Second post today as the clock is ticking to talk about all my favorite books read in 2022!
Today I want to feature books that made me laugh so hard I nearly peed my pants or snicker with abandon!
One of the is Finlay Donvan Knocks ‘hem Dead by Elle Cosimano

This has become one of my favorite series!
I adore Finlayβs inner monologue and sarcasm and her cynical banter with her nanny/accountant/friend Vero! These two are a force to be reckoned with!
If some book said βI didnβt want war, my enemies brought war to meβ we could say that Finlay βdidnβt want complication and impossible situations but fate brought it to her anywayβ!
The way unthinkable bad luck and twists happened to Finlay was equally absurd yet organic! It was really a chain reaction. It could have felt forced or exaggerated yet Elle Cosimano succeeded in making me believe in everything all while cringing or groaning or laughing!
And the second one that had me cackling like a mad woman was The Lightning-Struck Heart by TJ Klune. Prepare for a looooong talk about the book as I want to share the fun!

All the stars for the narrator Michael Lesley!!!!
That book had me cackling like a mad woman while walking on the street. I might have attracted many concerned looks from passerby who suddenly had the need to give me a wide berth. But whatever! It was so worth it!
A huge part of the fun was of course the extraordinary banter but also the mad acting skills of Michael Lesley! I recommend the audiobook as he did all the voices very convincingly and made that satire into something irresistible! I hope he got paid a lot!
thatβs not the plot that makes the book. Itβs the irresistible characters and the humor! Prepare for a lot of quotes because I want you to have a good idea of the banter!
You have:
βSam. Wizard apprentice of Morgan, possessing immense power and prone to get kidnapped by dark wizards or βgay fairyβ married.
Sam never stops talking. And he has no mouth filter so that gave many laugh out loud moments!
He has had a huge (not so) secret crush on Ryan Foxheart and tends to lose his head and run the other way when he crosses path with him.
Sam also has two best friends: Gary and Tiggy.
βI like your shoes,β I said. Because I did. They were pink and pointed, and I wanted a pair like that so bad. My mom and dad groaned. Morgan looked at me and cocked his head.
βThank you, little one. I made them out of the tears of a succubus and a lightning-struck tree stump I found under the Winter Moon. I like your face.β
I grinned. βThank you, big one. My parents made it when they got married. I was a honeymoon baby, whatever that means.β
βGary. He is a very gay and very drama queen hornless unicorn. My favorite character with Sam! Garyβs banter was amazing with his diva attitude, love for making Sam blush while talking of swinging sex, Samβs flower etc. You will never catch Gary without his scarves and the shinier the better! He also love dying his mane and putting varnish on his hooves. He is the queen of unicorns!
Also when he huffs or snorts some puff of colored glitter come out of his nostrils.
βYouβre a talking unicorn,β I said. βSometimes when you poop, it comes out as rainbows and smells like cookies. There is nothing subtle about you.β
βI am a strong, independent unicorn,and I will not take your shit.β
βTherapy,β Gary said. βIβm going to need so much therapy. Itβs like watching cows mating and itβs wet and sticky and uncomforttable but I canβt look away because Iβm worried some of it is going to get on me.β
βTiggy. Is the protective giant. Talking in short sentences and sometimes slow to catch up, heβll smash everyone and everything threatening his friends Sam and Garry.
βHi, Sam!β
βHi, Tiggy.β
βYou okay?β
βYes, Tiggy.β
βTiggy smash something for Sam?β
βNo, Tiggy.β
βTiggy smash something for Sam.β
He smashed one of the wooden sparring dummies.
βThank you, Tiggy.β
βTiggy smash!β he bellowed and then proceeded to smash three more.β
βMorgan the Wizard. He is Samβs mentor. Very old, very patient. He loves Sam as a son and has learned to take everything in his stride with him, not questioning anything.
βBecause you love me,β I said, sounding smug. βMore like you grew on me,β he said. βLike fungus.β
βRyan Foxheart. Knight immaculate. Delicious face. Captain of the knights. And The princeβs fiancΓ©. He is dashing and immaculate, did I say it already? Well he bedazzled Sam all the time. And once you learn to know him, you seen the sensible man under the shiny armor. He is also very important to Sam in ways I wonβt explain.
βHi, my name is Ryan Foxheart. Oh no! Thereβs danger afoot! Let me pull out my sword and pose.β I mimed pulling a sword from my side and cocked an eyebrow. βNotice how dashing I am. And immaculate. And today, my hair is parted on the right. Wink.β
βRandall, an even older, even more powerful wizard than Morgan. Officiating at marriages, occasionally with a penis instead of a nose because of a very hormonal and obsessed teenage Samβ¦
βYouβre alive, arenβt you? Thatβs more than I would have thought when I first met you.β
βThatβsβ¦ comforting,β I said.
βIs it? Wasnβt meant to be. Simple recitation of fact.β
βAlways a pleasure, Randall.β
βI wouldnβt go that far. I thought there was a good chance you would have blown yourself up by the time you turned fifteen.β
βI almost did,β I said. βSeveral times.β
βI still remember the day when Morgan told me about you. It was the day I first got an ulcer.β
And of course you have many other characters, all amazing in their own ways.
When I began saying this is a satire, itβs because everything is extreme and exaggerated in this book. Like the characters, the humor, everything! So donβt read trying to make sense just suspend your disbelief and embark on a ride you wonβt forget!
You also have lots of sex talks, gay sex talk. And explicit scenes by the end. But it was so βbon enfantβ as we say in French that you canβt take it very seriously even if you learn a lot, laugh a lot and sometimes cringe a little at some practice 😉
You want an example? Here we go:
βOr not,β I said as I ground my teeth. βI like to masticate by myself.β βAnd youβre so good at it,β Gary said. βThe up and down motions of yourβ¦ jaw. And then, upon completion, you swallow. Right, Sam? You swallow, donβt you?β βOf course I do,β I said, confused. What the hell were we talking about now? βI always swallow when I finish. What am I supposed to do? Spit it back out?β
Sorry for all the quotes but these are too funny and the whole book is like that! Just read it!
Thanks for reading.
Sophie

Finlay Donovan is always good for a laugh! I can’t wait until the next one!
Me too Mogsy! I’d love to get an ARC but don’t think I’d get one π
Love the quotes from The Lightning-Struck Heart. I laughed at loud at those. π
If you want a fun and easy read because you feel down, go for the audio. I promise you will have a great time Tanya!
You know I’m a big Klune fan, but I haven’t read this one. Loved the quotes.
It’s an oldie of his but please, if you do try it, really go for the audio Teri! You’ll have a blast I promise!
The unicorn quote got me! I hope 2023 is the year where I finally read a book by this author (but I think it will be!)
I hope too Stephanie but be careful as you might become addicted to them LOL
I never heard of that T.J. Klune novel but it sounds fun! Great picks, Sophie. π
Thank you Lashaan! I think you’d love that audio honestly!
haha the quotes that you shared are hilarious! I absolutely love that. Good reminder to get back to Klune’s work.
That was a very quotable book π
You gave me another reason to try TJ Klune
Then my job is done Tammy π
The Lightning-Struck Heart is sooooo funny! I’ve read book 2 but I need to carry on!
I need to resume that series as well!
The Finlay Donovan books were a great surprise to me. Darker than my norm, and I still loved them
That’s because there is humor to balance the dark Sam π