Mad Honey

"In what murder mystery do you get all the suspenseful turns and also get to learn about beekeeping?! All the characters have their hidden parts that come out in surprising twists. Really liked this story and how it unwound backward and forward. "

"Everyone should read this book. I can't tell you why without spoiling a surprise in the storyline. It is expertly written with complex characters."

"Why did I give this such a high rating?<br/>I normally am very stingy when it comes to giving out five star reviews. A book must have quite a few things that it ‘ticks’ on my list so that it can gain that high rating.<br/>Some of the things I enjoyed about this book and that helped to get it to the 4.5/5 star rating:<br/><br/>1. I liked the layout of this book, it had more than one perspective which is something that I CAN enjoy when properly executed by an author. There were two points of view throughout the book, one being Olivia (a beekeeper and mother of Asher) and the other Lily (a senior in high school, who was new to town).<br/><br/>2. I enjoyed that there were multiple plot twists. I enjoy a good unexpected turn in a storyline. In this book the authors did a great job of making these moments occur at times that you really didn’t expect them to, as well as blindsiding characters in the book. It was a great addition and made the book so much better.<br/><br/>3. I’m sure I’m not alone in this but one of my other favorite parts of this book is the non-fiction pieces of this novel. There are, sprinkled throughout the book, small amounts of history and information about honey and bees. Some of the facts you may know or might have heard about before but many of the things are quite interesting and have made me want to read more about honey and bees. This is also one reason I know I would want to reread this book, because of all the fantastic facts within its pages.<br/><br/>4. My must haves for a book to have four or five stars is that I want to reread it and this book is one I would easily pick up again. It was a wonderful experience and gave a great scale of emotions: everything from anger and frustration to sympathy and true sadness, disgust and betrayal, as well as hope and love. These things are also what make me know that I would reread this book. When there is that amount of emotion in one’s writing I am so excited to read it and to feel those things with the characters. Another reason I enjoyed this book is due to its overall story and message about acceptance and creating a discussion about what makes someone ‘a woman’ or ‘a man’. This is the type of book that we need more of. It is fantastic to read a story like this that is in favor of acceptance and inclusion, rather than just tolerance.<br/><br/>5. If none of those reasons have been intriguing enough for you to consider reading Mad Honey, then maybe you will find another reason.<br/>Maybe you enjoy hockey like the character, Asher, does. Maybe you will connect with Lily, who plays the cello or her mother, Ava, who is a forest ranger. Maybe you will find a connection with Olivia, Asher’s mother, who has been in an abusive marriage and had to start her life over afterward. Or maybe you will not connect with any of these characters but will still enjoy reading about them and seeing their lives unfold together.<br/><br/>For those that take the time to read this review or the book, enjoy! I hope it will leave you with a little more understanding and openness to others as it did for me."

"What. A. Book. I don’t think I’ve read a book that could pull that many emotions out of me from empathy to tears to anger to relief. It touched on so many areas that us a humans don’t take to the time to understand or explore. Beautifully written!"

"The way in which the timeline of this book leaves readers questioning what happened evil also engaging in all that was going on… amazing!"

"2.5- I was told there was an amazing twist at the end and it just wasn’t amazing or worth it."

"I enjoyed this book - excellent detail about beekeeping - the themes of domestic violence and bullying are explored. The transgender character experienced, in my opinion, typical teenage angst, no different than if she were straight. Violence is not peculiar or exclusive to transgendered people although I’m sure the author intended otherwise "

"I loved this book and I learned a lot. I don't want to give anything away about this story, you should just read it."

"LOVED this book!"

"This story cracks your heart open…<br/><br/>And you can choose to be better and do better with what you’ve learned. Let Lily’s light shine."