Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Genre: Romance, Contemporary, 

People who should read this: People who love a fun light read with witty dialogue and an unexpected beginning. 

“When I signed up for this honeymoon, I had no idea it would involve so much nudity.”

Do you have a book that keeps popping up?

A book that all your friends are reading?

And then you see the cover at your local library, glaring at you - a book with a ten week holds list. (This after putting off my friend’s book that’s she’s dying for me to read for the hundredth time. I might be in a bit of trouble now. *Update* - that book is now read and was amazing.)

Hi Jess….  *waves*

The Unhoneymooners was that book for me and I probably could have lived without reading it.

I’m the unpopular opinion here. The mass majority is raving over the amazingness that is The Unhoneymooners. It’s the beach read of the summer, which fits since over half of it takes place in Hawaii. But when the couple leaves Hawaii and we get back to the cold dreary winter, the rest of the book falls apart. The characters lose their essence, the ending is rushed and boring, and the cheating feels like a spoof used to add in suspense, taking the eye from the main plot point - the whole reason I picked up the book. 

So we start immediately in the thick of things, the moment before the food poisoning descends in vivid detail. I might be siding with Ethan here and change my opinions on buffets. With a nonrefundable honeymoon on the line, the only way Olive’s twin sister can possibly survive is if Olive enjoys the honeymoon for her. Yes, that’s a slightly weird premise. Hold with it though, the story flows nicely the second Olive boards the plane with Ethan. A few twists once they land and your heart will probably be in your throat. 

I was hook, line, and sinker into the book at that point.

Ethan and Olive are amazing sparring partners. Not once did I cringe at the dialogue. Their personalities are vibrant and real, easily providing some great pointers for any budding writer. The ultimate love portions - if you think I’m spilling the beans here…. Hello, this is a romance book you’ve picked up - felt realistic. No insta-love in sight. YES! I could just sink into the folds of their romance. Ugh. Five stars all the way.

SMACK

Don’t enjoy it too long. Life isn’t always sunny in the Twin Cities.

“Rumor has it your dad brought her flowers and pulled off every petal and used them to spell PUTA in the snow.”

The book spends just over half its life in that beautiful world before being thrown back home. And maybe that’s the problem with the whole thing. The second the couple lands their dynamics are lost. All the reasons I swooned are removed and it became a drudging read I couldn’t wait to put down. Why couldn’t they have just stayed at the beach????

Yay… cheer for the happy couple at the end. Here’s a nice bow to add in as well. 

Finally.

Down to the nitty gritty of things, once the fun premise of the book was removed, it turned into any poorly developed and written book. I hate to be so harsh but The Unhoneymooners took a nosedive from 5 stars to 1.5 stars (how I ended up with a nice and pretty 3.5 stars). Being written by two authors, maybe that change in plot is where the writers changed. 

*Insert cringing face* 

I’m seriously not this harsh. But I know they have it in them. Clearly… just look at the rest of the book. The two main characters are so likable. Olive isn’t your perfect protagonist. Her internal monologues are laugh-out-loud awesome. The crazy twists and turns are not that unbelievable. It’s the perfect summer read off the bat and shows how poorly the second half is constructed. 

By the end, Christina Lauren rely too much on Olive’s negative points to carry the lot along.  Ethan becomes too enthralled with his brother. They lose the spark. And no cheap ass costume can really save the relationship. 

All in all, I’m excited to try their other books. I have hope that my opinion can be saved, just not with this one. I will stand here on my lonely island and watch the rest of the world enjoy The Unhoneymooners. I hope you do too…. On some sunny beach… or by the pool… with a margarita in your hand. That way if you do hate it, you have something to drown your sorrows in. 

Happy Reading

Love Kait

Reading Challenge: 60/100