The Honey-Don't List: Romantic Comedy Novel by Christina Lauren - Perfect for Book Clubs & Beach Reading

The Honey-Don't List is one of those books that was extremely difficult for me to rate. I found myself wavering between DNF and 5 stars even though I definitlely F-ed it. Though I contemplated back burnering it a few times, I cared about the protagonists way too much to abandon them. The qualities that repelled me about this book were stylistic or related to the hate-worthy secondary couple.Like most of Christina Lauren's work, THDL is very well-written and edited, qualities that cannot be taken for granted. When I talk about style in this case, I mean structure and flow. I am not a huge fan of stories that jump around a lot in time or space. This one opens with "transcripts" of police interviews with Carey and James, the main couple in the novel. Clearly something Very Bad has happened, and the authors return to this gimmick at intervals as the story unwinds. The content of the interviews parallels the development of Carey and James's relationship while building tension in anticipation of the Very Bad Thing. It also makes the reader wonder whether they've toddled into a murder mystery by mistake. I find that, as 2020 winds down, I prefer my romances with less stress rather than more, but that's just me.The other device that the authors use are faux social media commentary discussing the state of celebrity renovation experts Melissa and Rusty Tripp's marriage. While these passages punctuate the series of emotional disasters that plague these media darlings, they do little to convey the effect of an online pressure cooker. Sadly, most of the real cheeping I've seen out in birdland is a lot meaner than this. We are meant to believe that reaching the pinnacle of success has segued into the ongoing hell of maintaining that success, with miserable outcomes for the central couples in this story. However, neither social media commentary nor police interviews contribute much more than red herrings to the plot.The core of THDL is delivered through James and Carey's alternating first person accounts of the events leading up to the VB Thing. Both James and Carey feel trapped in the whirlwind of the Tripp's home reno empire--Carey by a decade of codependent involvement with Melissa and Rusty, James by the necessity of rebuilding his engineering career after his previous employer went down in a sea of scandal. The first thing that grabbed me was how fundamentally likable these two were; the second was the layered, complex nature of their characters. There was so much hidden beneath the surface, and the reader gets to discover it along with the hero and heroine. Carey is so much more than an assistant and babysitter to the stars. She is an extremely strong, competent woman who handles her tetchy boss and her health issues with equal aplomb, but has difficulty seeing her own awesomeness due to her working class background and lack of a degree. James is not at all the stuffy engineer he first appears to be. In fact, James may be the first beta type hero I've enthusiastically liked without any reservations. He's so much more than a hot bod and a libido, yet he is neither bland nor wimpish. His perceptiveness and his focus when it comes to Carey are way sexier than most boner-led book boyfriends. This is not a "sweet" romance in the conventional sense. Sex happens. It's hot, but it is also tender and emotional and enhances the reader's engagement with these lovers. Both characters were amazing, but I have to confess I've a major soft spot for James.While readers gradually get to know the adorableness of James and Carey, they also become better acquainted with the hot mess that is Melissa and Rusty Tripp. Melissa is a manipulative control freak with a shrewish temper. Rusty, on the other hand, is a lazy, self indulgent slob with a slippery zipper problem. These are not sympathetic characters, but they are not completely one dimensional either. Another thing they're not is The Villains. Though they--by which I mean mostly Melissa--are perfectly willing to use James's and Carey's insecurities against them in the most heinous way, the power imbalance is never quite as severe as it appears on the surface. Their awfulness is cringe-worthy, but the Tripps are more of obstacle to be overcome than enemies to be defeated or destroyed. Annoying or not, they are complex, layered personalities, and by the end of the book, their character flaws are understandable if not excusable. Though Rusty and Melissa are seriously dislikable, that was not a huge issue for me. The authors created a pair of memorable and believable characters in the Tripps, and that is a major demonstration of writerly skill. Melissa and Rusty could so easily have been reduced to caricatures yet never were. I don't have to like them to appreciate them.What did trouble me somewhat was how much sheer space they took up in the novel. It seemed like every other subordinate character in the book faded to insignificance outside of their interactions with the toxic twosome. Characters who didn't interact with them became mere bookends to the diva-driven drama. Also pairing their extremely dysfunctional marriage with the blossoming of James and Carey's relationship may have been an effective use of compare and contrast, but it also added a hard, somewhat cynical edge to the romance. THDL didn't work for me as a rom com primarily for this reason. Incorporating a cautionary subplot that overwhelms the main romance does tend to detract from the HEA.Happily, writing down one's thoughts often serves to clarify them. While I really enjoyed Carey and James and appreciated their growth as a couple and as individuals, the corrosive nature of the Tripps' relationships with each other and with everyone else in the novel diminished the pleasure and satisfaction I expect to experience in a good romance. I would definitely reread this book, but I wouldn't run around raving about it to anyone who would listen. So, I'm thinking four stars with mild caveats related to style issues and the portrayal of toxic and possibly abusive relationships.