Loved this book and couldn't put it down. I haven't been a recent fan of Jodi Picoult's current books, but this one changed my view - typically not a fan when I have to read about things I have no interest in, i.e, bees, etc., but the author kept it short and interesting and it worked with the story. The story incorporates all manner of subjects, from abuse to transgender to suicide - lots of topics here, but it all works. The chapters are told in alternating voices, from Olivia, the mother of the suspected killer, to Lily, the victim. I can tell the chapters are written by different authors, but both are excellent writers and the story flows seamlessly. There is a huge wait list for this at my local library, and if the wait is long at yours, don't give up - it's worth the wait! Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy.

I really like Jodi Picoult and am usually very interested in her novels. “Mad Honey” was no different. It was a solid book that covered important and timely trans situations and included a compelling mystery and courtroom drama that kept me largely engaged. That being said, I thought the novel dragged at parts and included some details that seemed unnecessary. It could have been a bit shorter. I liked it, but just did not love it. 3 stars ⭐️. Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the copy for review.

Imagine being a doctor at the top of your game and then your husband shatters it all.. Physically and emotionally. For Olivia and her son the next step is going home to New Hampshire and leaving medicine behind and becoming a domestic abuse survivor. The Bees know her secrets and doubts but no one else as she takes over her father's beekeeping business. But in a small town, there are no secrets. At least not for long. Especially when her path crosses that of a high school girl new to town.
Olivia isn't even the central character for the most part. It is her son, Asher, The new girl in town, Lily, is dead and the rumors start to fly as Asher is Guilty TILL proved innocent. As Olivia holds on to hope and sanity she weaves with her son, around the hiccups in our backwards justice system.
More in Picoult's style of "Spark of Light" rather than "Keeping Faith." But in true Picoult Fashion she dives into women's issues in all its messy glory. Faith, Hope, Work, Identity, Family, self worth and so much more. Picoult and Boylan give each character plenty of "on screen" time to showcase their part in the story with feeling rushed or pushed aside.

There was a lot about Mad Honey to enjoy. I love a thematic book, and thought the way all the bee lore tied into the story was fascinating.

I do feel that Mad Honey tried to be a LOT of things: a book about mothers and children, a courtroom drama, a coming-of-age-identity story, and a mystery of sorts. I'm not sure the book succeeded 100% at doing ALL those things but am recommending it to friends as a perfect book club book because there is SO much to discuss. I'm really glad I read it.

Couldn't wait to finish this book! I knew there was going to be a twist at the end but didn't guess this one. Fans of Jodi Picoult, this is a great one!! The character development and story unfolded so seamlessly you'd never know it was a co-authored project. On a sidenote, I even learned a thing or two about honey.

Mad Honey is a compelling, nuanced look at family relationships, tragedy, and culpability. The novel tells the experiences of Olivia, a 40-something single mom of 18-year old Asher; and Lilly, a talented high school senior who has recently moved to a small town in New Hampshire and is dating Asher. Slowly, relationships and events are pieced together so we understand what has happened to both Lilly and Olivia's past life. It reminded me of Defending Jacob as I was reading it. We're not sure what the truth is and parents tend to air on the side of seeing their child as better than they may actually be. It suffers a little bit as some of Picoult's other books have by being bogged down with technical details. Olivia is a beekeeper, so we learn a lot about beekeeping and how honey and bees have been used or perceived throughout history.

I really enjoyed how Picoult and Finney Boylan create a nuanced picture of each character. When someone has done something bad, it can be hard to see them as anything but bad. But how does that change if it's your own child or even if there is the preponderance of evidence that they may have done something bad? We also see how a court case can hurt the lives of their family members. I listened to the audiobook, which was well narrated by Key Taw and Carrie Coon.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for providing this ARC. All thoughts are my own.

To be honest, I love reading Jodi Picoult’s books and her collaboration with Jennifer Finley Boylan added another dimension altogether. Two different perspectives-one going forward and the other backwards allows the reader to open their minds in order to absorb and accept people and issues that are prevalent today-issues that are not often spoken about. I will not be a spoiler by revealing the premise of this book because to do so might discourage some readers from learning something they know little about.
I, for one, applaud Jodi for her bravery in tackling controversial issues and allowing me to accept and learn more and broaden my views.
I consider this book a must read and I highly recommend it.

Jodi Picoult seems to be hit or miss for me and I'll go ahead and provide what will probably be an unpopular opinion. Mad Honey was way too long, I honestly could have done with cutting out 20% of the book. If you have experienced any trauma in your life at all, be prepared to have every single one of them, and possibly more, triggered at some point in this book. I feel like Picoult and Boylan tried to do too much with too many topics/messages that it took away from the core story told from Lily's perspective, which was the most moving and heartbreaking.

