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thespinystacks's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
lighthearted
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
As far as debuts go, there is a lot of positives in this book. I love to read a story that follows a diverse group of characters, however, I almost felt this was packed with TOO many characters all with such various beautiful cultural backgrounds that couldn’t really be explored that they just felt like caricatures which is disappointing to me.
I also think that the story is sold as a romance and it isn’t one. This is a story about self acceptance, and Honey Girl finding herself, and while there is a subplot of romance, it isn’t the overarching story, so again - if you go in looking for it you’ll be disappointed.
The storyline makes you think a lot about the monsters we have inside us, and surrounding us, which I appreciate - as far as literary fiction can go it does a lot of good foundation work. However, to me, the storyline was just too busy, with too many subplots, too many characters introduced but not fleshed out so that it felt rushed and disjointed.
I didn’t enjoy it, but I would try another of the author’s books because I do believe she’s a talented writer.
I also think that the story is sold as a romance and it isn’t one. This is a story about self acceptance, and Honey Girl finding herself, and while there is a subplot of romance, it isn’t the overarching story, so again - if you go in looking for it you’ll be disappointed.
The storyline makes you think a lot about the monsters we have inside us, and surrounding us, which I appreciate - as far as literary fiction can go it does a lot of good foundation work. However, to me, the storyline was just too busy, with too many subplots, too many characters introduced but not fleshed out so that it felt rushed and disjointed.
I didn’t enjoy it, but I would try another of the author’s books because I do believe she’s a talented writer.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness
Moderate: Self harm
Minor: Cursing, Sexual content, and Medical content
thecriticalreader's review against another edition
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
Plot:
There’s not much of the plot that doesn’t stem from the main character making problems for herself. I know that in real life, a lot of problems are self-made, but Grace’s problems seem unoriginal and inconsistent. It’s easy to see where the plot is going, especially in the last third of the book.
Characters:
My main problem with this book was the main character, Grace Porter. She’s supposed to be super #relatable, but it never really works out that way. Supposedly, Grace is a workaholic perfectionist, but all of her flashbacks show otherwise. She just completed a doctorate in astronomy, but she never even thinks about her research.
Grace has all of these (almost unnaturally) dedicated friends who act like she’s the best person to walk the planet, but it is never clear how she’s able to win over so many people. Seriously, she has an absurdly robust support system, both financially and emotionally, and yet she complains about being lonely all the time. Outside of her problems, there is not much to Grace Porter’s character.
Most of the other characters seemed unoriginal. There’s the hardened, strict, military dad who puts unrealistic expectations on Grace. There’s the carefree, hippy mom who wanders the world in search of enlightenment. Grace’s wife, Yuki, is more unique but she still didn’t seem real to me.
One thing that annoyed me is that the book is so clearly trying to fill a bunch of diversity quotas. I get it. Millennials, especially queer millennials of color, want more representation in literature. I love diversity in literature myself. But the way this book goes about it (similarly to The City We Became) acts like it has to check all of the boxes: White? Check. Black? Check. Mixed-race? Check. Indian? Check. Native American? Check. Transgender? Check. Asian? Check. Muslim? Check. Mentally ill? Check. It feels awkward and forced, especially as the author tries to make it seem natural. Yet the result is an artificial cast of characters that fit into an almost utopian color-blind scheme, with the exception of Grace who faces hiring discrimination for her skin color and queer identity. At least The City We Became tried to directly confront the tensions between identities, but Honey Girl just mentions them but rarely delves deep into the tensions beyond “quirky” millennial jokes.
Setting:
Not much to say here. The setting bounces around the country a couple of times, but it never stuck out to me as a good or bad part of the book.
Themes:
Honey Girl explores themes of perfectionism, pressure, relationships, and depression. None of the points made seemed original or new, and I got bored very quickly.
