Reviews - Heathen and Honeysuckle

329 reviews for:

Heathen and Honeysuckle

Sarah A. Bailey

4.29 AVERAGE

alaxraebooked's review against another edition

5.0

Wow. Sarahhhhh! You broke me and broke me a little more and then put me all back together again with this one

bookishkfae's review against another edition

4.75

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective fast-paced

soffi's review against another edition

4.5

emotional funny hopeful inspiring sad 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: Complicated

So goood I love them together and im so proud of Darby standing up to herself finally

cassidylee's review against another edition

4.5

emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

kernchild's review against another edition

5.0

*Sigh.* This book is what teenage dreams are made of: falling in love deeply, quickly, unbridled, and unabashedly the way you only can at that age; the feeling of being seen for the first time, of finding and people who *get you*; the gratification that when it all comes together the pain, the heartache, the years apart, were all worth it because the universe brought you back together. This book gives a happily ever after to the what-ifs and could-have-beens of young love--to relationships that didn't work out because of circumstances, not because the people weren't compatible.

corynnev's review against another edition

4.0

emotional hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

scijessreads's review against another edition

5.0

Any time a book makes me cry and my heart squeeze in worry is usually a sign that it has left a little piece of itself in my bones. This story, the journey of Leo and Darby finding their second chance while wading through the memories of their first summer together, is one of those that will linger. Told in dual POV and in dual timelines throughout the book, it weaves the story of the "good girl," Darby, sent to live for the summer in Pacific Shores with her grandma. On the shores of the ocean, she meets Leo, a surfer beyond what she has known in her sheltered life. But who quickly becomes the person with whom she can be completely herself. They are each other's safe spaces and first loves.

What follows is heartbreak. Letters both sent and lost, form the beginning and end of their story. An in-between is Darby trying to forgive herself for the heartbreak she caused to both her own soul and Leo's. Darby is finally fleeing a life that has been controlled by her father, leaving a marriage that she knows is not for love. And Leo is there. There to pick up the pieces and find answers to why she left all those years ago. And to see if what they had is still there, hidden beneath the cracks of time and guilt and grief.

I fell in love with this duo, the heathen and his honeysuckle. Their second chance was well-earned and did not shy away from the hard conversations (or the heat between them - Leo sure has mouth that could set you on fire). But in all of it, there was a deep and soulful love between Leo and Darby that bled from the pages.

*Thanks to the author for a chance to read this story early as an ARC. All opinions are my own.