Explore some of the most hilariously funny books to read in 2023 for adults. Read humorous novels, funny fiction books, mysteries, romances, and fantasy stories with dark, witty, and laugh-out-loud funny dialogues, situations, and settings from around the world.
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New Funny Books To Read in 2023
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Looking for some seriously good laughs? Don’t worry we got your back! We created this book list to collect the most hilariously funny books no matter what your preferred genre is.
You’ll find here some of the most anticipated humorous novels that will warm your heart and make you laugh out loud. But you’ll also find here thought-provoking funny novels that deal with health, death, and family.
RELATED: Funny Books for Adults
Are you here for some pure and light-fun? We also got some feel-good books for you that’ll turn your me-time into a hilarious laugh party of one. You’ll find here new funny fiction books, quirky and humorous fantasy books, and even hilarious adventure novels that will take you on epic adventures.
Get ready for some serious laughs and cries because these hilarious new books for adults will bring all the feels and all the laughs.
18| Someone Else’s Shoes by Jojo Moyes – February 2023
Synopsis: A story of mix-ups, mess-ups and making the most of second chances, this is the new novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Jojo Moyes, author of Me Before You and The Giver of Stars. Who are you when you are forced to walk in someone else’s shoes?
Nisha Cantor lives the globetrotting life of the seriously wealthy, until her husband announces a divorce and cuts her off. Nisha is determined to hang onto her glamorous life. But in the meantime, she must scramble to cope–she doesn’t even have the shoes she was, until a moment ago, standing in.
That’s because Sam Kemp – in the bleakest point of her life – has accidentally taken Nisha’s gym bag. But Sam hardly has time to worry about a lost gym bag–she’s struggling to keep herself and her family afloat.
When she tries on Nisha’s six-inch high Christian Louboutin red crocodile shoes, the resulting jolt of confidence that makes her realize something must change—and that thing is herself.
Full of Jojo Moyes’ signature humor, brilliant storytelling, and warmth, Someone Else’s Shoes is a story about how just one little thing can suddenly change everything.
Someone Else’s Shoes is is one of the funniest new contemporary books that’ll make you laugh-out-loud.
17| Romantic Comedy by Curtis Sittenfeld, New Funny Romance Fiction, April 2023
Synopsis: A comedy writer thinks she’s sworn off love, until a dreamily handsome pop star flips the script on all her assumptions. Romantic Comedy is a hilarious, observant and deeply tender novel from New York Times–bestselling author Curtis Sittenfeld.
Sally Milz is a sketch writer for “The Night Owls,” the late-night live comedy show that airs each Saturday. With a couple of heartbreaks under her belt, she’s long abandoned the search for love, settling instead for the occasional hook-up, career success, and a close relationship with her stepfather to round out a satisfying life.
But when Sally’s friend and fellow writer Danny Horst begins dating Annabel, a glamorous actor who guest-hosted the show, he joins the not-so-exclusive group of talented but average-looking and even dorky men at the show—and in society at large—who’ve gotten romantically involved with incredibly beautiful and accomplished women.
Sally channels her annoyance into a sketch called the “Danny Horst Rule,” poking fun at this phenomenon while underscoring how unlikely it is that the reverse would ever happen for a woman.
Enter Noah Brewster, a pop music sensation with a reputation for dating models, who signed on as both host and musical guest for this week’s show. Dazzled by his charms, Sally hits it off with Noah instantly, and as they collaborate on one sketch after another, she begins to wonder whether there might actually be sparks flying.
But this isn’t a romantic comedy; it’s real life. And in real life, someone like him would never date someone like her…right? With her keen observations and trademark ability to bring complex women to life on the page, Sittenfeld explores the neurosis-inducing and heart-fluttering wonder of love, while slyly dissecting the social rituals of romance and gender relations in the modern age.
Romantic Comedy is a hilarious contemporary romance fiction book for adults who love feel-good and charming romance stories with witty dialogue.
16| Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute by Talia Hibbert – YA Fiction, January 2023
Synopsis: From the New York Times bestselling author of the Brown Sisters trilogy, comes a laugh-out-loud story about a quirky content creator and a clean-cut athlete testing their abilities to survive the great outdoors–and each other.
