Funny Feelings by Tarah Dewitt
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 really are high when it’s not only her career, but both of those relationships on the line. A former stand-up star himself, Meyer has helped the trajectory of her career take off since he began managing her… Since he became her closest and most treasured friend, in the process. This 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 - despite his grumpiness, his protectiveness over Haze, and his disdain for public attention. When helping her includes taking those barriers down, all those funny feelings start coming out into the open, and it quickly begins to feel like anything but a joke.
~~~~~
Can I just say that this book is EVERYTHING? Because it is. It’s everything. I loved it so much. I knew before even starting that this book would be epic. The authors note at the beginning, the dedication, and the curated playlist were all such personal touches that you just know the author made this the perfect comfort read for her audience. By the time I got to the Robin Williams quote on page 1, I was already in tears. Farley and Meyer were both extremely relatable with a lot of the same insecurities I think most creative types face. But even with all of their problems and character growth, they’re still healthy characters that maintain a healthy relationship whether it’s platonic or romantic. I loved the open communication and how trusting and understanding the characters in this book were of each other. I mostly loved that we got angst without a full on relationship betrayal/miscommunication trope. I need everyone to read it immediately so you can all know what a great journey this was.
Two comedians falling in love seems like a plot that’s too good to be true yet here we are! Farley is a young comedian who is just starting to make it big but in order to be invited on tour with some of her idols, she needs the ultimate PR stunt. A fake relationship with her manager, Meyer. The problem is that she’s actually in love with Meyer and he’s also her best friend. Usually with fake dating tropes you have to worry about whether this will totally mess up their friendship and take away that banter they might have in favour of only spicy scenes all the time. This wasn’t that. Even with the “faking it” trope, every step of the way they were completely in sync. Everything was extremely consensual and I loved that the characters constantly checked in with each other so that there were no hurt feelings or misunderstandings. There’s nothing I hate more than a miscommunication trope.
All the characters were pretty great right from the start so a lot of the character growth was internal for both of our leads. However, that made the character development even more enjoyable to see unfold because they both worked to make themselves better people for no one other than themselves FIRST. Meyer is older and a single dad so he has a maturity about him that I absolutely love but I also really enjoyed those small moments where the boyish “guy” side of him snuck out. Farley was fun and loud and inappropriate and it all worked so perfectly with her character. She did have baggage but was dealing with it in a healthy way and it was so refreshing to see that instead of having a main character take it out on everyone around them before finally seeking help. There was no toxicity to be found in this book and that was so refreshing in all the best ways. It makes this the ultimate comfort read.
The disability rep in this was really great too. Meyer’s daughter, Hazel, is hearing impaired and, given that she’s the main man’s daughter, she has a pretty big plot line in the story. Hazel may have been my favourite part of the story. Her relationship not only with her dad but with Farley as well was so wholesome and open. I hate the types of single parent tropes that distance their child so much from any possible “attachments” to other adults that they see dating to be the most detrimental thing that could ever happen to their child. Meyer and Hazel are so in sync and they openly discuss and check in with each other on any minor life changes that are happening. Even given the risk the “fake dating” stunt might have on their relationship, Meyer assures both Farley and Hazel that their friendship will not be negatively impacted by whatever may happen. I loved that kind of assurance and stability in a romance novel.
I really really enjoyed this story and I can say with all certainty that this has become a new comfort read for me. It had some great tropes but still maintained such a great originality that I’m honestly sad that I won’t read another book exactly like this for the first time ever again. Tarah Dewitt has definitely won my loyalty and I can’t wait to dive into her other books. Five stars for this one.