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caseroo7's review
2.0
Review originally posted at Ramblings From This Chick
Honeytrap is the first book I've read by Crystal Green, and it is also the first book in her Aidan Falls series. While the blurb sounded promising and I liked the cover, I have to say that this book was a little all over the place to me. There were things that I liked, but on the whole this book just didn't deliver what I had been hoping for.
Shelby has returned home to Aidan Falls for the summer and wants nothing more than to hang out with he friend and keep her head down. Ever since she publicly called out her cheating ex boyfriend, she has been the town pariah. Her ex Rex is a football star, and everyone in town took his side. But then she meets the new town resident Micah Wyatt and things quickly get even more complicated. When she finds out that Micah made a bet involving her, she will do anything to keep him away from her. But soon she finds herself drawn to him even when she knows that she should stay away from him.
I couldn't connect with these characters at all. I would have moments when I would think that I was about to change my mind, but then they would do something that would ruin it for me. I desperately wanted to like Micah, and he had moments when he seemed like a great guy despite the fact that most of his actions made him seem like a douche. But then he would do or say something else, and I couldn't believe that he would immediately revert right back. I honestly just didn't think it fit his character at all, and I couldn't figure out which personality was real. Shelby was hard for me to connect with as well, and I didn't care for the fact that she was so hung up on the past with her ex. She was a large part of what caused them to break up, and yet she seemed to sort of play the victim. She didn't like the way people were treating her, and yet she didn't do anything about it. I just didn't see what her issue was. She was pretty weak and wishy washy and I just didn't relate to her at all.
Besides Micah and Shelby, I didn't care for Rex or Shelby's friend Evie. I didn't understand the friendship that Shelby and Evie had, and Evie didn't really seem to have Shelby's best interest at heart. I also didn't get the friendship that Shelby formed with Jadyn. It didn't make sense at all, and honestly I didn't find it believable one bit. I would never be friends with someone who hooked up with my ex right after I did and then slept with the guy I was developing feelings for. It just seemed a bit too weird for me. I mean friends should be able to share things, but multiple guys? I also felt like this book kind of skipped around, and I found it disorienting. Especially the parts that would randomly go back in time with little to no explanation to chat messages between Rex and Lana. Once things were finally explained, it started to make sense. But at first it was confusing, and I felt like it could have been done in a better way so as not to confuse and distract the reader. The other thing that really bothered me about this book was how childish and immature everyone was. These are college age kids, and honestly their actions made them out to be more like middle school age kids. It just didn't work for me and wasn't at all what I expected. By the time I got to the end of the story, I was more than ready to be done and I just found the ending rushed and unbelievable. I couldn't believe how abrupt it ended and I felt like I had been mislead for most of this book. I wish we had been given a bit more to at least leave the reader in a better place with some kind of idea how things were a bit down the road for these characters. I am sure that since this is the first book in the series that there will be more about these characters in the future books. But I have to say that at this point I won't be running out to read them after having the issues I did with Honeytrap.
**ARC Provided by Penguin Group Berkley/Signet**
Honeytrap is the first book I've read by Crystal Green, and it is also the first book in her Aidan Falls series. While the blurb sounded promising and I liked the cover, I have to say that this book was a little all over the place to me. There were things that I liked, but on the whole this book just didn't deliver what I had been hoping for.
Shelby has returned home to Aidan Falls for the summer and wants nothing more than to hang out with he friend and keep her head down. Ever since she publicly called out her cheating ex boyfriend, she has been the town pariah. Her ex Rex is a football star, and everyone in town took his side. But then she meets the new town resident Micah Wyatt and things quickly get even more complicated. When she finds out that Micah made a bet involving her, she will do anything to keep him away from her. But soon she finds herself drawn to him even when she knows that she should stay away from him.
I couldn't connect with these characters at all. I would have moments when I would think that I was about to change my mind, but then they would do something that would ruin it for me. I desperately wanted to like Micah, and he had moments when he seemed like a great guy despite the fact that most of his actions made him seem like a douche. But then he would do or say something else, and I couldn't believe that he would immediately revert right back. I honestly just didn't think it fit his character at all, and I couldn't figure out which personality was real. Shelby was hard for me to connect with as well, and I didn't care for the fact that she was so hung up on the past with her ex. She was a large part of what caused them to break up, and yet she seemed to sort of play the victim. She didn't like the way people were treating her, and yet she didn't do anything about it. I just didn't see what her issue was. She was pretty weak and wishy washy and I just didn't relate to her at all.
Besides Micah and Shelby, I didn't care for Rex or Shelby's friend Evie. I didn't understand the friendship that Shelby and Evie had, and Evie didn't really seem to have Shelby's best interest at heart. I also didn't get the friendship that Shelby formed with Jadyn. It didn't make sense at all, and honestly I didn't find it believable one bit. I would never be friends with someone who hooked up with my ex right after I did and then slept with the guy I was developing feelings for. It just seemed a bit too weird for me. I mean friends should be able to share things, but multiple guys? I also felt like this book kind of skipped around, and I found it disorienting. Especially the parts that would randomly go back in time with little to no explanation to chat messages between Rex and Lana. Once things were finally explained, it started to make sense. But at first it was confusing, and I felt like it could have been done in a better way so as not to confuse and distract the reader. The other thing that really bothered me about this book was how childish and immature everyone was. These are college age kids, and honestly their actions made them out to be more like middle school age kids. It just didn't work for me and wasn't at all what I expected. By the time I got to the end of the story, I was more than ready to be done and I just found the ending rushed and unbelievable. I couldn't believe how abrupt it ended and I felt like I had been mislead for most of this book. I wish we had been given a bit more to at least leave the reader in a better place with some kind of idea how things were a bit down the road for these characters. I am sure that since this is the first book in the series that there will be more about these characters in the future books. But I have to say that at this point I won't be running out to read them after having the issues I did with Honeytrap.