Writing Style:
The writing style also irritated me. Rogers tries to be both relatable and flowery in her writing, but I just got mad because no one talks like that. It’s supposed to be poetic and beautiful, but I found it annoying. Sentences such as “There was a girl with rose-pink cheeks and pitch-black hair, and, yes, sea salt and age behind her ears and over the veiny parts of her wrists” appear so often that it gets stale very quickly.
Conclusion:
This book really disappointed me, because I loved the premise and I always want to support authors from underrepresented communities. Unfortunately, Honey Girl is not a good book; it’s barely mediocre.
Other Points
· A lot of the side characters would have made better main characters than Grace. I would happily read a book from the perspective of Agnes, Meera, or Raj.
· A lot of the characters, including Grace Porter, seem to be borderline alcoholics? There is hardly a chapter in the book where everyone stays sober. I’m not sure if this was supposed to be part of the #relatable content of the book, but I thought it was vaguely concerning.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Self harm and Mental illness
Moderate: Alcoholism, Cursing, and Racism
Minor: Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Vomit, and Death
irlchaosdemon's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness and Cursing
Moderate: Death of parent, Terminal illness, Sexual content, Racism, Medical trauma, Medical content, Homophobia, and Grief
Minor: Drug use and Alcoholism
honeyhistory103's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
What a fantastic debut novel. I really enjoyed this book, and consumed it at a breakneck speed. Morgan Rogers has done an excellent job of combining realistic, relatable emotions and characters, the gay fantasy of found family, and the perfect touch of unrealistic romance into one cohesive, truly enjoyable story. Grace's life is unique while still echoing with sincere problems, ones that anyone who's recently graduated from college (of any level) is able to empathize with. While I picked up this book expecting a romance, the truth of the matter is that it is a story of human emotion and growth, with all the relationships that come with that: friends, romance, and parents.
Besides Grace's very human story, what really makes this book shine is its cast of background characters. Rogers has had huge success in creating a group of characters who exist not as a moon to the main character's planet, but rather as planets that are in the same system as the MC: revolving next to each other, but each on their own distinct path. Characters' lives don't freeze when Grace isn't in the picture, and the each have their own problems and challenges that they are concerned with outside of Grace's narrative. Rogers has also built a gloriously diverse cast of characters, whose main concerns aren't their diverse identities - something I found wonderfully refreshing. The cast read as diverse (in race, orientation, mental health issues) simply because they were, not because the author needed them to be. Rogers also succeeded wonderfully in showing, rather than telling, what each character was like.In particular, the moment in which Grace told Baba she was going to New York, and his hand immediately shot towards the cash drawer of his desk as he asked if she needed money, stood out to me in this way. Rogers didn't need to tell us that Baba was generous and saw Grace as his own - she showed it with his actions easily.
Rogers's writing was a joy to read - I usually don't enjoy present tense prose, but it had such a lovely flow and some truly gorgeous sections. I particularly loved the passages of Yuki's radio show - I could practically hear a voice speaking the words, crafting together a beautiful story into the empty night air. Those things said, one can definitely tell that this was a debut novel. Rogers's skill is undeniable, but moments for improvement can be found throughout the book - slightly weaker sections here and there, and I felt generally that there wasn't quite enough space between one character speaking and Grace responding - there were a few times when I was surprised to realize that Grace was crying, or when her reaction to a comment seemed almost to fast to have occurred.
One other note I will make is that overall, Honey Girl reads a bit like fanfiction in pace and beat. I wasn't surprised when Rogers's final acknowledgement was to fanfiction. Obviously it has been elevated beyond much of what haunts AO3, but some echoes of a fanfic writer can be found within the book - a casual mention of MONSTA X, the characters briefly discussing the plights of capitalism, etc. If you've been stuck in a rut of only being entertained by fanfic, this is definitely an excellent book to get you back into printed narrative. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised to find myself seeking out fanfiction of this novel - I absolutely adored Yuki as a character, and would love to sink my teeth into an arch focussed on her. Though I loved the ending of this novel, I was disappointed personally that we didn't get to spend more time with Yuki in it - Rogers did a brilliant job of creating someone that I certainly wouldn't have been mad to accidentally marry in Vegas, while also keeping her a very human character.
