The download date was unfortunately missed, I would be happy to re-review it if it became available again. I have awarded stars for the book cover and description as they both appeal to me. I would be more than happy to listen and review it if a download becomes available. If you would like me to re-review please feel free to contact me at thesecretbookreview@gmail.com or via social media The_secret_bookreview (Instagram) or Secret_bookblog (Twitter). Thank you.

Looks at the crazy time between finishing university and having to adult! A time many of us can relate to. It’s an easy read with some funny and some heart warming moments! It’s an easy read with well thought out characters.

Honeybee - Dawn O'Porter

Having read all of Dawn O'Porters previous books I was super excited to get stuck into Honeybee. I really liked the back and forth chapters of friends Renée and Flo, I thought their relationship was really engaging and interesting. I liked how the author touched onto some tricky topics, I always feel she does this with compassion and a very real essence. I personally didn't warm to the two main characters as much as I have with characters in other books by this author but I felt this did not matter in terms of my enjoyment. I thought the narrators did an amazing job at bringing the characters to life. Many thanks HarperCollins UK Audio for the audiobook in return for my honest thoughts and opinions

The story dives into the complexities of identity and friendship, centered around a unique protagonist navigating life's ups and downs. O’Porter’s writing is both heartfelt and engaging, with moments that made me laugh and tear up.

The character development is fantastic; I loved watching the growth of the main character. However, there were parts that felt a bit predictable, which pulled me out of the story at times.

Overall, Honeybee is a touching exploration of acceptance and love in all its forms. It left me feeling hopeful and connected to the characters, making it a worthwhile read!

This is one of those must-read novels for all early-20-something-year-olds! I loved following Flo and Renée’s misadventures as they tried to become "adults" despite feeling like they're still teenagers and wishing desperately that someone would just figure all of life out for them - #relateable. Despite the characters' flaws (and there are many!) it's impossible not to like them, and the author did an incredible job of not only keeping things realistic but also keeping the mundane everyday things interesting. No matter how many mistakes Flo and Renée made (especially Renée) I still loved them dearly because, in the end, we're all trying to figure out life, and it very very easy to relate to the two girls. This is definitely a book I'll be coming back to in the future, and one I'll be recommending to all other twenty-somethings too!

This novel is split between the 2 characters of Renée and Flo in alternating chapters.

O'Porter writes these characters to seem exactly the opposite to one another being brought together through the funeral of someone they used to go to school with.

It's as we get further in this novel that we realise that both characters have a lot of similarities, and they're just trying to make it in the world. Twenty-two-year-olds trying to make it through life and get away from their hometown of Guernsey

I loved how this author twisted everything around, that everything you expect with one character the opposite happens. This book kept me on my toes and always had me wondering what would happen next.

I found this novel to be about friendship, failure and facing life challenges.

I like how these main characters were realistic living everyday circumstances and you could never dislike either one of them

This was a really deep novel and one that I very much enjoyed.

Thank you Netgalley for this copy of Dawn Porter new book honeybee.

Dawn Porter is an amazing talent and I loved the idea of two friends in they early 20s finding out how hard life can be, adulthood can be a shock to the system without added bumps in the road.

Beautifully written and a easy read I would recommend this to our bookclub.

I loved Cat Lady. so much. of course i was excited to read another Dawn O'Porter book. but sorry this wasn't it for me...

basically this book is about figuring out and navigating adulthood, making mistakes, being lost in the process. but the cheating part annoyed me so much. like girl wtf were you thinking??? the resolution of it all also felt underwhelming. like by over 90% mark everything was still messy, and suddenly it's over.

i also hate the fact that the cheater man could get away with it?? poor his wife. it was mostly fucked up, even for the sake of learning from mistakes. so sorry i didn't enjoy this book as much as i hoped.

the narrators were good tho. i enjoyed their performance, and probably the main reason I endured this book

Flo and Renée, childhood best friends who reunite on the tiny Channel Island of Guernsey, find themselves figuring out adult life post-university and who they are/wish to be in this gorgeous novel.