Really enjoyed this book by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan. It was my first time reading both of these authors and it felt really fluid, the prose was nice and the I felt like it read clean,. One of my favorite parts was the way the inner workings of a beehive was added into the story telling and interwoven with the narrative. The story itself wasn't as fresh and was slightly predictable (I won't spoil it for anyone) but it was about 70m pages too long in my opinion with some of the arcs getting repetitive.

This story follows Olivia McAfee a beekeeper that fled an abusive relationship with her husband to start fresh at her parents old house and raise the colonies of weeds left by her dad. Her son Asher, a hockey player who fears he's inherited the anger issues he witnessed from his father, is madly in love with Lily Campanello, a new girl in town that moved to with her mom with an equally dark past. When Lily is found dead at the foot of her stairs, Asher is the prime suspect. Olivia must navigate this new reality, whether to believe her sons innocence and what it means to love someone unconditionally as they go through ashers incarceration trial and the events that lead to the conclusion. There is a nice twist in here that I won't spoil but was interesting.

Overall enjoyed this story, the writing and the vibe but was a tad on the longer side and I found myself skimming to get to the end. still highly recommend! OUT NOW

I haven’t read a Jodi book in awhile but the synopsis and a co author grabbed my attention. As usual she was able to pull a current issue and explore it with thoughtfulness and entertainment at the same time. The characters are fully fleshed out and I believe this book will provide some great book club discussions.

If you’ve missed Jodi Picoult’s old-school writing in her last few books, you are in luck, my friends: Mad Honey signals a return to Picoult’s writing roots. So much so that she even brings back a beloved character from previous novels. Who could it be? You’ll have to read to find out — but trust me, y’all, this one is worth it. While the twist at the end is somewhat lackluster, it was still one that I never saw coming — and that, my friends, is why I am a longtime Picoult fan. She rarely fails to take me by surprise. And who can turn away from that? Not I, y’all. Not I. ⁣
⁣
Much thanks to NetGalley and to Random House-Ballantine for this early copy for review. ⁣
⁣
#madhoney #jodipicoult ⁣
#transrights #translivesmatter ⁣
#booklyapp #bookly ⁣
#operationTBR #readmyowndamnbooks ⁣
⁣
#TBCreads #pathologicallyliterate ⁣
#NetGalley #RandomHouse ⁣
⁣
#bookstagram #books #bookish #bookpics #booklist #booknerd #bookworm #booklover #librarylover #reading #weneeddiversebooks #alwaysreading #getlit #happyreading #readersofinstagram #wndb

Jodi Picoult never disappoints! This is the story of a high school young couple who experience their first love, that is, until one of them ends up dead. It turns out everybody has secrets. Teenagers, parents, lovers. Everybody has something to hide. It will all come out in court. Will the right person be convicted?
I had a guess of who really did it. I was wrong until the very end!

#NetGalley #MadHoney #JodiPicoult

The newest novel by Jodi Picoult speaks to the bonds between parent and child, living authentically and young love. What happens when those bonds are challenged? How do you find acceptance in a critical world? If you grow up witnessing violence are you doomed to repeat it? Was it an accident or murder? These questions permeate this rich story that also serves as a tutorial on beekeeping. Something for everyone.
Thanks to Random House-Ballantine and NetGalley for this ARC. This is my honest review.

What makes a book a 5-star read? In my own honest opinion, it will be a book that is thought provoking, gut wrenching, heart warming and has a subject that would challenge my beliefs, rock my core, play with my emotions and all the while widening the horizons of my understanding and educating me beyond my normal comfort zone. Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan was an excellent, 5-star rating, not to mention madness reading experience.

Special thank you to Penguin Random House via Netgalley and PRH audio for the complimentary copies in exchange of my honest review.

Ava works as a forest ranger. She tracks wild animals, she protects and conserves their habitat. She was a single mom to Lily- the super smart, walking google information, fencing champ and a talented cello player who happens to be the new girl in town.

Olivia was divorced from an abusive marriage to a cardio-thoracic surgeon, a bee keeper and a mother to Asher- the golden boy of the high-school’s hockey team.

Asher fell in love with Lily and Lily loves Asher. But, Lily died- in fact she was murdered and all fingers were pointing to Asher.