I am so, so pleased that I decided to pick this book up. I'm excited to include it on my shelf, to loan it to my friends, to re-read it at some point down the line of life when I'm feeling lonely or lost and need to surround myself with lonely and lost characters. I look forward to seeing what Rogers puts out next - as she concludes her acknowledgements with, this is only a beginning of her writing career.
Besides Grace's very human story, what really makes this book shine is its cast of background characters. Rogers has had huge success in creating a group of characters who exist not as a moon to the main character's planet, but rather as planets that are in the same system as the MC: revolving next to each other, but each on their own distinct path. Characters' lives don't freeze when Grace isn't in the picture, and the each have their own problems and challenges that they are concerned with outside of Grace's narrative. Rogers has also built a gloriously diverse cast of characters, whose main concerns aren't their diverse identities - something I found wonderfully refreshing. The cast read as diverse (in race, orientation, mental health issues) simply because they were, not because the author needed them to be. Rogers also succeeded wonderfully in showing, rather than telling, what each character was like.
Rogers's writing was a joy to read - I usually don't enjoy present tense prose, but it had such a lovely flow and some truly gorgeous sections. I particularly loved the passages of Yuki's radio show - I could practically hear a voice speaking the words, crafting together a beautiful story into the empty night air. Those things said, one can definitely tell that this was a debut novel. Rogers's skill is undeniable, but moments for improvement can be found throughout the book - slightly weaker sections here and there, and I felt generally that there wasn't quite enough space between one character speaking and Grace responding - there were a few times when I was surprised to realize that Grace was crying, or when her reaction to a comment seemed almost to fast to have occurred.
One other note I will make is that overall, Honey Girl reads a bit like fanfiction in pace and beat. I wasn't surprised when Rogers's final acknowledgement was to fanfiction. Obviously it has been elevated beyond much of what haunts AO3, but some echoes of a fanfic writer can be found within the book - a casual mention of MONSTA X, the characters briefly discussing the plights of capitalism, etc. If you've been stuck in a rut of only being entertained by fanfic, this is definitely an excellent book to get you back into printed narrative. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised to find myself seeking out fanfiction of this novel - I absolutely adored Yuki as a character, and would love to sink my teeth into an arch focussed on her. Though I loved the ending of this novel, I was disappointed personally that we didn't get to spend more time with Yuki in it - Rogers did a brilliant job of creating someone that I certainly wouldn't have been mad to accidentally marry in Vegas, while also keeping her a very human character.
I am so, so pleased that I decided to pick this book up. I'm excited to include it on my shelf, to loan it to my friends, to re-read it at some point down the line of life when I'm feeling lonely or lost and need to surround myself with lonely and lost characters. I look forward to seeing what Rogers puts out next - as she concludes her acknowledgements with, this is only a beginning of her writing career.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness
Moderate: Cursing
Minor: Drug use, Homophobia, Racism, Self harm, and Sexual content
leighannebfd3b's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Mental illness, and Racism
Minor: Cursing, Self harm, and Sexual content
olivedean's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Racism, Panic attacks/disorders, and Mental illness
Minor: Terminal illness, Death of parent, and Cursing
papercraftalex's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Honey Girl is a millennial coming-of-age book for adults with a romantic underbelly. It features a black lesbian main character who just finished her PhD in astronomy and is trying to figure life out; part of this figuring out also includes figuring out where the girl she drunkenly met in Vegas fits into her life plan. This was such a wonderfully emotional read with a cast of characters that felt so real, flawed, and loveable. The queer found families are so beautiful and the familial relationships are so honest and raw. The writing is poetic and stunning. I would recommend this book to every person that feels lost in the never ending expanse of the universe.
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, and Sexual content
Moderate: Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, and Forced institutionalization
Minor: Alcoholism and Medical content
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