I think what this book does really well is that it is technically a Coming of Age story, but it doesn’t feel like a genre story in that sense. There’s a really distinct start and end to the story we join them for and that makes that time of their lives feel really pivotal. Having been written by someone who is slightly older than them, gives it a beautiful sense of hindsight and retrospect which works really nicely with how pivotal everything feels.

The characters are incredible well written, and thought through, so different from one another but so similar at the same time.

The sense of place was by far my highlight.
It’s written in a way that makes Guernsey the catalyst to the entire narrative yet also the backdrop at the same time. Dawn’s descriptions are lyrical and accurate and creates beautiful visuals.

My only small improvement would be that I read this as an audiobook, and I think it would have been beneficial to have 2 narrators - 1 each for the 2 girls, as it occasionally got confusing.

All in all, the book is tender and funny (the reply all!!) and I will definitely be recommending - and looking at flights to Guernsey.

Honeybee is the story of two school friends who find themselves living together in their early 20's by circumstance more than choice. They try and navigate their new relationship with adulting in the noughties.

Honeybee isn't a bad book, Dawn is a great story teller and is able to tell a serious story without it seeming like a lecture. This issue is the characters. Renee and Flo are just really unlikeable with no accountability and no self awareness and it makes it really hard to root for either of them. The best characters by far are Renee's aunt and the elderly neighbour who lives below the girls but neither are fully explored.

Overall Honeybee is a good, gentle read but not one of the best from Dawn.

💭 ᴍʏ ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛꜱ:
This was an interesting read. I'd say, especially for people who are trying to find their way in life. How to navigate and to realise you're not a complete screw up, even if it looks that way. It's a raw and real story of how we as women face challenges along the way. We might think we are alone in it, as people don't like to talk about or show the non-instagrammable stuff in life. But really, we're all going through the same things, maybe in slightly different ways. It's the perfect book to read if you're unsure about your life and also a good read when you do think you have your life together. Also, after reading this I'm longing for a visit to Guernsey!
⭐️⭐️⭐️

🤓 ʀᴇᴀᴅ ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ʟɪᴋᴇ:
Multiple POVs/Timelines
Island life
Troubles in life

ꜱʏɴᴏᴘꜱɪꜱ:
𝘍𝘰𝘳 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘙𝘦𝘯é𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘍𝘭𝘰, 𝘢𝘥𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘪𝘴𝘯’𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘥.

𝘙𝘦𝘯é𝘦’𝘴 𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘣𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘸𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘯𝘰𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦. 𝘍𝘭𝘰’𝘴 𝘩𝘪𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘵 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘮𝘦. 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺’𝘳𝘦 𝘣𝘰𝘵𝘩 𝘧𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦. 𝘞𝘩𝘺 𝘥𝘪𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘣𝘰𝘥𝘺 𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮? 𝘞𝘩𝘺 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘥𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘰𝘮, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘢 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘱?

𝘊𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘹𝘵, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳… 𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴, 𝘙𝘦𝘯é𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘍𝘭𝘰 𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘶𝘯𝘤𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴. 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘺𝘣𝘦 𝘸𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘱 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘶𝘱. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘢𝘺𝘣𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺’𝘭𝘭 𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘷𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦 – 𝘪𝘧 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘬 𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Dawn O’Porter for the advanced copy of this book. I agreed to provide a voluntary honest and unbiased opinion.

I didn’t connect with this book at all. I think this is more suitable to the younger audience.

I enjoyed this story, but felt it was more suited to a younger audience. I've not read any Dawn O'Porter books previously and I didn't realised these were recycled characters.
Great if you want something light hearted.

The audiobook narrators were great!

After reading Cat Lady my expectations for this were so high but I was seriously disappointed.

When the book opened in 2001 and we were following two girls who were 22 I immediately thought we would be following them throughout their lives until present day, but nope. We spent the entire book in a 22 year old brain. What was the point of starting in 2001?

