Honey is what you never expected and more.

It's the story of a girl who wants to be loved and eventually learns to love herself. It's a reimagining of '90s and '00s popstars, presenting their lives in a story that feels both intimate and universal. Told from the perspective of Amber Young, our narrator and protagonist, the book is structured like a song-—a structure that at first seems kitschy, before you realize her story has to be told this way. It's a structure that enriches the narrative, allowing you to truly recognize who Amber is and how she thinks.

At first I hated this book. Like really truly hated. I was put off by how hypersexual it was, and it felt overwhelming. But as I got into the second verse, I thought maybe that was the point. Amber's hypersexuality is not gratuitous; it's a fundamental aspect of her character and development. It's in this section that Amber starts to crystallize into the person she is meant to be. Throughout the book, you find yourself yearning for more for her--more than she even wants for herself. You want to shake her, hold her, and guide her because there's a part of her in all of us in a way. And at this point, she finally embarks on a path for herself which she richly deserves.

While the story only contains a few explicitly sexual scenes, much of it deals with Amber's sexuality, particularly from the perspective of a pop star at the time. She's forced to navigate a world in which her worth is oftentimes measured by her sexual appeal despite the talent she possesses, and she initially tries to find love and acceptance through physical relationships.

Amber's understanding of intimacy evolves as the story does. By the second verse, Amber is no longer just a pop icon molded by the industry's demands; she's a young woman beginning to carve out her own identity and path.

In the end, Honey is more than a coming-of-age tale--it's a deep dive into the complexities of fame, self-worth, and the search for genuine connection. Amber Young's story is one that will stay with you, much like a favorite song that you never tire of replaying.

4.5
This was so amazing.
Honey by Isabel Banta follows Amber Young as she goes from a small artist to a global pop star. We learn about the pros and cons of fame, the development of platonic and romantic relationships, and the cultivation of self identity and confidence.
I loved the writing in this book. It felt very realistic, and it painted Amber and the rest of the characters in a very human light.
This book was very fun while also having a lot of good, deep conversations. I appreciated Amber's relationships with Gwen and Axel and how well described they were.
I didn't want to put this book down! I engaged with every page, even if some of the chapters weren't meant to be fun. I appreciate that Banta was able to have a range of moods and tones throughout the story.
Overall, this was very good, and l'd recommend it to anyone who likes fame-related literary fiction.
Thank you to Net Galley and Celadon books for providing me an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

If you are old enough to remember TRL, MTV when they actually played music videos, the boy band craze, and the rivalry between the female pop stars, you’ll enjoy this book. I loved the sense of nostalgia that I felt while reading this book.

Starting with Amber’s humble beginnings in the mid 90s, we follow her as she works to launch her music career. The book was entertaining and fun to read, but I never felt a connection to the characters. While I was rooting for them all to succeed, I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop. I didn’t feel that emotion that I know was under the surface, waiting to be pulled out.

Overall, an enjoyable read. Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and author for a copy of Honey in exchange for my review.

Have you ever read a book & thought that it should be a movie? That’s this book. I could picture everything in my mind & got lost in it, but when it was over I didn’t feel like I truly knew the characters like I usually do when I read a book. With that being said it definitely got the feeling of the 90’s/00’s down. I was suddenly in my early teens again watching MTV & soaking up all the Britney/Justin/Christina drama.

I really enjoyed HONEY. It reminded me of a Taylor Jenkins Reid book, as well as the recent celebrity memoirs that have been coming out over the years (Jessica Simpson, Britney Spears, etc). I loved the millennial feel of the book - everything about it made me nostalgic for butterfly clips, Juicy Couture track suits, and CDs spinning in the boom box. I appreciated the inside look of Amber's journey too and how she wasn't afraid to be herself, even if it took a while to get there. I also really liked the character of Gwen! I didn't give this a full 5 stars because I felt the end was rushed (Wikipedia entry); I wanted to see more text of that as opposed to just an internet web entry of how Amber ended up HEA.

