I’m embarrassed to admit that this is my first read by Christina Lauren. I’ve read so many amazing reviews of her (their) books in the past and have just never picked one up.

At first, I had trouble getting into the book, as I felt the oppressiveness of conflict straight off. The reasoning is because this story is told with flashbacks interspersed, so I got a feel of the drama before connecting with any of the characters.

It didn’t take long, however, before I was able to sync with the book’s rhythm and start trusting the writers to tell me a roller coaster of a story. It almost happened the same way Carey and James got to know each other–one delicious peace of information at a time until you realize that what you’re looking at is engrossing! A little bit of a surprise.

I really enjoyed Carey’s character the most. She started out as a doormat of a character and on her own merit, manages to emerge a fully-capable, and sure of herself adult by the last chapter. Earlier, she has no idea what she wants or who she is. I’m glad to say her metamorphosis felt complete and organic.

I also enjoyed James’ character. It helped that we got alternating perspectives from the two of them. Because some of his actions may have been questionable if the reader hadn’t been able to see inside his mind. Without that, I don’t think I would’ve enjoyed the romance between him and Carey quite as much.

As for Melissa and Rusty… Well, I’m not going to parse out their characters too much. Let’s just say that I feel a bit conflicted about them both. But, I think that may have been the point.

The Honey-Don’t List was a calm ride with suddenly rapid waters towards the end, which served itself up, humorously and intelligently. I felt vindicated at the end and quite content with how things wrapped up.

The Honey-Don’t List has a different vibe from any Christina Lauren books I’ve read before (and I’ve read almost all, if not all of them. I think what stumped me is I couldn’t immediately identify a primary romantic trope—I felt a bit untethered! 😆

The book features a Chip and Joanna like couple—Rusty and Melissa Tripp—who have built a HGTV empire around home renovation and design. But unlike Chip and Jojo, their marriage is like a reno project at the end of demo day—which is a bad time to be releasing a book of marriage advice.

The main romance is between their assistants—James and Carey. And although there’s definitely the typical breakdown of communication drama toward the end, they get their happy ending and all is well. There’s obviously more to it than this—it’s acquaintances to friends to lovers.

If you’re looking for a realistic, believable plot, this probably isn’t your top choice—but to be fair, we don’t typically read romance novels for their believability.

I don’t normally enjoy books that feature someone cheating on his or her spouse, but I appreciated how the affair wasn’t glorified or used for humor but rather as am indicator of the state of the Tripp’s marriage.

I gave it 3.5 stars in my own personal book journal, but I rounded it up to 4 on here and Goodreads. It’s an easy, fast read. And nothing C&Lo write is bad. This just wasn’t my favorite.

I received a complimentary copy of The Honey-Don’t List from Netgalley and Simon and Schuster in exchange for my honest review.

I love everything Christina Lauren writes, but I was especially excited for this! And ugh, I was not wrong. If you loved Set It Up on Netflix and anything on HGTV, this is a book you need to pick up. Loved everything about it.

Christina and Lauren did it again : The Honey-Don't List is a really enjoyable book, the perfect mix of hilarious with a sprinkle of sweet and touching.
The story follows Carey, the perfect workaholic-against-her-will assistant of Melly Tripp, and James, the overly-educated for the assistant position of one Rusty Tripp, second half of the decorating world power couple.
I like the chemistry and the banter between the main characters, the pace is good - though I found the ending too abrupt, but the writing makes it really easy to get into the book.
All in all, it is a quick and entertaining read that I'd definitely recommend!

I was delighted to have the opportunity to review another of Christina Lauren's books. They have so quickly become my favorite writing team. This was a quick, fun read. I very much enjoyed their banter and found their growing romance both believable and enjoyable. Another winner!

The Honey-Don't List was a charming love story about two assistants working for a Chip and Joanna Gaines like couple. The only difference is the couple in the novel absolutely hate one another. It was an easy to read romance novel, however I did struggle to buy into the chemistry between the two leads James and Carey. It will keep you entertained and I liked the different points of views throughout the book.