Bradley Graeme is pretty much perfect. He’s a star football player, manages his OCD well (enough), and comes out on top in all his classes . . . except the ones he shares with his ex-best friend, Celine. Celine Bangura is conspiracy-theory-obsessed.
Social media followers eat up her takes on everything from UFOs to holiday overconsumption–yet, she’s still not cool enough for the popular kids’ table. Which is why Brad abandoned her for the in-crowd years ago. (At least, that’s how Celine sees it.) These days, there’s nothing between them other than petty insults and academic rivalry.
So when Celine signs up for a survival course in the woods, she’s surprised to find Brad right beside her. Forced to work as a team for the chance to win a grand prize, these two teens must trudge through not just mud and dirt but their messy past.
And as this adventure brings them closer together, they begin to remember the good bits of their history. But has too much time passed . . . or just enough to spark a whole new kind of relationship?
Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute is one of the most feel-good and hilarious young adult fiction books that’s a great choice for adult readers as well.
15| Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers by Jesse Q. Sutanto – Mystery Fiction, March 2023
Synopsis: A lonely shopkeeper takes it upon herself to solve a murder in the most peculiar way in this captivating mystery by Jesse Q. Sutanto, bestselling author of Dial A for Aunties.
Vera Wong is a lonely little old lady–ah, lady of a certain age–who lives above her forgotten tea shop in the middle of San Francisco’s Chinatown. Despite living alone, Vera is not needy, oh no.
She likes nothing more than sipping on a good cup of Wulong and doing some healthy detective work on the Internet about what her Gen-Z son is up to. Then one morning, Vera trudges downstairs to find a curious thing–a dead man in the middle of her tea shop.
In his outstretched hand, a flash drive. Vera doesn’t know what comes over her, but after calling the cops like any good citizen would, she sort of . . . swipes the flash drive from the body and tucks it safely into the pocket of her apron.
Why? Because Vera is sure she would do a better job than the police possibly could, because nobody sniffs out a wrongdoing quite like a suspicious Chinese mother with time on her hands. Vera knows the killer will be back for the flash drive; all she has to do is watch the increasing number of customers at her shop and figure out which one among them is the killer.
What Vera does not expect is to form friendships with her customers and start to care for each and every one of them. As a protective mother hen, will she end up having to give one of her newfound chicks to the police?
Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers is one of the most hilarious cozy mystery books for adults.
14| The Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise by Colleen Oakley, Funny Fiction March 2023
Synopsis: Twenty-one-year-old Tanner Quimby needs a place to live. Preferably one where she can continue sitting around in sweatpants and playing video games nineteen hours a day.
Since she has no credit or money to speak of, her options are limited, so when an opportunity to work as a live-in caregiver for an elderly woman falls into her lap, she takes it. One slip on the rug. That’s all it took for Louise Wilt’s daughter to demand that Louise have a full-time nanny living with her.
Never mind that she can still walk fine, finish her daily crossword puzzle, and pour the two fingers of vodka she drinks every afternoon. Bottom line — Louise wants a caretaker even less than Tanner wants to be one.
The two start off their living arrangement happily ignoring each other until Tanner starts to notice things—weird things. Like, why does Louise keep her garden shed locked up tighter than a prison? And why is the local news fixated on the suspect of one of the biggest jewelry heists in American history who looks eerily like Louise?
And why does Louise suddenly appear in her room, with a packed bag at 1 a.m. insisting that they leave town immediately? Thus begins the story of a not-to-be-underestimated elderly woman and an aimless young woman who—if they can outrun the mistakes of their past—might just have the greatest adventure of their lives.
The Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise is one of the most feel-good and laugh-out-loud funny books for adults in 2023.
13| Really Good, Actually by Monica Heisey – Funny Romance Fiction Book, January 2023
Synopsis:
Really Good, Actually is one of the funniest new romance fiction novels for adults who love heartwarming and witty stories.
12| New Animal by Ella Baxter – New Funny fiction novel, March 2022
This heartbreaking and witty novel is set in Australia and tells the story of Amelia a young cosmetician who works at her family’s mortuary business. Amelia is good at her job but not with feelings which stops her from forming long-lasting relationships.