I really enjoyed this. I bought into the world, the characters, the stories. It felt alive and realistic. I really appreciated that the writing was rather subtle -- it didn't appear sensationalistic or prurient. For a first novel this was very impressive, and I can foresee quite a nice career for the author. My one point of contention was the cover -- it didn't speak to me, but I got it.

Well done.

I received a complimentary copy of the novel from the publisher and NetGalley, and my review is being left freely.

Amber Young wants to be a star. She can sing, and she’s been scouted as a member of a girl band, Cloud9. A boy band is rising to fame around the same time, ETA. Amber originally is part of a girl group but goes out on her own. She is pitched as the bad girl, who is sexy and confident. This story follows Amber’s career from her teens into her twenties.

It is hard to believe this one is a debut novel. I thought it was really well written, paced well, and it was a page turner. I couldn’t want to find out what would happen next. You could really see the parallels from the female pop singers of the late 90s and early 2000s here.

*spoilers*

I loved Amber. She was messy, flawed, heartbroken, confident, sexy, gorgeous, lonely…she made mistakes and plenty of them. She was let down by so many people in her life, but she still kept going for her dream. I felt for her with every rejection, every win, every cast off from Wes. Her friendship with Gwen was so well done. I loved how they cared for each other. I loved Amber’s growth throughout the novel. I also thought her growing relationship with the one person who really, truly believed in her was a nice touch. The paragraph about her attraction to Axel was intense and really gorgeously written.

I fully enjoyed reading this one and encourage you to pick it up! Thank you NetGalley Celadon for the physical copy and eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I grew up in the Britney Spears / Justin Timberlake era and maybe because of that, this book spoke to my soul. I loved the coming of age aspect, the fame, the journey to "making it", and what everything looked like behind the glamour and glitter.

This book gave me Daisy Jones & The Six vibes in the best possible ways. The smattering of lyrics and the inside look behind the scenes at the creative energies, dark side of fame, and sacrifices people in the industry make had me absolutely enthralled.

I loved the character development and while I couldn't relate to any of the characters directly, Banta's writing made them real to me and my heart went out to them. Coming of age in the limelight--even when you think you want it--can't be easy. I was glad that much of the fame and the ugliness that comes with it wasn't glossed over.

I couldn't put this book down. I liked how it was broken up into parts (that went with the parts of a song - cute!), that Amber had such a great character arc, and the relationships these young stars formed. I just kept imagining Britney and Justin and Christina and wondered if their experiences mirrored any of Gwen and Amber's.

It's amazing to me that this book is a debut and I'm really excited to see what Banta comes up with next.

I read this book but if an audio is available, I imagine it would be fantastic to listen to!

Thank you to Celadon and NetGalley for the copy. I definitely recommend!

Wow, I LOVED this book. Amber Young has always wanted to be a star, but she soon learns the price you have to pay for fame. I was genuinely surprised to learn that this is Isabel Banta's debut. Her writing style is so immersive. The way she detailed things made me feel like I was living the story myself. I will be recommending this to every single one of my fellow 90s babies. Thank you to NetGalley and Celadon Books for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This book makes me feel luckier than Britney Spears when the guy in the song went and got her the heart of the ocean, because it brought so many amazingly angsty memories of my teen years.

I loved being transported back in time to relive the boyband era in this debut novel, and getting a look behind the curtain at life as a pop star.

As an adult I was moved by the gross over sexualization of the tweens, and think that it’s culturally relevant to look back and sympathize with the girls like Amber who felt they had to put their bodies out there to find success.

Honey covers an extensive range of topics such as the objectification and the unfair treatment of women by the media, how society often sows dissension between women, the contradictory standards for both men and women, misogyny, the power of dynamics, and so much more.

My 90's heart LOVED this book. Beautiful

Wow this book had a lot to it. I think it really highlighted how controlling recording companies can be, how sometimes an artist is not allowed to be themselves, how sometimes they don’t even know themselves—especially when they start so young, and how the media creates this divide where it’s hard to tell what’s the truth.

