The Honey-Don't List

By: Christina Lauren

Narrated by: Patti Murin, Jon Root

Length: 7 hrs and 29 mins

Publisher's Summary

From the New York Times best-selling author behind the “joyful, warm, touching” (Jasmine Guillory, New York Times best-selling author) The Unhoneymooners comes a delightfully charming love story about what happens when two assistants tasked with keeping a rocky relationship from explosion start to feel sparks of their own.

Carey Duncan has worked for home remodeling and design gurus Melissa and Rusty Tripp for nearly a decade. A country girl at heart, Carey started in their first store at 16, and - more than anyone would suspect - has helped them build an empire. With a new show and a book about to launch, the Tripps are on the verge of superstardom. There’s only one problem: America’s favorite couple can’t stand each other. 

James McCann, MIT graduate and engineering genius, was originally hired as a structural engineer, but the job isn’t all he thought it’d be. The last straw? Both he and Carey must go on book tour with the Tripps and keep the wheels from falling off the proverbial bus. 

Unfortunately, neither of them is in any position to quit. Carey needs health insurance, and James has been promised the role of a lifetime if he can just keep the couple on track for a few more weeks. While road-tripping with the Tripps up the West Coast, Carey and James vow to work together to keep their bosses’ secrets hidden, and their own jobs secure. But if they stop playing along - and start playing for keeps - they may have the chance to build something beautiful together. 

From the “hilariously zany and heartfelt” (Booklist) Christina Lauren comes a romantic comedy that proves if it’s broke, you might as well fix it.

©2020 Christina Lauren (P)2020 Simon & Schuster Audio

2 stars for audiobook quality

I won’t rate the content yet since I couldn’t finish due to the incongruent narration. I will comment on the audio, though. There are two narrators, a male and female, but they were recorded in two entirely different studios with inconsistent quality. While the female narration is done quite well in a sound-proof room, the male narration is not. There is a tin-like echo to his narration as if it was recorded in a tunnel. The switch between the two narrations is quite jarring and not enjoyable. I stopped listening part-way into the first male POV chapter and will exchange for a better quality audiobook.

Another PG-13 wannabe Hollywood Rom-com

Look - I love Christina Lauren books. I look through Audible's coming soon list and add them to my wishlist months in advance...so far in fact that usually the book cover art hasn't been released.

This writing duo hooked me with their beautiful series. So much witty banter, such clever plot lines, and of course always some great steamy interludes.

With that said, I have to voice my disappointment with the books that have followed since the end of the wild series.

It began with Roomies. This is the book that is destined for the silver screen and I feel that since then the steamy scenes have been sanitized out of their books so that they fit this ideal of what a Hollywood rom-com should be.

I will continue to listen to Christina Lauren books because at the end of the day, this team tells a great story. The Honey-Don't List is no exception. I just wish they hadn't veered so far away from the books that made them successful.

As for the narration, both narrators were new to me and gave a solid 4 star performance. My only gripe was the slightly tin-y sound present in all of Jon's segments.

Under developed slow book

This was an incredibly slow book, where you’re hoping the build up will be worth it. Unfortunately, it led to no where. There wasn’t a connecting or interesting side story that kept this book going. Basically, it was a short story on rewind. I would think if you submitted this story to your professor in college you would receive a C- for lack of character development and a storyline that went no where. It was like ‘Groundhogs Day’, every chapter was the same.

Light rom-com

I discovered the writing duo Christina Lauren a few years ago through their Beautiful series, which is still a favorite. I found The Honey-Don't List to have a lighter, more rom-comy feel. With the popularity of married design/build married couples dotting the pop culture landscape these days, it was fun to read about a duo on the staff of one of those couples. Carey and James were so fun together and just plain charming, especially when framed again the backdrop of nightmare bosses Rusty and Mellie. After I read the book, I purchased the audiobook. Patti Murin and Jon Root were new-to-me narrators, and I found both fantastic. It appears that this is a first work for both of them on Audible and I definitely hope to hear more from them in the future. I listened at my typical 1.25X speed and it was perfect.

Classic Romcom Fun

Overall: just a really fun, light listen- especially great for a distraction during chores/commute and such.

I especially enjoy the two voices narrating, and both are great. Every once in a while (and especially when life feels heavy), a romcom is exactly what I need. The Honey-Don’t List suits perfectly for that- 5 stars for: engages quickly, interesting characters, and great narration. Bonus points for some nuance that will remain unspecified to avoid spoilers- but perhaps you’ll notice them too.

A light, fun, delightful listen

Super cute and totally enjoyable. I didn’t want to stop listening. Not as sexually graphic as other books I’ve read by Christina Lauren, which was totally fine by me. If you’re looking for a “sexy” book, this one isn’t it. If you just want something light and fun, then look no further. Wonderfully read by both narrators who did a great job with the various voices. Absolutely worth the Audible credit.

Sweet Read!

This was the perfect sweet read. Like ALL of Christina Lauren’s books it plays out like the best romcom that you never want to end. I loved it!!!

Good Story!

Good story about people who work under less-than-ideal conditions, making the best of it and managing to keep their sanity and find love. Working for America’s favorite couple isn’t easy under the best circumstances but trying to keep your employers on their best behavior while on a book and television show tour proves to be more than it should be. Melissa and Rusty Tripp used to be the ideal couple. Starting out their home design concept with a single store, they have been married for a long time. Unfortunately, it’s all a façade as they can’t stand each other. Excessive drinking and Rusty’s infidelity could bring their house of cards tumbling down and cause them public embarrassment and ruin everything they have worked toward.

As assistants to the Tripp’s, Carey and James are put in the awkward position of getting their employers to play nice and behave in public. They both need their jobs so they try to make the best of it. I kept thinking throughout this book that no job is worth this nonsense. The Tripp’s give a whole new meaning to dysfunctional relationships and even take it to new levels, but really, enough is enough! Life is short and I was surprised Carey and James put up with it for as long as they did.

I enjoyed this story though much of it felt like a train wreck that you just can’t walk away from. I think, like Carey, I hung on, hoping things would get better. I started wondering if the Tripp’s enjoyed the attention and didn’t care about any repercussions their bad behavior would bring. I enjoyed the blossoming romance between Carey and James and felt they were good together.

The character development overall was good and I had a lot of empathy for Carey and James due to the situation they were forced to participate in. Surprisingly, I also had empathy for Melissa and Rusty. They were probably great together at one time, but over the years, they lost their way and by the end of the book, I still was on the fence if they should even try to make their marriage work or cut and run. The story moved at a good pace, leaving the reader in anticipation of what was going to happen next and if Carey and James had scouted out the locations of the nearest exits.

My Final Verdict: Overall, an enjoyable book for fans of contemporary romances and women’s fiction. This author has many books that also look interesting and will likely end up on my to be read pile in the future.

Terrible Narrators

This story itself was not nearly as strong as other Christina Lauren books but was dragged even further down by the narration. First the female narrator does a poor job of creating a voice for the male character to a point where sometimes I wasn’t even sure who was saying what. And then the male narrator makes the most obnoxious, cringiest female voice for their boss that was like nails on a chalk board and just sounded ridiculous. Took me right out of the story every time. Not to mention the inconsistency between the two narrators, they literally pronounce their characters company name differently. It’s a small detail but drove me nuts.

Meh - Kinda stressed me out to read

Despite that I love the duel narrators and they gave an excellent performance, I just couldn’t find myself feeling good while reading the book. It kinda felt stressful, like a day at work where everyone is stealing credit from everyone else’s ideas. Dysfunctional people getting gaslighted just isn’t entertaining to me... it’s sad and kinda hard to watch.