This book was a great a story and so much more. Here’s why:
1. I learned about bees and they were very interesting. The healing benefits of honey and why it is called food for the Gods. One thing I am sure, bees are epitome of feminism.
2. The world and life of a transgender. The what’s and the why’s. The good, the bad and the ugly. I would rather prefer all the good.
3. I know I am versed with ITP (the platelet disorder) compared to most but additional info was very much appreciated.
4. Unconditional love of a mother to her child comes in every shape and form. No mugger or murderer can dare challenge that!
5.I applaud JP and JFB for giving birth to this book. It was a tough subject to tackle but somehow they have elegantly and successfully convey that this story is more than just the relationships that were worth keeping or the fine line between secrets and privacy. It was also the right and freedom of choice, of knowing oneself and accepting the people we love for who they are and not for what they are.

I highly recommend this book! All 464 pages of it is a must-read!

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)

Olivia, a beekeeper, and her teen-age son Asher move back to small town New Hampshire after her divorce from her abusive husband. When Lily and her mom move to town, Asher and Lily start dating. When Lily ends up dead, Asher is accused of killing her and mom Olivia is worried that Asher inherited his father's abusive traits.

This is the description for this book that I had heard. After disliking the last two Picoult books I'd read (The Book of Two Ways and Wish You Were Here), I was fairly hesitant to devote the time to this 464-page book. But this stock description is not really all this book is about.

Picoult coauthors this one with Jennifer Finney Boylan. After reading some interviews with the authors, my interest in this book was more peaked as Boylan is a trans writer and activist. Then I read the authors' notes at the end of the book (which I know you're not supposed to do, but in this case, they were very insightful and helpful to me- and do not give away too much about the book.) The authors note that Picoult initially wrote the chapters from the perspective of the mother, Olivia, and Boylan wrote the chapters by Lily, the girlfriend. Then they edited each other and wrote one chapter each, then switched. By the time they were done, they could not really tell who had written what. I've read some books before with two authors that at best you could tell who wrote which part, and at worst were a failed experiment in cowriting.

I am happy to report that this book was an almost total success. I really enjoyed the beekeeping details (a little too detailed for me and the metaphor was a little heavy handed, but it did all come together well and was useful to the story.) I really liked how this turned into a courtroom drama and those parts kept me reading and I found them to be some of the strongest and helped balance out the heavier, emotional scenes. This book is about trust, inheritance, courage, loneliness, and secrets. But it's also about community and mothers' love. I found this book to be a well-rounded story with lessons (aka Picoult's specialty) that were pitch perfect. If you liked old school Picoult or Laurie Frankel, this book is for you.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House for the advance copy for review.

What a brilliant collaboration. I couldn’t put this one down. If you’ve never read a Jodi Picoult book, do yourself a favor and grab this one.

Phenomenal. 5 stars. This is definitely a story that you will not want to put down from moment one, with a narrative that needs to be told and twists along the way. Picoult and Finney Boylan explore gender identities, sex, social norms, domestic abuse, and the classic coming of age story all in a way that feels both gentle and thorough. I absolutely loved and recommend this book!

Hester is the perfect read going into the fall season. It’s somewhat of a retelling of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter. Set in Salem, Hester draws on the dark history of the Salem witch trials and the people who played a role in the accusations of witchcraft.

Isobel Gowdie is the main character of the story. An accomplished seamstress, Isobel also sees color in letters and language. A native of Scotland, Isobel and her husband Edward immigrate to America in search of a new start after Edward gets them into debt.

Right after they get settled in Salem, Edward decides to take a job as a medic on a ship and leaves Isobel alone to settle into the new world. Isobel immediately begins to draw parallels between her own family history and that of Salem’s past witch trials.

Early on, Isobel meets Nathaniel Hawthorne and they are immediately drawn to one another. The romance was a bit predictable, but what happens later is not and I loved how the author included so much of the history of the time into the story.

The novel has the same somber, forbidding tone found in The Scarlet Letter and I found this to be a perfect read going into October.

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for allowing me to read an advance copy. I am pleased to offer my honest review.

Mad Honey is a rich, twisty and at times heart-breaking novel from bestselling authors Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan. When Asher Fields finds his girlfriend Lily dead at the bottom of her staircase suspicion soon points to Asher. High school seniors in a small town in New Hampshire, Asher and Lily's romance was well known to those close to them. Olivia Fields, local bee keeper, cannot believe her sensitive son Asher is responsible for Lily's death-but in her darkest moments she remembers flashes of his temper-and his father's. During explosive testimony more truths are revealed that lead to more questions. Told in alternating narratives and timelines Mad Honey is a relevant, poignant mystery that readers will long remember.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest feedback.