The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren starts with an exciting and humorous premise that immediately grabs the reader’s attention. Olive Torres, perpetually unlucky in life, braces herself to endure her twin sister’s wedding where her only goal is to survive 24 hours of awkward encounters and familial chaos. However, fate has other plans when a mass case of food poisoning hits the entire wedding party—except for Olive and her sworn enemy, Ethan Thomas. With a dream honeymoon in Hawaii suddenly up for grabs, the two reluctantly agree to take the trip, pretending to be a blissfully happy newlywed couple.
What I Loved:
The beginning of the novel is fast-paced, witty, and filled with sharp banter between Olive and Ethan. Their mutual dislike and sarcastic exchanges add a fun enemies-to-lovers dynamic that sets the stage for what promises to be a lighthearted and romantic adventure. Olive’s relatable and self-deprecating humor makes her an easy character to root for, and her evolving dynamic with Ethan feels natural and engaging. Watching their playful hostility slowly turn into genuine interest and affection was one of the highlights of the book for me.
The “fake relationship” trope is handled well, and their forced proximity in a tropical paradise leads to plenty of romantic tension and laugh-out-loud moments. Olive’s encounter with her future boss adds an interesting twist to the plot, heightening the stakes as she and Ethan must convincingly play the role of a happy couple. As their relationship shifts from pretending to something more real, I found myself enjoying the slow-burn development between them.
Where It Fell Short:
Unfortunately, as much as I enjoyed the initial setup and chemistry between the characters, the second half of the book dragged for me. While Olive and Ethan’s relationship was progressing, the constant interference of Ethan’s ex, Ami’s husband Dane, and their toxic dynamics began to feel repetitive and unnecessary. I kept waiting for Ethan to set boundaries and make it clear that he wasn’t interested in maintaining a connection with his ex, but his hesitation dragged out for too long, making those parts of the story tedious.
By the midpoint, the plot felt bogged down with unnecessary conflicts and misunderstandings that didn’t add much to the overall storyline. The charm and excitement that had me hooked in the first half seemed to fizzle, and I found myself skimming through some of the later chapters just to get to the resolution.
Final Thoughts:
The Unhoneymooners is a fun and charming rom-com with a lot of potential, but it loses momentum midway through. The witty dialogue and undeniable chemistry between Olive and Ethan make the first half an enjoyable read, but the dragged-out complications in the latter half detract from the initial charm. If you enjoy lighthearted romance with a fake-dating trope and a tropical setting, this book is worth picking up—just be prepared for a slower finish.
Thank you to Gallery Books for my digital ARC via NetGalley. As always, my reviews are my own and unbiased opinions.
Rating: 
️️
Olive is always unlucky: in her career, in love, in…well, everything. Her identical twin sister Ami, on the other hand, is probably the luckiest person in the world. Her meet-cute with her fiancé is something out of a romantic comedy (gag) and she’s managed to finance her entire wedding by winning a series of Internet contests (double gag). Worst of all, she’s forcing Olive to spend the day with her sworn enemy, Ethan, who just happens to be the best man.
Olive braces herself to get through 24 hours of wedding hell before she can return to her comfortable, unlucky life. But when the entire wedding party gets food poisoning from eating bad shellfish, the only people who aren’t affected are Olive and Ethan. And now there’s an all-expenses-paid honeymoon in Hawaii up for grabs.
Putting their mutual hatred aside for the sake of a free vacation, Olive and Ethan head for paradise, determined to avoid each other at all costs. But when Olive runs into her future boss, the little white lie she tells him is suddenly at risk to become a whole lot bigger. She and Ethan now have to pretend to be loving newlyweds, and her luck seems worse than ever. But the weird thing is that she doesn’t mind playing pretend. In fact, she feels kind of... lucky.
Happy Reading!
No comments
Post a Comment