Too many adult themes to recommend this to my students, but I will happily tell friends and coworkers. I enjoyed this but it was not my favorite CL book. Somehow it felt less fun. I really liked Carey though.

This book had an interesting premise and I've heard good things about this author-duo, so I was excited. The book turned out a beach read type fiction with less romance and more couple drama from the Tripps - the bosses, which was not the fun kind but pretty frustrating that it went on so long before a sudden twist. I really liked Carey and James, but their romance feels rushed with not enough time devoted to them really evolving as a couple. Similarly the end also feels a bit rushed and cut off where they meet again after a while but you're left wondering what the repercussions are off all the drama and where they're going next. Easy to read, but not much more.

I enjoyed this story of a famous designing couple & their assistants trying to contain their impending implosion. Carey & James (The assistants) fall in love along the way of course.
While this book lacked the witty banter that I loved so much from The Unhoneymooners & Josh & Hazel, the characters were still very likable & I rooted for their relationship. And though it also lacked much buildup—they went quickly from practical strangers to soulmates—I still enjoyed them getting together. But The Honey-Don’t List was about more than the romance. It focused a lot on the designing couple & how they had lost their way, & on Carey’s growth as a person.
Overall a quick & enjoyable read!

I was super hype to get this book early because I’ve read a bunch of Christina Lauren and have liked a few. Unfortunately, their most recent books (Unhoneymooners, Twice in a Blue Moon) have not been my favorites. Every CL book I read I hope will live up to the magic of Love and Other Words, but none of their recent stuff has which is a bummer.

The Honey-Don’t- List is like a mix of Set It Up and a fictional Fixer Upper but not nearly as interesting or perfect. Melly and Rusty Tripp are home improvement celebrities with a hit show, book on marriage, and successful brand. Unfortunately, the couple behind the show are a disaster in real life and they rely on Carey Duncan (Melly’s assistant among other things) and James McCann (engineer turned assistant) to handle their lives and deal with their mess. Melly is honestly so difficult to read because she is absolutely fake and horrific. I was really hoping to get more enemies from Carey and James but they turned into friends and then love sick couple pretty quick, which was somewhat unbelievable. I honestly don’t think they had a ton of chemistry either. Some parts were sweet and some parts made me laugh (especially when I secretly imagined that Melly and Rusty were actually Joanna and Chip Gaines lol). But overall, I wish this could have been more: more interesting, higher stakes, more sweet swoony love, and a better wrap up.

**I received an ARC from NetGalley in return for an honest review**

3.5

I’m having a hard time figuring out what to officially rate things because I have mixed feelings about it overall. I didn’t hate it or dislike it at all, and if I pile up my CL reads and rate them, this would probably be 3rd. But there’s still a few things that didn’t make me LOVE this. I think overall I just feel like it will be a book I’ll probably forget in a few months, and it didn’t leave that much of a mark on me, but it was still enjoyable while I was reading, and I feel like that counts for something.

I want to say that I throughly enjoyed the plot. I’m a huge fan HGTV and I’m loving seeing all the books coming out inspired by shows from that channel and from the idea of a couple that renovates houses together. This was a big win for me plot wise!

Another win for me was the characters. I have to say, I think so far James might be my favorite CL male character. I haven’t read all of their books yet, but he was by far the sweetest, and I’ll go even farther to say the most likable. I don’t like the conflicts these authors come up with in their books, and this one wasn’t different, but I felt like it was the least bad and that James genuinely wanted to tell her and was searching for the right moment. Overall, def my favorite male character of theirs!

Carey was also a delight to read about and I specially loved her character growth throughout the book. I loved seeing her stand up for herself in the end, and I really enjoyed her personality!


Couple wise, I have mixed feelings. Mostly because I get like there was absolutely no build up between these two AT ALL, and their relationship felt rather abrupt if I’m being honest. They suddenly went from coworkers who barely knew each other to being in love and it unfortunately wasn’t pulled off well enough for me to buy it. They did have some really cute moments that made me smile, but I think it lacked development. If it wasn’t for that I would’ve really loved their relationship.


Overall, it was an ok story but nothing mind blowing. If you want something sweet to give you some warm feelings, I do recommend it! I didn’t hate it, I didn’t love it, but it definitely wasn’t bad, and it’s definitely not anywhere close to my least favorites by these authors.