There’s no doubt everyone would be able to relate to these girls but as someone in their 30’s i just wasn’t interested by the end of the book. I would have loved to seen how their lives ended up.

I’m not sure who this book is aimed at as I don’t think 22 year olds could understand the message this book is trying to convey and anybody older would just get annoyed by the girls and their silly decisions after 300+ pages!!

Honeybee portrayed some really deep, really heart wrenching topics, such as alcoholism, finding your way in life in your early twenties, loss of loved ones, and unconventional relationships (family, friends, romantic). How Dawn O’Porter continues to convey such emotion, complex characteristics, and real life situations in her books amazes me - Honeybee was no different.

Exceeding my expectations for an emotional book focussing on the myriad of relationships in your early twenties, this book was far too relatable for comfort. There were also parts that shocked me, that comforted me, and that made me wonder what we are all actually here for.

I loved reading this messy, complicated, vulnerable expression of women in their teens, women in their twenties, women in their peri-menopausal phase, and women in their old age. I adored the added layer of complication and depth that the setting (Guernsey) gave the characters and the plot; it was all just done so brilliantly.

Honeybee, I think, is about connection and how we crave it, waste it, and seek it. I absolutely loved this read and would recommend it to absolutely anybody. Just check the TWs first.

Honeybee was my first Dawn O’Porter book.

I didn’t realise that this book was a follow-up book. That said, I think I managed to catch up on the backstory of Flo and Renee.

It was expertly narrated by Céline Buckens and Sarah Ovens.

That said, it took me a while to finish the book. I found Flo and Renee a little annoying at times, and whilst I knew they were in their early 20s, they felt very immature. I found them rather irritating.

I think the book was well written and it did portray the ups and downs of friendship. I just think perhaps I was a little too old for the book.

Huge thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, HarperCollins UK Audio | HarperCollins, for making the e-audiobook available to me in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I’ve read a few of this authors other books and really enjoyed them so am a big fan of her work. Unfortunately I struggled with this one. I couldn’t relate to either of the main characters, kept mixing them up and found them both annoying, I also didn’t realise it was a follow up to two previous books which I hadn’t read as it made no mention of this. Sorry it just wasn’t for me.

Honeybee by Dawn O’Porter is a heartfelt and relatable story of friendship and navigating adulthood.
Renée and Flo, now in their early 20s, return to their hometown of Guernsey and reconnect after years of distance. The audiobook, narrated wonderfully by Céline Buckens and Sarah Ovens, brings their journey to life, capturing both the humor and the deeper emotional struggles they face. I loved the way the story touched on real-life issues like alcoholism, grief, and the pressures of young adulthood, all while maintaining a strong sense of warmth and friendship.
It’s a beautifully narrated, easy listen with a perfect balance of laughter, tears, and growth.
Very great to the publisher for my ALC, opinions are my own

A funny little popcorn read that explores women of different generations and at different points in their life and reproductive journey (perimenopausal, child-bearing age, mothers). Honey Bee adds humour to the mundane workplace drama (I don't think I've ever had an 'accidentally hit reply all' incident. Yet!) and gives us quite a relatable story.

Renée and Flo are in their early 20's and back on their home island of Guernsey, definitely not where they had planned to be. They had fallen out a few years ago but the connection was still there and they rekindle it.

I have not read the earlier books and don't think I missed out on anything as there was enough recapping without needing to retell the entire previous book. I may go and read them at some point.

Renée as a character is generally very selfish and annoying to the point I was shouting and swearing back at the narrator over some of her actions. I may never be able to return to that supermarket, I suppose that proves that she is believable and by the end of the book I had warmed to her.

I think I would have enjoyed it more had I been closer in age to the girls rather than to Auntie Jo but it was entertaining.

The narration was good and I liked hearing more about Guernsey, I would like to visit some day.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for the DRC.