Mad Honey

Jennifer Finney Boylan and Jodi Picoult are very talented authors who’ve used beautiful prose and compelling characters to tell a story that speaks to so many levels of the human condition. It’s heartfelt, vividly described and thoughtfully told. This is the tale of two moms and their children: Beekeeper Olivia McAfee, and her son, Asher, and Forest Ranger Ava Campanello, and her daughter, Lily, who’ve recently moved to town. When Asher and Lily become romantically involved, it seems like a match made in heaven and both moms are delighted to see their children so happy after overcoming past events. The bliss turns to a nightmare when Lily is killed and Asher is arrested as the prime suspect in her murder. Did he do it? That’s the mystery. Then “The Twist”. It’s a GREAT twist, and one I never saw coming. Even the topic that it addressed had me riveted, and I loved the four major characters. Lily and Asher were particularly well-portrayed. There’s a lot that was right and good with this book, but it did have a few downsides for me. Structurally, this is SO similar to Picoult’s last book, Wish You Were Here, only the focal point after the whopping twist has been switched out. In the last book, it was COVID-19, while a different topic takes the spotlight here. It's a timely topic, and I love that the authors did their research. I just felt at times like the mystery/courtroom drama got a bit lost in the info sharing after the twist. At 464 pages, it occasionally dragged, and I really didn't like how the ending was handled. It felt hypocritical and completely unbelievable, and left me a bit disappointed. Overall, I mostly enjoyed this. I initially rounded down due to the ending, but I've thought a lot about this book. I learned a lot and the story kept me turning the pages - isn't that what any of us hope for? If you enjoy books that deep-dive into current social topics in story form, you may enjoy this, though it does have serious triggers like multiple forms of relational abuse and suicidality. ★★★ ½ (rounded to 4) Thanks to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, NetGalley, and authors Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan for this ARC to honestly review. It’s due to be published October 4th, 2022.