After her mom unexpectedly dies Aleia gets overwhelmed with new emotions and instead of dealing she decides to run away. However, she gets mixed up with a BDSM community which leads to many dark and funny moments in the novel. If you love darkly comedic reads then this is the book for you.
New Animal is one of the darkest and funniest books for adults in 2022 and is a great choice for those who love meaningful stories about sexuality and grief.
11| Maps of our Spectacular Bodies by Maddie Mortimer – Funny Fiction Novel, March 2022
If you’ve been looking for a new funny novel that will make you ugly cry for all kinds of reasons then you should pick up Maps of Our Spectacular Bodies. The story follows Lia, her husband, and their adolescent daughter.
Their family is a happy little one but everything changes when Lia gets diagnosed with cancer their life changes forever. It’s a story about Lia dealing with the illness and her past, her distant mom, but it’s also about motherhood and growing up.
Maps of Our Spectacular Bodies is a heartbreaking lyrical debut novel about illness and death that’s also one of the most darkly funny books of 2022.
10| Part of Your World by Abby Jimenez – Romance, Humorous Fiction novel, 2022
This hilarious and heartwarming romantic fiction story is about Alexis and Daniel who meet, connect and fall in love against all odds. Alexis is 37 and Jimenes is 28.
Alexis is an ER doctor in Minneapolis who comes from a rich family and Daniel works hard in his small town and fulfills multiple roles; he’s the mayor of the town but he’s also a carpenter and a B&B manager and was raised by a teen mom.
The more time Alexis spends in Daniel’s tight-knit town the more she falls for him and for the quiet but fulfilling small-town life. If you love the opposites attract trope then you just found your next favorite romance novel.
Part of Your World is one of the most anticipated romantic new funny books for adults who love charming and hilarious stories.
9| Joan Is Okay by Weike Wang – Medical Fiction, 2022
This funny medical fiction novel is about Joan who is a thirtysomething ICU doctor at a busy New York City hospital. She’s the daughter of Chinese parents who came to the US to help their kids achieve the American dream.
The plan went well and now both Joan and her brother Fang established their careers while their parents moved back to China. However, her dad suddenly dies and her mom moves back to the US to reconnect with them. Joan soon has to get way out of her comfort zone as her hospital, her city, and the whole world are forced to deal with the devastating health crisis.
It’s a motivating and funny novel about finding one’s voice within a dominant culture; being a woman in a male-dominated workplace, and staying independent within a tight-knit family.
Joan Is Okay is one of the most hilarious new funny books for adults who love novels where medical fiction and chick lit collide.
8| The House of Marvellous Books by Fiona Vigo Marshall – Humorous Fiction, May 2022
The House of Marvellous Books is a small publishing house tucked away in central London and is also on the brink of financial disaster. The story is about the publishing house’s eccentric and charming characters who are working hard to try and save their beloved independent publishing house while navigating their daily lives and relationships.
The House of Marvellous Books is easily one of the most charming and new funny books for adults and teen readers who love quirky stories and eccentric characters set in London.
7| Nora Goes Off Script Annabel Monaghan – Romantic Comedy Novel, June 2022
This hilarious and heartwarming story is about Nora, a divorced romance channel screenwriter who lives happily with her loving husband and two kids. Until she didn’t When her husband leaves her and their two kids Nora sits down and pours her heartbreak into the best script she ever wrote.
It soon gets picked up and turned into a movie with Leo Vance playing her husband. After the last day of shooting Nora wakes up to find Leo drunk on her porch and with an intriguing proposition; He’ll pay a thousand dollars a day to stay for a week. Nora decides to go along with not expecting to fall in love and to break her heart in only seven days.
Nora Goes Off Script is going to be one of your favorite new rom-com novels to take to the beach this year.
6| The Splendid City by Karen Heuler – Humorous Fantasy/Fiction Novel, 2022
If you love genre-blending stories that are thought-provoking, hilarious, and filled with unique characters then check out The Splendid City. In the fictional police state of Liberty, there is no free-speech or affordable water. However, you’ll find there witchcraft and talking cats. We follow Eleanor who is learning about her new magical gifts with the support of her coven.
