THE HONEY-DON’T LIST
(Standalone)
Christina Lauren
BLURB
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 sixteen, 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…
★★★★
2020 has been a strange year and here is another strange thing to add to the weirdness. Last year the writing duo of Christina Lauren seemed to have predicted the real-life break up of a well-known husband/wife team in the book world. When I first started The Honey-Don’t List I got the feeling I was reading about this real-life couple who a month ago announced on Instagram they were calling it quits. Like the secondary characters in the book, this couple had built a social media following that afforded them the lifestyle they were living. Through their conferences and book tours, they were able to influence followers on their seemingly perfect marriage. The Honey-Don’t List felt like a glimpse into the behind the scenes of this real-life couple’s life.
Okay, now onto the book … the story is actually about the assistants to the married couple. The married couple started out small and over time grew a large social media following. The fame gets to the couple and the assistants are left mopping up the couple’s messes. The reader follows the two assistants and watches the slow burn of their relationship.
The Honey-Don’t List is a standalone. If you liked the Netflix movie, Set It Up, then this book is up your alley. Two assistants who overtime realize it’s better to work together than to be enemies with each other. A relationship blossoms as they work around their problematic bosses.