This was just okay; I liked her earlier books better. This felt rushed, and character development was weak. I read this as an ARC from the publisher.

Christina Lauren's books are a comfort read for me. I go into it knowing I am going to have an enjoyable story, a couple of giggles along the way, and a HEA. The Honey Don't List, in all these areas, does not disappoint. James and Carey are great and the backdrop to the book and the conflict it provided was an interesting premise.

That being said, the story did not hold anything new or exciting within it. Perhaps I have become a little jaded, but it felt almost calculated, like a fill in the blanks novel. The characters, while wonderful, were a little flat, and Carey's lack of personal conviction made her a bit frustrating to read. It didn't feel like there was any true chemistry between James and Carey, it almost read as a close proximity novel where the individuals could have been anyone given the circumstances.

I also disliked the resolution with Melly and Rusty. The relationship between them and Carey was abusive, and the relationship between Melly and Rusty should have truly ended up with Melly in jail. The number of times she became violent with Rusty was horrifying, and the fact that there was no real consequences for her in the end, and that Carey excused it given their previous relationship, just lends to the fact that she is an abuser. I struggled reading that part and not finding the conclusion of their relationship satisfying.

Altogether, if you're looking for something lighthearted to take your mind off reality for a bit, this book fits the bill.

Despite some of the reviews I really enjoyed this one. Christina Lauren are one of my favorite writing duos and this is just a great book of their work. I thought it was entertaining and the characters were really likeable. Pretty great book.

Thank you Netgalley, the author and publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Definitely not my favorite by this duo. It wasn't bad but it wasn't great.
I say go for it and read it, you may love it.
Thanks Netgalley for the Arc

Yet again, the dynamic writing duo of Christina Lauren do not disappoint! The Honey-Don’t List is one of those books that you don’t want to put down as soon as you start reading it because the characters are relatable, the relationship dynamics between characters are enthralling, and the storyline keeps you hooked from start to finish. I really appreciated that the authors took time to explore topics such as chronic illness and the misconceptions of the “perfect life” as portrayed in social media. In other words, this novel really addresses the idea that everything is not as it may appear and how easy it is to lose oneself in the process of trying to show everyone else that everything is “perfect” when in fact it’s falling to pieces.

I grabbed this one because I love Christina Lauren books because of their humor. This was just was "heavy". Melly and Rusty's relationship with Carey in the beginning was of surrogate parents and a positive influence. For the majority of the book I hated Melly and Rusty. The way they treated people and Carey in particular was awful. Nothing light hearted or zany about it. Even the ending couldn't redeem them in my eyes. Carey and James having sex to just have sex was another turn off for me. Overall everyone in the book was miserable for the majority of it, including me.

Another great book from Christina Lauren! I loved all the dynamics between the four main characters and how they each affected each other.

This is a funny book. Watching the Tripp’s was like watching an accident. You know it’s going to happen but you can’t turn away. My heart hurt for Carey and James was clueless in handling the Tripp’s. It was a bit slow to start but I soon got into the storyline. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. I received a copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

This was my first book of the new year and it was worthy of such a lofty title as “The First Book”. The Honey Don’t List is what you get when you take a famous home remodeling duo, think Chip and Joanna Gaines, and watch their perfect image get annihilated in spectacular fashion while their two “assistants” do everything behind the scenes to try to prevent that very thing from happening. Carey and James are those assistants and the forced proximity and “us against them” mentality creates sparks where none were before. When the show can’t go on, do they have what it takes to create a new space in the world for themselves?

I really enjoyed this book. James and Carey were very real individuals with genuine hopes, thoughts, feelings easy to relate to. Watching the spectacular disintegration of the Tripp empire was highly entertaining. The location of the book created a lot of nostalgia because my daughter lives in Jackson Hole WY and I was able to perfectly imagine a Comb + Honey store right on the square. Thank you to Netgalley and Gallery books for the ARC copy in exchange for a review. This was a great read.

Well that happened.

