The Honey-Don't List

by Christina Lauren

Overview

From the New York Times bestselling author behind the “joyful, warm, touching” (Jasmine Guillory, New York Times bestselling 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 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...

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.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781982123918
Publisher:	Gallery Books
Publication date:	03/24/2020
Pages:	320
Sales rank:	73,795
Product dimensions:	5.30(w) x 8.20(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Christina Lauren is the combined pen name of longtime writing partners and best friends Christina Hobbs and Lauren Billings, the New York Times, USA TODAY, and #1 internationally bestselling authors of the Beautiful and Wild Seasons series, Dating You / Hating You, Autoboyography, Love and Other Words, Roomies, Josh and Hazel’s Guide to Not Dating, My Favorite Half-Night Stand, The Unhoneymooners, Twice in a Blue Moon, and The Soulmate Equation. You can find them online at ChristinaLaurenBooks.com, @ChristinaLauren on Instagram, or @ChristinaLauren on Twitter.

Editorial Reviews

12/16/2019

Lauren (The Unhoneymooners) delivers a breezy, tongue-in-cheek rom-com featuring the beleaguered assistants to a pair of unhappily married reality-television stars. Carey Duncan has worked for Melissa and Russell Tripp since she was 16 and they were just starting out as the hosts of a home-improvement show. Ten long years later, Carey could likely have any design job she wanted, but loyalty to the Tripps (whom she sees as parental figures), fear of retribution, and the medical insurance that covers treatments for her muscle disease keep her in place. James McCann has only been Russell’s assistant for a short time. An engineer by trade, James is ill-suited to managing the Tripps’ meltdowns, but scandal drove him from his last job, and he’ll take what he can get. Melissa and Russell’s feuding gives rise to a series of ridiculous situations that endanger their brand, leading Carey and James to bond as they work together to keep America’s favorite couple’s fights under wraps. Playfully poking fun at the world of DIY TV, Lauren’s romance is as insightful as it is irreverent. Readers will laugh out loud. Agent: Holly Root, Root Literary. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

"You can never go wrong with a Christina Lauren novel... Yet again, Christina Lauren offer up a delectable, moving take on modern dating with My Favorite Half-Night Stand, reminding us all that when it comes to intoxicating, sexy, playful romance that has its finger on the pulse of contemporary love this duo always swipes right."

Entertainment Weekly

"This emotional, sweet, and surprising novel about first loves and second chances will leave a tender spot in your heart."

Shondaland

"The story skips along...propelled by rom-com momentum and charm.

The New York Times Book Review

Praise for The Unhoneymooners

"What a joyful, warm, touching book! I laughed so hard I cried more than once, I felt the embrace of Olive’s huge, loving, complicated, hilarious family, and my heart soared at the ending. This is the book to read if you want to smile so hard your face hurts."

Jasmine Guillory

"Christina Lauren (The Unhoneymooners; Josh & Hazel's Guide to Not Dating) has created charming protagonists to root for... [A] touching romantic comedy."

Shelf Awareness

"[An] abosrbing romance."

Booklist

"Witty and downright hilarious, with just the right amount of heart, The Unhoneymooners is a perfect feel-good romantic comedy. Prepare to laugh and smile from cover to cover.

Helen Hoang

"Lauren (Love and Other Words, 2018) has penned a hilariously zany and heartfelt novel... the story is sure to please readers looking for a fun-filled novel to escape everyday life with."

Booklist

02/01/2020

Carey Douglas has worked alongside Melissa and Rusty Tripp for years, starting as a teenager in their brick-and-mortar store, Comb + Honey, and continuing as Melissa's assistant as they built their television empire. She works constantly, but Carey has a condition that affects her hands and her insurance is too good to give up. James McCann, meanwhile, was promised a job as a structural engineer but functions as Rusty's assistant. He hates fetching coffee and managing schedules, but his last job was at a firm plagued by high-profile scandals, and he wouldn't be employable elsewhere. Melissa and Rusty are about to go on a West Coast tour to celebrate their highly anticipated new guide to making marriage work. Unfortunately, they can't stand each other, and with a new Netflix series about to drop and so much riding on the success of the book, the company's publicist insists that Carey and James travel with the Tripps and keep them in line. VERDICT The author duo's many fans will enjoy this charming romance. [see the Q&A, p. 71.]—Erin Holt, formerly with Williamson Cty. P.L., Franklin, TN

Library Journal