All things considered, Amber did nothing different than what a college student may do, but because she was on such a pedestal and the media was spinning a different tale about Gwen and Wes, she was vilified. It makes you wonder just how often this actually happens. I’m sure we’ve all had the thought of “that relationship seems manufactured or like a PR stunt” but we never actually know.

Amber learned her lessons with Wes. I don’t think he was necessarily a bad guy. Sure his decisions sucked, but I think he really did care for her. He just loved the fame more. What he did to her was the fame equivalent of getting effed over by a “player”. But Amber’s need to be loved and Wes’ whole mess created a toxic secret relationship, especially with the third member in their relationship: the media.

I loved the subtle romance that brewed between her and Axel. That felt healthy. Yes he was her producer but he was young enough and also learning. But he was always receptive to her thoughts and believed in her. Amber as a result also slowly blossomed and became more comfortable in just being herself and taking more of a hold on her career.

The book really does have you watch her as she grows up in the industry, and how easily the tides change. One day you’re hated, the next day you’re loved. There’s no use trying to be someone you’re not— it just leads to a lot of unhappiness. In the beginning, she was a very moldable and impressionable doll, who just wanted to make it big and she did whatever they told her to. But these were also her most tragic days. She became more happy when she grabbed tighter to the reins of her life.

Thank you to Celadon Books for the review copy!

Thank you Celadon and NetGalley! Growing up during the time referenced in this book was such throwback. I really enjoyed it.

AMAZING!

This book is a book I have long desired to read. I am a 95 baby and growing up Pop Culture was and still is everything to me. I love the way Isabel wrote these characters. I love the mentions of the magazine articles and the interviews on missed tv shows. This was a different read from the norm and I think that when a celebrity trope is a books theme this is how it should be written. Can’t wait to buy on release day!!

Thank you to the publisher, Celadon Books, and Netgalley for providing me with an early copy of this book in exchange for my unbiased review.

This was a really great read! Perfect for fans of Britney Spears and the general 90s/2000s pop scene. I really enjoyed the story and thought the MC was really well written. Her motivations were not what you usually see when the author wants you to root for someone, but I found her really interesting and easy to empathize with. It was super interesting to have the juxtaposition of the three pop girls who were occupying slightly different spaces and therefore marketed and made out to be so different. I also love a book with mixed media, and throughly enjoyed the added in Genius and Wikipedia pages, as well as the interviews and other add ins.

I don't really have anything negative to say about this book. It wasn't five stars, but that's to no fault of the author IMO.

Highly recommend!

reading about a coming of age story about a pop star in the 90s/early 2000s was so mesmerizing and magnetic, it captivated my attention immediately, i liked how well developed amber was and the last few chapters of the book were my favourite bc i finally saw amber grow up, wished we could’ve seen more from her during that stage of her life, i do feel like there was a lot of filler chapters and the story lines that i wanted to go further didn’t and the were a lot of side story lines that didn’t get enough attention

This book was not within my normal genre of reading but it was written very beautifully. There were parts where I found myself zoning out and growing bored of the story. But it’s a book about the harsh truths of being a celebrity and a singer. My question is, was all she went through worth it?

4.75 Stars

I wasn’t too sure about this book in the beginning, as I found the writing to be a little weird at first, but as I read more I became addicted. I devoured this book, I am obsessed with pop girls of the late 90s and early 2000s, and this book gave me all the vibes, but also how painful and difficult it was to be a woman during this time. This book was phenomenal, everyone should definitely check it out!

First things first: this was such a good book and I was throughly impressed with it, especially for a debut! I live a far different life compared to that of the main character Amber, who is growing up in the white hot spotlight of the 90s/00s pop scene with all eyes on her but the triumphs and struggles of girlhood are universal, whether you’re famous or not. The writing was gorgeous and raw, the story simultaneously beautiful and painful all at once and overall a book that makes you think about it long after you finished the last page. You’re gonna want to put Isabel Banta on your radar if this is how good she can write from the get go. Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful!

This book has all the ingredients for something that should really be up my alley: Millennial nostalgia, pop culture, coming of age, but something just didn't work for me. It felt like the author came up with the pop culture references then built the story around them, rather than the other way around. Not for me.