Even though Eleanor is a white witch her life is not easy. She gets placed under house arrest and she has to share the space with a previous coworker who now exists in the form of a cat. Even though Eleanor’s resources are limited she wants to help her coven find a missing witch whose disappearance could be linked to the water shortages in Liberty.
The Splendid City will be one of the weirdest and most hilarious new funny fantasy books you’ll read in 2022.
5| Unlikely Animals by Annie Hartnett – Humorous Fiction Novel, 2022
The story follows Emma who was a natural-born healer with big plans for her life but she’s now but now she’s a college dropout who has to move back to small-town Everton to take care of her dying father.
Her father, Clive is dying from a mysterious brain disease that makes him hallucinate small animals as well as a ghost of a previous healer who helps him decide how to spend his final days. Emma has to face her dad’s illness, and her mom’s judgment, and deal with the fact that her brother’s recent stint in rehab.
She even finds out that her former best friend from high school went missing and no one is looking for her. She sets out to find out what happened to her.
Unlikely Animals is the perfectly hilarious new tragicomic novel for adults who love quirky, touching, and heartfelt stories about familial expectations and imperfect friendships.
4| Homicide and Halo-Halo by Mia P. Manansala – Humorous, Cozy Mystery Novel, 2022
Are you looking for new mystery books? Then Mia P. Manansala’s new cozy-mystery novel is a great pick. The story follows Lila, who is a smart, independent woman and is very good at sticking to her priorities.
When she is asked to be a judge at a beauty pageant she won many years ago in her hometown, things change dramatically. One of the judges is her cousin, Bernadette, who appears to have some grudges toward her. The show has barely begun, when the head judge is murdered, and Lila has to team up with her main suspect cousin to find the real murderer before they end up in the morgue.
Homicide and Halo-Halo is one of the most entertaining new funny books filled with mystery that will surely make you laugh.
3| Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus – Humorous Fiction, 2022
This hilarious novel is set in 1960s California and it features Elizabeth Zott, a scientist whose career takes a detour when she becomes the star of a beloved TV cooking show. Elizabeth is a chemist who works in an all-male team at Hastings Research Institute where the Nobel prize-nominated Calvin Evans falls for her.
A few years later, however, Elizabeth lives as a single mother and is the reluctant star of America’s most beloved cooking show. Thanks to her unique methods her following is quickly growing. However, not everyone is a fan because Elizabeth is not only changing how women cook but daring them to change the status quo as well.
Lessons in Chemistry is one of the most vibrant and new funny books of 2022 that will surely make you laugh out loud.
2| The Recovery Agent: A Novel by Janet Evanovich – Adventure, Mystery, Humorous Fiction, March 2022
This action and humor-filled book series is about Gabriela Rose’s adventure. Gabriela is a recovery agent and she works for individuals and companies seeking lost treasures, stolen heirlooms, or missing assets of any kind. However, this time Gabriela has to recover something for her own family to save their childhood home.
After she’s inspired by an old family legend she decides to head to Peru to find the Ring of Solomon and the lost treasure of Cortez. There is only one problem; her ex-husband Rafer has the map and he doesn’t want to let her go on this journey alone. This action-packed and hilarious novel is perfect for adults and teens who love adventure fiction and mysteries.
The Recovery Agent is the most adventurous and new humorous book for adults who love mysteries and epic adventures.
1| Four Aunties And A Wedding by Jesse Q. Sutanto – Humorous Mystery, Romance Novel, 2022
The aunties are back in this new hilarious mystery fiction that’s perfect for those who love chick-lit and cozy mysteries. Meddy Chan is finally getting married to her college sweetheart Nathan and she decides that Ma and the aunts shouldn’t cater her wedding so they’ll be able to enjoy it fully.
They get lucky when they find the perfect wedding vendors; a Chinese-Indonesian family-run company just like their own. However, Meddy overhears one of the vendors talking about their mafia business and realizes that they just want to use her wedding as a cover for their shady business.
However, the aunties are here to save the special day and they’re not afraid of anything… not even the mafia.
Four Aunties And A Wedding is one of the most anticipated new funny books for adults filled with mystery, charm, and romance.
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