What an beautiful, offbeat novel. Set in post WWII England, the two protagonists are both foils to one another, as well as unexpected friends as their obscure journey unfolds. The prose in this book is beautiful, and while this was my first Rachel Joyce novel, it will not be my last. She has a way of creating empathy with the characters, even in their most unlikeable moments. It reminded me a bit of Evie Drake Starts Over, or Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine - if you liked those novels, be sure to pick this one up.

I do not recommend this book if you love dogs. It's just too cruel.
Margery Benson's had enough. Life has been one disappointment after another. Finally, pushed over the edge by her students she walks out of her life and takes up a daring adventure in search of a golden beetle. She seeks a capable assistant to accompany her but through a course of events ends up with the exact opposite in Mrs. Enid Pretty. Margery, no matter her age, is highly relatable. The stark contrast of the colorful Enid Pretty to the drab Margery makes for a fun adventure. There are a few downsides though. Like I said in the beginning, if you are a dog lover, I do not recommend this book. I almost stopped reading because of it. Also, there is a subplot with a creepy guy that detracts from Margery & Enid's adventure. Both the dog and the creepy guy could be eliminated from the story and it would be so much better.. I ended up just skipping over the creepy guy chapters because they were so bad. So I took one star off for the dog and one star off for the creepy guy.

Rich, full-bodied and lovable characters and a story that was truly a joy to read. I will carry this book in my heart for always.

Joyce is so good with fleshing out characters; I loved Harold Fry and Queenie because of that ability.
Marge took some finessing, however, before I really fell for her.
I thought the plot was predictable but the verbiage gorgeous.
I would definitely recommend this read to library patrons and friends.

I adored The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry so I was so excited to receive Miss Benson's Beetle provided by netgalley. I hate to say it, but this book was just one big disappointment. The main characters were annoying and the biggest aggravation was the character of Mundic. I didn't get it and the entire time I was reading I kept thinking why is this guy in this book. To me he and his story were completely unnecessary. I really wanted to love this book but I just became more annoyed the more I read.

I was so eager to read this book by Joyce after absolutely loving The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry and the companion book, The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy! Unfortunately, this one seemed like it was written by a completely different author. I find it very hard to review a book that was liked by so many readers and it is hard for me to fathom what they found so compelling! I like a book with quirky characters, but this one is over the top!! The only thing I found remotely interesting was the friendship that developed between Margery and Enid. There was nothing believable about the story from beginning to end and I do not recommend it!

Author Rachel Joyce knows how to tell a story. She draws in the reader with surprising details and with a story demanding an audience. I couldn’t put it down.

The book begins with Miss Benson, a spinster teacher, who has just learned what her students think of her. Shocked—perhaps because we never see ourselves the way others see us—she does several things so far out of character that leaving the country seems a good idea. Indeed, leaving the country is an out-of-character decision.

Leaving her job, she decides to go off to New Caledonia to find a theorized but never before identified and categorized golden beetle. What follows is a story of self-discovery, limits reached and surpassed, and unexpected friendships.

Margery fell in love with a beetle at a young age. Margery has four brothers that are soldiers. The beetle Margey fell in love with was a golden beetle so she vowed to find it. Her father gets upset and does the unthinkable. I loved that Enid joined Margery s journey. I liked that Enid and Margery were different. I liked the drama with the Pow. I liked that Enid's past came back to haunt her

Rapid-fire dialogue and some wonderful female relationships, Miss Benson's Beetle is one charming little book.

A tad too much detail ,the strange character of Munich and the ending were some of my least favourite parts of this book about a developing female relationship. The book also contained many sad but revealing insights into loneliness, deep rooted secrets and post traumatic stress . It also highlighted uniqueness and how people who seem so different develop the most rewarding relationships. A quaint read about beetles and how not being the norm or following the norm often has positive outcomes.

I was surprised at how enjoyable this book was. It is the story of two spinsters who travel half way across the world in search of the golden beetle. No one has ever seen this beetle so one of the underlying plots is the question of whether this beetle even exists. These two are adorable in their pursuit. I found this book to be charming and rooted for the two of them from beginning to end. I loved it!.

Loved this book! I’ve decided that one of my favorite type of books to read are books with quirky characters. I loved Margery Benson and Enid Pretty so much! They are truly an unlikely pair, but they discovered that they can do more than they or others thought they could. Thanks to NetGalley for this advance readers copy.

If you are looking for a novel to take your mind off your pandemic blues, this is the perfect book. Rachel Joyce’s main characters, two women who couldn’t be more different than each other, and more quirky, find themselves on an adventure to find Mrs. Benson’s beloved beetle, This novel is not only funny, but it has a heart, and it does have one less enjoyable character, a man suffering from PTSD, and an obsessive love for Mrs. Benson, a woman he met only briefly, when she was interviewing candidates to be her assistant for this beetle adventure. The only thing I regret is the ending, but since I don’t want to give any spoilers, I shall say no more.

I am confused. Did I read the same story as the majority of readers? I hate to be a an unkind person, but I never really understood Miss Benson's Beetle.