This was a quick and easy read, I finished it in a matter of hours. The storyline moves fast and doesn’t lag. However, it’s such a blatant and cheap knock-off of Chip and Joanna Gaines. It really left me feeling sour about the experience, particularly all of the negativity with that couple in the storyline. This was a fine read but I’m disappointed in the authors and their use of public figures in this manner. This was not original or unique. Thank you to the publisher for the advance reader in exchange for my honest review. 2.5 ⭐️

This is a fun, fast-paced romance with a likable main character, Carey, and her dashing love interest, James. The two are employed by a much less likable couple, whose business and marriage are on the rocks.

I mostly enjoyed this book and found it a quick, entertaining escape. However, for me there were a couple drawbacks: the development of all the characters fell short so I wasn’t very attached to any of them, and the romance resolution at the end was too abrupt.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC copy. The Honey Don't List is not your typical Christina Lauren book - it’s more. It’s a feel good story about real people with what looks like great jobs but aren’t. Carey and James have a story that grows on you like good wine. I thought about this story more after I finished it replaying how James is the best boyfriend, how a bad job can teach you lots of things and how to live with a disease and make the most of it.

I think this might be my last Christina Lauren book for a while. The Honey-Don’t List was a definite miss for me. I was intrigued by the storyline as a fan of HGTV, and the Tripp’s sounded like a dead ringer for the Gaines’ of Fixer Upper fame with a little more scandal. Unfortunately, the story fell completely flat for me. I wasn’t very interested in reading about Cary and James, The Tripp’s respective assistants, keep a less than reputable company afloat and free of scandal. The Melissa and Rusty Tripp aren’t likable so you’re never rooting for them to keep their secrets hidden from the press. Also, Melissa’s treatment of Carey is pretty abhorrent, and she never really seems truly apologetic about it even in the end. Carey and James were also pretty boring, and their relationship seemed a bit too much like instalove for me. Overall, I would pass on this one.

I always enjoy Christina Lauren, at least of the few I've read. This was no exception. There were tears and laughs just like you'd expect from these two. I really liked both Carey and James. Their diverse backgrounds make them so unlikely a match but they work so well together. He's just the positive influence she needs since no one in her life has been good and pointing out her talents. Not even the very people who are rich and famous based on her talent. Carey is every bit as smart as James even without the prestigious education. I so wanted for her to get the recognition she deserved and see her shine.

Even Mel and Rusty Tripp aren't completely unsympathetic. They can be both horrible and kind though not in equal doses. It's an excellent, albeit fictional, look behind the perfect facade of the celebrities we think we know.

As a Wyoming native it was fun to visit Jackson and Laramie!

I recommend this book.

Thank you @netgalley for my copy for review, I was giddy right when I set my sites on the cover!
Carey has a love hate relationship with her job as a personal assistant to Melissa Tripp. Melissa and her husband are TV icons of the design world, and are about to be catapulted into stardom with a new show and book deal. Not only is it Carey’s job to keep Melissa’s schedule running smoothly, but she also works overtime to hide the fact Melissa and Rusty despise each other. The couple is about to set off on a multi state book tour to promote a book about how to have a happy marriage. If people find out the truth they’ll be ruined. Babysitting this couple is the worst, until Carey hits it off with Rusty’s assistant James. The two bond over their terrible jobs and become closer with each bookstore stop. ❤️
I read this book in one sitting, it’s that good. Fans of Christina Lauren will not be disappointed! I can’t wait for you guys to read it so we can discuss it! While reading it I kept thinking Melissa and Rusty reminded me of Chip and Joanne Gains. ( without the fighting, drinking, cheating) pre-order your copy, The Honey-Dont list comes out March 24th

Loved it! Christina Lauren books are so much fun. They are consistently amazing with the witty banter.

I was so excited to receive an early copy of one of Christina Lauren’s books! I really enjoyed this book, it was a cute romance set against the backdrop of a total disaster. It was a fun contrast, and I looked forward to the romantic elements as much as I looked forward to finding out what happened that led to the main characters being interviewed in a police station. I always enjoy Christina Lauren’s books and this one was no different! Quick fun read, perfect for a snowy day!

