Reviews

Honey House by Laura Harner

jetenold's review against another edition

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3.0

I liked it. Don't quite know what to think about relationship between Quinn and KC but hopefully there will be another book that will expand on that a little more.

setaian's review against another edition

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3.0

KC is something of a scam artist. She reads fortunes on cruise liners to make ends meet and occasionally she actually has an actual vision. So when she inherits a Bed and Breakfast in Juniper Springs, AZ she fully believes she is being conned.

Then the bodies start piling up and she is forced into an uncomfortable alliance with the town's sheriff to track down the killer and solve the crime.


I actually have a bit of an issue with this book. Read the synopsis...look at the cover and most people will have a pretty good idea of where the story is going. You'd think something along the lines of Patricia Briggs or Faith Hunter. And yeah, that's all in there. But the thing I take issue with is this book is pretty damned close to erotic fiction and I wasn't told. Put a single line in the synopsis telling potential readers that the book contained steamy sex scenes and my issue disappears.

see_sadie_read's review against another edition

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4.0

I very much like Ms. Harner's storytelling style and Honey House is no exception. I enjoyed the ebb and flow of the story. I liked those characters that I got to know well (KC, Owen, Gregory, the house even) and I liked the murder mystery.

Unfortunately I also thought that some other important characters, most notably Quinn, felt very hollow. Part of this is the result of the book being told from the first person perspective of KC. She doesn't know much about Quinn, so neither does the reader. Fair enough. But he rarely speaks, has little facial expression, and his past (and any present not in the presence of KC, really) is left a mystery. This meant I developed very little feeling for him. Too bad too. He's the love interest du jure and I really wanted to like him. I might have if I had gotten the chance to get to know him.

I also wondered at the inclusion of the secondary drama. I don't want to spoil anything, but it felt very much like an excuse to expose KC's very, very tragic past. A past that I could have done without knowing since it isn't really explored beyond disclosure.

There are also a number of small questions left unanswered throughout the book. Someone from the Paranormal Romance Guild mentioned in a previous review that this is one of Ms. Harner's trademarks. I haven't read enough of her work to know if that's true (Though I think I might like to), but I find it a little annoying. They aren't things that effect the overall story arc, more like little side issues. For example, in one scene Owen asks Quinn why he didn't bring KC to his house. Quinn responds, 'you know why.' Owen accepts this as an appropriate answer. The reader, however, doesn't know why. I could hazard a guess or two, but they would be just guesses. I wouldn't have any way of knowing if I was right or not. Or, the two rather large identity questions that KC decides to let go with a mental shrug and 'what's it matter' attitude, at the end. The story concludes just fine without these details, but my basic curiosity answered her with, 'um, quite a lot actually.' I don't like loose ends all that much.

Despite these small criticisms I very much enjoyed reading the book. Ms. Harner has a way of making her narratives comfortable. This would be a great book to read while doing something relaxing, like laying in a hammock or basking in the sun. I suppose I'm calling it a great Summer read.
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