Marjory Benson led a sad and lonely life. She had no family life to speak of, did not get along with her co-workers and, until she was 47 years old, she never had a friend. She gave up her simple existence to pursue a golden beetle halfway across the world.

I found Marjory was not an easy woman to like. She oozed disappointment. I empathized with her childhood but after that, I never engaged with her character.

And Enid Pretty? Her upbeat zaniness should have been refreshing. Instead, I thought she was loony. She had difficulty committing to anything.

After these two women met, their peculiar journey was set in motion. An obsession with multiple misadventures filled the pages. A murder provided an upset. It was not easy getting a handle on this couple’s ’friendship’.

I had even more issues with the introduction of Mundic, the POW. We were given very little information on him except that he was homeless, had memory issues and mentally unstable. I did not like that he was portrayed as the villain.

All in all, the pacing of Miss Benson's Beetle was out of step and slow. The characters were quirky but without depth. The ruses and devices used to move the plot along were too often in conflict with one another. Maybe it was one of those ‘it’s me, not you’ moments, but I simply never caught on with all the glowing four and five star reviews.

Thank you to Net Galley and Random House; I was given an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I have enjoyed Rachel Joyce's other books and this one was no exception. Her characters are quirky and lovable - in this case Enid and Margery. I was lost in the story from the first couple of pages and I really enjoyed Ms. Joyce's way with words. I highly recommend this book.

I started reading this book and from the first sentence I fell in love with it. This book was a travel book to New Caledonia for covid 19 stay at home order times. The characters are so rich and fun I wanted to join Marge and Enid, and the dog, Mr. Mundic not so much. The book is pure joy and has quite a few laugh out loud moments. The bond between Marge and Enid is the glue of the book that will bring you to the end. My background is in Entomology and I would say this part of the book was very well researched. The book surprises you through out but I never felt dread. I truly hated finishing this book.

What a joy this book was to read. It's hard being a woman at any time in history, and our two heroes Margery and Enid, Setting off on a great adventure to the island of New Caledonia at the end of the world have both suffered. But they're given a second chance at a new life as their friendship deepens and their adventure begins. They are both unforgettable women and I'm so glad I met them here.

I loved this book. It was funny and sad. Oh to be a brave explorer! I would like to change a couple things, but I still will recommend it to everyone. ARC proved by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Margery would be rather dismayed upon learning that I hate bugs. In fact, I thought this story about Margery's obsession with beetles would be boring. Far from it! This is an adventure-filled book that has mystery and female friendship in it as well. How far would you go to pursue your dreams?

England and New Caledonia - 1950

At the age of ten, Margery Benson began her fascination with a beetle. Not just any beetle but the golden beetle which is only found on the island of New Caledonia in the Pacific. This beetle became even more important after the suicide death of her father upon hearing that all four of her brothers had died in the war in France. Margery threw herself into the study of beetles with the serious intent of someday traveling to New Caledonia and giving the world its first look at the golden beetle.

Well into her forties, Margery, who now has lost her mother and her aunts who had taken them in after her father's death, is teaching household arts at a girls' school. Everything about Margery was sad. Her clothes were ragged, she only had one pair of shoes, which were falling apart, and with rationing still on in Britain, very little opportunity to improve either her clothing or her life. But one day the girls in her classroom tipped her over the edge. Margery left the school, stealing the headmistress' new shoes, and decided that now was the time to find her beetle.

Margery advertised in the local paper for an assistant to go with her to New Caledonia. Four people replied. One canceled at the last minute due to a "police matter", one refused after discovering that it was not Caledonia (Scotland), but an island on the other side of the world, one was a rather odd man who was clearly in some sort of mental distress after being a prisoner of war, and the fourth was a flighty young woman with an inability to stop talking. Still, that woman, Enid Pretty, ended up being chosen at the last moment when Margery absolutely had to leave, their passage was booked, and the ship was leaving.

The sea voyage to Australia was a nightmare for Margery. Not only was she crammed into a tiny cabin with the non-stop chatterbox, Enid, but she spent most of the voyage seasick. Then, upon arriving in Brisbane, Enid announced that she was going off with Mr. Taylor whom she met on board, and Margery is now in dire straits. Somehow, she has to make the seaplane flight to New Caledonia.

I had no idea what I was getting into when I started MISS BENSON'S BEETLE! It is a non-stop, head first adventure into "whatever can go wrong, will go wrong". Margery is not a woman of the world, by any stretch, but she hooks up with Enid who is. But Enid has a past that may, or may not, catch up with her. And then there is the ex-POW, Mr. Mundic, who, it turns out, doesn't take no for an answer. Is there any way Margery can find that beetle?

MISS BENSON'S BEETLE is filled with humorous antics, including her manic attempt to get a passport photograph taken. It is also a story of a woman who has led a sheltered life, who makes dubious decisions, and who learns quite a bit about life as she travels with Enid. The poignant stories behind Margery, Enid, and Mr. Mundic can't be ignored because their decisions in life all hinge on what they've been through. MISS BENSON'S BEETLE is a wild ride, but certainly an enjoyable one.