My first Christina Lauren book. After having bought others, even gotten them signed in person. But then I started on this, thanks, netgalley.
And yeah, it just, kinda happened. Nothing made me hate this story, but nothing really made me love it either. It dragged for quite a bit, mostly because the romance part fell woefully short. The premise is kinda like that Netflix movie Set It Up, just missing most of the fun bits. The catastrophic bosses were the main part, even though their impact on the actual relationship was minimal. I just never really felt any bigger connection to the main characters, James especially. The focus was too much on the bosses rather than on the getting to know of the couple, who yup, get along at some point (the whole we don't like each other bit was fairly quickly resolved), then have some problem, are good, and someone messes up, barely an apology.. and yay, happy. It just felt.. beige. Bit boring. I finished a couple hours ago and am already struggling to remember things.

However, the writing never annoyed me, as others have, the story didn't struggle that way, bit of pacing, bit of a focus issue.
2.5 stars

Have you ever had a job that consumed you? One where you felt like you had no personal time to yourself? One where you ate, slept, and breathed work?

If so, you are going to relate so much to this new story!

In a story reminiscent of some popular TV shows, this crazy book really makes you thank goodness you do not have a boss like James and Carey suffer through. So it is alllllmost natural that these two find themselves drawn to each other, if only for commiseration purposes.

I love they way these two came together and those sweet sparks that flash between the pages. For two people so different, they are a darling blend that have to deal with the crazy. After all, who wants to babysit a couple who seem to hate each other?

While zany situations abound and the crazy emotions fly, James and Carey try to eek some privacy much to the chagrin of their boss. Perfectly set up for some super hot, sexy romance, the heat level in this one is not what we normally see from this writing team. I wanted more detail and fire from the nerdy hottie! Yummm

The Honey-Don’t List is written with amazing clarity and their classic wit, Christina Lauren offers up a sweetheart of a read that proves love can happen in the most unexpected places and during some pretty wild situations.

Hmm, what to say about this book? I did enjoy the story but it took me awhile to finish it because when I sat it down I wasn’t compelled to hurry back to it. The story is about James and Carey who work for a design powerhouse couple Rusty & Melissa/Melly Tripp. The Tripp’s come off very similar in background to a certain HGTV power couple based in Texas, only somewhere along the line they have lost their way. The story is interspersed with police questioning and James and Carey going back to the beginning to tell the complete story. I do wish after making it through the book there would have been an epilogue or something more it just felt a little unfinished to me. #TheHoneyDontList #NetGalley

The Honey-Don't List was not the best from Christina Lauren by far, but per usual, even their worst books make me laugh and keep me turning the pages.

I picked this one up for the promised HGTV behind-the-scenes vibes - Christina Lauren is obviously imagining here what would happen if the Gaines couple from Fixer Upper secretly hated each other (please God don't let that ever be true) and had two assistants that tried to keep everything on track while also falling in love with each other. The two assistants storyline had promise as well - I loved it so much in the movie Set It Up, as well as in one of my favorite romances ever, The Hating Game, so I was expecting great things from this trope.

Ultimately, the book was fun and drama-packed but it just left me wanting. It felt a little rushed and I never felt like we got too much resolution. As always, for those wanting to read some seriously amazing Christina Lauren, I recommend Josh and Hazel's Guide to Not Dating.

These authors work hard not to write the same story over and over. True, they use the romance template, but that is a guide--like a sonnet is fourteen lines, with certain rhythm and rhyme patterns, but outside of frame that there is a world of variation.

I enjoy most of the Lauren books. This one fell in the middle of my range. I wish that they'd made one more pass, shifting some of the book's weight away from the awful couple our hero and heroine are working for, as their presence on stage tended toward emotional one-note as well as being more unpleasant than funny, and I wish that extra weight had been put into the romance, which is so sketched in that if the authors weren't so skilled on the sentence level, with some great individual scenes, it would have seemed perfunctory.

The idea was a good one: a long-married and super-successful couple whose insanely popular brand depends on their presentation of a couple as happily married, but the two began early on to make me sigh when they came on stage [especially Rusty, a cheating cheater, blech).

Also, the frame--a police report--didn't really go anywhere.

Still, I remain a fan, and look forward to their next.

I've read a lot of Christina Lauren's romances and The Honey Don't List is definitely my least favorite. I think the premise and what the story seemed to be inspired by was fun, but the execution was cliched and not to the standard I expected. The depiction of a female boss who took advantage of her employee and her cheating husband who is seeking attention felt so played out and could have been handled in a better way. I didn't feel like the main couple had the greatest chemistry. The handling of the main character's disability also didn't feel right.