**ARC Provided by Penguin Group Berkley/Signet**
mandy_pandy's review
4.0
I really enjoyed this story. I had no idea what a honeytrap was before reading this but the title makes perfect sense. Shelby was cheated on by her boyfriend, a football hometown hero. She embarrassed him and you just don't do that to Rex so going back to their hometown for the summer is a bit of a problem for Shelby. A lot of people are rude to her and gossip about her. Then, she meets the newcomer Micah Wyatt who bets that he can get her in bed by the end of summer. Shelby just can't stay away from Micah and I have to say, I don't blame her one bit. Micah is sexy and I loved him. This story was interesting and I really liked the supporting characters, I can't wait for Jadyn's book next! My only complaint about this book is that at times, it did seem to drag out a little bit in the beginning and it took a little bit of time for me to get into the story. One of the most positive things about the book was the writing. There was a sexy scene in this book that was so beautifully written, it wasn't overly graphic or dirty, it was just descriptive in the emotions and really beautiful. Overall, I really enjoyed this book and recommend it to anyone who enjoys a good romance.
**ARC provided in exchange for an honest review**
**ARC provided in exchange for an honest review**
mylastromancenovel's review
3.0
My Rating: 3 out of 5 stars.
Disclaimers: I received an e-galley of this novel from the publisher in exchange for my honest opinion. I was not obligated to write a good review nor did I receive any compensation for writing this review.
The Characters: I'm not sure what I thought about the characters to be honest. I thought they were interesting, and I loved watching the growth the characters made. Shelby is the town pariah after she treated the small-town football star like crap. Nobody wants anything to do with her except for Micah Wyatt--the town bad boy, who made a bet he could get her to sleep with him. Not exactly, the right type of attention to be attracting. I neither liked nor disliked Shelby.
She was an interesting character to read about, but I was apathetic about her.
Micah was a character that I thought could have been better developed. Toward the end of the novel, you start getting to know more about him, but you never really got to dive into his thought process. That's probably because the novel was told in Shelby's perspective. Micah is the typical badboy who's really not all that bad. But all in all, I liked the characters.
The secondary characters were intriguing and enjoyable to read about as well.
My Overall Thoughts/Impressions: I enjoyed the novel. It was a quick enjoyable read for me. I read it in one sitting in the space of just a couple of hours. The novel was well written and definitely dramatic.
I didn't love the novel, but I found it to be an interesting read. The plot line just wasn't one that drew me in as much as I would have liked. However, I think that fans of the new adult genre in general will like this novel.
So why 3 stars? I enjoyed it, but it didn't really stand out.
Warnings/Side-notes: Fairly tame as far as New Adult novels go. There are some sexual references/scenes, and there are some cases of strong language.
The Wrap-up: An enjoyable, quick read.
Disclaimers: I received an e-galley of this novel from the publisher in exchange for my honest opinion. I was not obligated to write a good review nor did I receive any compensation for writing this review.
The Characters: I'm not sure what I thought about the characters to be honest. I thought they were interesting, and I loved watching the growth the characters made. Shelby is the town pariah after she treated the small-town football star like crap. Nobody wants anything to do with her except for Micah Wyatt--the town bad boy, who made a bet he could get her to sleep with him. Not exactly, the right type of attention to be attracting. I neither liked nor disliked Shelby.
She was an interesting character to read about, but I was apathetic about her.
Micah was a character that I thought could have been better developed. Toward the end of the novel, you start getting to know more about him, but you never really got to dive into his thought process. That's probably because the novel was told in Shelby's perspective. Micah is the typical badboy who's really not all that bad. But all in all, I liked the characters.
The secondary characters were intriguing and enjoyable to read about as well.
My Overall Thoughts/Impressions: I enjoyed the novel. It was a quick enjoyable read for me. I read it in one sitting in the space of just a couple of hours. The novel was well written and definitely dramatic.
I didn't love the novel, but I found it to be an interesting read. The plot line just wasn't one that drew me in as much as I would have liked. However, I think that fans of the new adult genre in general will like this novel.
So why 3 stars? I enjoyed it, but it didn't really stand out.
Warnings/Side-notes: Fairly tame as far as New Adult novels go. There are some sexual references/scenes, and there are some cases of strong language.
The Wrap-up: An enjoyable, quick read.
authorheatherw's review
3.0
This was a strange little book for me. I liked the premise, but I just didn’t care for the characters. Although I kept reading to the end, I never felt a connection with anyone in the story. The heroine seemed too weak-willed and the hero came off as a jerk. I love bad boy love interests, but I couldn’t decide if I liked Micah or not. He was too hot and cold and it made me doubt his feelings were ever genuine. Plus, I felt like Shelby could be a bit of a doormat with him. However, I liked the author’s writing style and I did like the subplot about Shelby being bullied. I felt like the bullying portions of the novel were probably the most realistic and heart wrenching for me. The conclusion wrapped everything up nicely and the book can be read as a standalone.
Rating: 3/5 Stars
Thanks to the publisher for a copy for review!
Rating: 3/5 Stars
Thanks to the publisher for a copy for review!
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