idea that opposites attract.”—TIME

“Henry doesn't disappoint. . . . Just like in her other novels, the author's characters are deep, realistic and relatable . . . Henry is so particularly talented at creating romance that eschews tropes and clichés but still satisfies our innate desire for predictability and happy endings in this genre. . . . Funny Story might hit the mark best of all of Henry's books so far.”—USA Today

“When romance novelist Emily Henry releases a new book, it’s nothing short of a literary event. . . . [T]his sumptuous novel is Henry at her very best.”—Bustle

"Dazzlingly electric."—Buzzfeed

"The queen of romance is back with Funny Story."—The Skimm

“Bestseller Henry takes on fake-dating in this equally poignant and charming tale of love after loss . . . This is a heartwarming take on summer love.”—Publishers Weekly

“Reliable bestseller Henry has written another surefire hit that manages to be dramatic, sexy, and fun . . . As always, Henry’s biggest strength is the sharp, often hilarious dialogue that makes the story a joy to read. Henry fans, rejoice: This is her best yet.”—Kirkus (starred review)

"With her latest impeccably written rom-com, literary supernova Henry continues to gracefully dispense wit, whimsy, and wisdom in equal amounts. Fans of opposites-attract love stories will revel in the buoyant banter and swoonworthy romantic moments."—Booklist (starred review)

“This opposites-attract meets fake-dating plot has vividly drawn characters, emotionally charged storylines, and a beautiful small-town Michigan setting that will captivate devoted followers of Henry’s work and convert new readers into ardent fans.”—Library Journal (starred review)

“With her signature laugh-out-loud banter and flawed but lovable characters, Henry has created another novel that’s everything her readers have come to expect, without falling into predictable patterns. Funny Story is Emily Henry at her best.”—BookPage

“[Emily Henry's] latest novel is another sparkling love story.”—Women's World

Funny Story by Emily Henry follows Daphne Vincent, a children’s librarian who has built her life around her fiancé Peter only to have everything fall apart just weeks before their wedding. Daphne moved to the small Michigan town of Waning Bay to be with Peter, leaving behind her mother and the life she knew in Maryland. When Peter suddenly admits he is in love with his childhood best friend Petra instead, Daphne is left without a home, a fiancé, or a clear sense of who she is outside that relationship. In the same breath, Petra ends things with her own boyfriend, Miles, clearing the way for the two longtime friends to be together. With nowhere else to turn, Daphne accepts Miles’s offer to move into his apartment as roommates, setting the stage for an unlikely connection born out of shared heartbreak.

At first, Daphne and Miles are little more than strangers thrown together by circumstance. Miles is easygoing and generous, quick to make room for Daphne both physically and emotionally, while Daphne feels adrift and unsure of her place in a town she only came to for someone else. Their living arrangement begins as a practical solution, but it soon evolves when they attend Peter and Petra’s wedding together. A night of drinking and commiserating leads to a spontaneous decision: they will pretend to be dating to make their exes jealous. What starts as a lighthearted scheme gives Daphne and Miles an excuse to spend more time together. Miles offers to show Daphne the parts of Michigan she has never explored, and their weekly outings slowly turn into something warmer and more meaningful than either of them expected.

As the summer unfolds, Daphne begins to reclaim pieces of herself she had set aside. She throws herself into planning the library’s annual Read-a-Thon, a project that matters deeply to her, and forms a tentative friendship with her tough coworker Ashleigh. Miles, meanwhile, reveals more of his own history, including a complicated relationship with his younger sister Julia and the quiet ways he has learned to keep moving forward after disappointment. Their fake relationship starts to blur into something real, marked by late-night conversations, small acts of care, and a growing physical attraction that neither wants to name at first. Yet both carry scars from their previous relationships, and those old wounds make it hard to trust that what is happening between them can last.

Complications arise when Peter tries to reinsert himself into Daphne’s life and when Miles suddenly disappears for a few days after helping Petra through a difficult moment. Daphne is forced to confront her own patterns of shrinking herself to fit someone else’s life, while Miles struggles with his tendency to run when things feel too serious. Their time apart gives each of them space to reflect, and it becomes clear that the connection they have built is stronger than the fear of repeating past mistakes. Family visits and honest conversations with friends help Daphne see that she deserves people who show up consistently, not just when it is convenient.

By the time the Read-a-Thon arrives, Daphne has begun to picture a future in Michigan that belongs to her rather than to anyone else. Miles returns with a quiet but meaningful gesture that proves he has been paying attention to what she needs most. The story closes a year later with Daphne and Miles hosting a housewarming party in their new shared home, surrounded by the friends and family they have gathered along the way. Daphne tells the group the “funny story” of how they met, turning the pain of two broken engagements into the beginning of something steady and joyful. Emily Henry’s novel captures the messy, hopeful process of starting over after heartbreak, showing how two people can find both laughter and genuine love when they stop trying to be who someone else wants them to be.