Rachel Reviews: Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan
A book for our times, Mad Honey is a story of people, divisions, assumptions and wrong perceptions, with a murder trial at the centre of it
I've always liked Jodi Picoult's books in the main and think that she delivers good stories; I'm not familiar with Jennifer Finney Boylan's work although that will change on the strength of this read. I know that Picoult's novels often deal with thorny issues, representative of the times that we live in and present the viewpoints that threaten to divide, in very human stories, with a stress on that - the humans, the people who are affected, who live the lives that we question ethically or morally or simply because we don't understand..
This collaboration is no different in terms of the plot of the book. When Asher Fields is accused of killing his girlfriend, Lily Campanello, we are thrown into the middle of a murder trial where piece by piece the truth about what happened is revealed.
But it is a twisty turny revealing, taking us hither and thither. The narrative is told through the voices of Lily and Olivia, Lily as mentioned above, the girlfriend of Asher while Olivia is Asher's mum. There are parallels between Lily and Asher in that both are only children who live with their mothers, mothers who have left their husbands for the same reasons: to protect their child. Olivia's story in particular centres on her relationship with her successful surgeon husband and we learn about his anger issues and possessive controlling behaviour. It makes for hard reading at times but I like this about the book as Picoult is never one to shirk the difficult issues of 21st century life, although abusive husbands are nothing new.
In the background of all this too is beekeeping. There are so many books which feature bees somewhere in the narrative but in the book, Picoult and Finney Boylan use Olivia's occupation as beekeeper to make comparisons and analogies and statements about what is going on elsewhere in the book. I found this incredibly interesting in its own right and wonder if the inclusion of the bees as a device was more than it first appears, because the matriarchal structure of the beehive is in stark contrast to the domination that our female characters experience in their world.
Either way, bees figure a lot and the book is all the better for this. It is good, with a well-executed plot which reveals by degrees with shocks and heart and reconciliation, leading to a conclusion which satisfies.
Rachel Rating: 4/5 stars
This review was first published on Reedsy Discovery and can also be found on my blog at www.scuffedgranny.com:
Thanks for stopping by! If you do read this, please leave a comment as I love to interact with my readers and if you have read the book, please do let me know what you thought of it.
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Comments (7)
I'm suggesting this for my book group next! TY for giving me some idea of what to look for!
I'm reading it! But on Kindle, so my life is not at risk. At least , no more than before. You didn't mention it was only 99p on Amazon 😁
I read this a couple of months back. Thought it was such an insightful book…. Definitely made me rethink a lot of things. Had a great twist at the end too. Great review.
Oooo, a murder mystery? I'm in! Hehehehhehe. Loved your review!
Great review, Rachel, the book sounds really promising! Like Lana, it also reminded me of It Ends With Us due to similar characters and situations, since it’s on my mind right now after seeing the movie trailer everywhere. I wasn’t a big fan of it though—this honestly sounds way better!
Excellent review, Rachel. Reminded me of It Ends with Us, where the abusive husband is also a (neuro)surgeon. Just curious, what would it take for a book to get 5/5 from you?
Your reviews always make me want to read the book! My TBR pile is going to crush me, and it's going to be your doing!