Mad Honey - Jodi Picoult & Jennifer Finney Boylan

Fiction

Rating: 7/10

Jodi Picoult’s books cover a broad spectrum of moral and ethical issues, shattering the surface of a topic by digging into the heart and soul of the characters. This ensures that you never feel lectured too, but always understand the gravity of the theme. I can’t tell you what is at the heart of her latest as that would be a massive spoiler, but I can tell you it’s worth the read.

Olivia knows what it’s like to start over, leaving behind what appeared to be a picture-perfect life.  She never expected to be back living in the house she grew up in, taking over her father’s beekeeping business. She certainly never expected her son Asher to be arrested for the murder of his girlfriend Lily.

The reveal about Lily at the midway point adds dimension and gives the characters even more to grapple with. As with all Picoult’s books, at the heart lies a certain truth, her characters had been sure of what their futures would hold.  And she upends that by placing them in circumstances that leave no doubt that they have been wrong on all counts.

She will wreck them and patch them back together. She will make them fight hard for some semblance of peace and happiness. And she will make them no promises.

A thought provoking read about what we choose to keep from our past, and what we choose to leave behind.

P.S. the Beekeeping descriptions were so fascinating, and I loved how the observations were woven into the core story.

Book Pairing(s): The Latecomer by Jean Hanff Korelitz, Spark Of Light by Jodi Picoult, Maybe In Another Life by Taylor Jenkins Reid