Carey Douglas has a very thankless job which she has given her all to since the age of sixteen. Ten years later, Carey is head wrangler for a celebrity home remodeling couple, Melissa and Rusty Tripp. Carey along with MIT graduate and engineer, James McCann, is charged with keeping this couple from going off the rails while they are all on a book promotion tour together. Familiarity breeds contempt goes a long way to describe the Tripp marriage which is on the verge of imploding thanks to Melly’s dictatorial, obsessive ways, and Rusty’s Peter Pan personality and alley cat morals. Carey has contributed much to their success; however, she gets little credit which has always been fine with her until now.

James McCann never thought he would be essentially a gofer PA for a celebrity boss. Having been promised an engineering job which he desperately needs, the only thing James is engineering is keeping Rusty from embarrassing them all and helping Carey keep the whole house of cards together. The Tripps are about to hit it even bigger with a new show so this tour is extremely important to that goal.

Melly and Rusty are quite hard to take; their constant arguing makes for stress and strain on everyone putting Carey and James in the position of continually doing damage control. Melly’s physical violence towards her husband is also very off putting and not funny. While on the misery tour, Carey and James find more in common than just crazypants bosses. Carey has lived in the shadows so long, but now she sees a possibility for a different future away from manipulative Melly and her feckless husband. When Carey finally decides she wants something different, fumbles happen in the usual rom-com way. Since Carey and James spend so much time working their jobs, they have little time to truly develop a relationship before everything falls apart so unfortunately the romantic element takes more of a back seat in this book.

This was such a fun, feel good, romance novel. Was any of it especially surprising or unique? No. But it’s like your mom’s mac and cheese, super comforting and hits the spot. It did its job of making you hope and wish for your own very special someone.

The pacing was good and it was a super quick read. The second half was definitely stronger than the first. I enjoyed every bit of this and will continue to look forward to their future novels!!

I'd call this a 3.5. It has humor, like all CL books, but never quite to the laugh out loud level. The two main characters are quite likeable, and very cute together, but the two secondary characters were more caricatures than fully fleshed people. It also followed the standard romance formula--two people dislike each other, then decide they do like each other, then decide they love each other, then break up over some silly, overblown misunderstanding, then get back to HEA. The breakup trigger was extremely transparent, which made it feel somewhat artificial. But that's true for most romances, so it's the quality of the writing and the general enjoyability factors that made me round this up to a 4 rather than my standard romance rating of 3.

Another great contemporary romance from the writing duo Christina Lauren. The Honey-Don't List balances tension and release in the most satisfying way, all wrapped up with a resolving happy bow at the end. Christina Lauren and their team are masters of the craft of romance writing. The characters and their motivations are real and empathizable. I read this book on a lazy Sunday and it was exactly what I wanted to dissociate from reality for a time.

I devoured it. Christina Lauren never disappoint. And are my #1 perfect antidote to the news.I love the breezy easy style and as always fell in love with the characters. The added element of suspense was a fun addition. And now I can't wait for the next one.

This book is not Bastard.

Don't go in thinking you're getting another Chloe and Bennett because that's not going to happen and you will be disappointed.

But that is 100% okay.

This book is fun. This book is heart.

This book is the The Honey Don't List.

Working as assistants to Mel and Rusty Tripp, Carey and James are forced into going on the road with the Tripps as they promote their new book about relationships. It's Carey and James's job to not let the public know what really goes on in the Tripps' less than perfect marriage.

This is a story of two couples Carey and James finding their way to each other the first time and Mel and Rusty finding their way back to each other.

The love story between Carey and James is sweet and tender. Mel and Rusty are more Tanya Tucker's Love Me Like You Used Too.

The story was witty and fun with a large does of OMG did that really just happen?

I enjoyed the book. I enjoyed a country girl heroine and hero completely out of his depth.

Christina Lauren always does a great job making characters come to life and feel well rounded.

From their first office romance to their newest they have grown so much as authors. The depth and heart really make this story.