Wow! Talk about a perfect way to end a complicated and emotional story. While I don’t agree everything that occurred in this book Picoult really resolved everything in the end…. IMHO.

Olivia and her son, Asher, have been on their own for twelve years. This, after Olivia had had enough of an abusive husband. Her abuse was one thing but when he moved to their young son, that was it. She left to protect both of them. This meant leaving the financial security of her cardiothoracic surgeon husband, and return to where she grew up in a small town in New Hampshire. They settle in and take over the bee raising farm and begin to expand the enterprise. Still, it’s not a lucrative living, but it’s quiet and Asher is doing well academically and playing varsity hockey.

Ava and her daughter Lily have also come to this small town in New Hampshire to leave behind some pretty big secrets. Ava works for the forest service in a park ranger position. Their teen children, Lily and Asher, are both high school seniors and the two hit it off right away. Alas, no relationship is perfect especially when it comes to teen love. One day Olivia gets a frantic call from her son who says in a breaking voice, “I think Lily’s dead.” Lily is in fact dead at the bottom of the stairs and Asher was the first on the scene and worse his last text to Lily was screaming in all caps and appears to be threatening. It doesn’t look good for Asher, yet the facts are all circumstantial. Still the prosecution’s platform is that an angry, volatile boyfriend is to blame for her death. Olivia is certain her son does not possess this kind of rage. But then she wonders if his father’s temper may have been passed on and guiltily, she wonders if maybe leaving when he was 6-years-old wasn’t soon enough to change his behavior.

Part one of the book deftly sets up this complicated emotionally charged scenario. The second part is the trial. As witnesses to the prosecution and defense, readers will bounce between guilty, not guilty, guilty, not guilty until the jury makes its decision at the very very end.

Even if you have moral objections to the subject matter, it is alive and affecting many in our country and at some point will need to be addressed and had bern.

Jodi Pucoult and Finney Boylin have co-written a work of art.

Thank you Netgally for the opportunity to read an ARC of such prolific authors. I felt honored.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the copy of Mad Honey. Wow, this book was stunning! Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan have teamed up and written an unforgettable story of love and identity. It was hard to believe they wrote separate characters because it felt so seamless. The writing was fantastic and I sped through the book. The characters leapt off the page, and while they might not have been likable, they were vivid. Having Jordan back was a pleasant surprise and made me want to read Nineteen Minutes and The Pact again. Learning about bees and beekeeping was a bonus and intriguing. If you want a great and eye-opening read, this is the book for you!

I received a free Advanced Reading Copy via NetGalley in exchange for a complete and honest review.

One of the best books I've read in a long while.

“Mad Honey” is, without a doubt, the most, riveting, thought-provoking, emotion-driven story I have read in a very long time! Despite being a tad bit preachy at times, this unique and complex story had me completely enthralled from start to finish. It challenges ideals and biases while serving up realistic, likeable characters amidst the pages of a cleverly written suspense novel that will stay with you long after the last word is read.

Whether you are a Jodi Picoult fan or discovering her for the very first time, this collaborative effort between her and author Jennifer Finney Boylan should be at the very top of your TBR list!!

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the gifted early copy. All opinions are my own!

Ok let me just say it, this book is definitely going to be one of my favorites this year. The first half was so good and I loved the story right from the start. Just before the 50% mark, BOOM, big twist that you will never see coming and then you will be racing to the end to find out how it plays out. I do not want to say much about this book! I truly feel it's best to go in not knowing much, so I'll keep it short.

Olivia and her son Asher are back in her hometown after she left her successful surgeon. She's now running her father's beekeeping business. Ava and her daughter Lily have come to this small town to also start over in a place where no one knows their past. Lily and Asher meet, and fall in love. Then Asher finds Lily at the bottom of the stairs, dead. He's now being charged with murder.

During the book, you'll learn alot about beekeeping which was so Interesting. You'll also learn about another topic that is the one I do not want to mention, so as to not spoil it for you. You'll read about Asher's trial, and it goes back and forth in time, so you'll understand what the characters are keeping hidden from their pasts. SO GOOD!

***Thanks to NetGalley for providing me a complimentary copy of MAD HONEY by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan in exchange for my honest review.***

2.5 STARS

SPOILERS (because I need spoilers to explain my review)

Liv’s son Asher is accused of killing his transgender girlfriend Lily.

Told in the present by Olivia (written by Jodi Picoult) and chronologically backward from Lily’s (by transgender writer Jennifer Finney Boylan) readers and most characters aren’t privy that Lily is trans which is problematic. There’s no way Asher’s attorney who studied the autopsy report, wouldn’t know Lily had a male body. The written part starts as “patient was an eighty year old Caucasian female…” If Asher hadn’t told his uncle/lawyer, the autopsy would have. Having this as a surprise reveal mid trial was a twist for twist purposes. After this reveal, which I had figured out from before I started the book based on pre-publicity, felt manipulative especially when the next chapter, Lily’s went on a rant about gay/trans panic defense turning the book into a Big Issue Agenda book. Another example of Agenda is Lily having transition surgery before her 18th birthday and the dr on the witness stand advocating for surgery on minors (do we really need to give politicians more fuel for their laws?). I get this is all very personal for Boylan but as a reader I don’t like lectures to the reader under the guise of dialogue.

MAD HONEY isn’t a trans panic defense, which would have made more sense to me than Lily telling Asher after they had sex and him being okay with her hiding that she was biologically male. Lily took Asher’s choice from him and he only needed a few days to “process”?

I loved that Liv was Picoult favorite lawyer Jordan, returned home to defend his nephew. Jordan, his wife Selena, Asher and his friend Maya were the only likable characters in the book. I know I wasn’t supposed to like Maya and I was supposed to love Lily, but sometimes I feel the opposite reaction when writers try too hard to make me feel a certain way.

I really wanted to like Liv, but she made so many selfish choices based on being a victim of abuse by her ex that hurt Asher. Olivia lied to herself, saying it was to protect Asher but she left him in prison for 4 months rather than ask her ex for bail money even after Asher was beaten up? I wanted to like Lily too, but her chapters never sounded like they were by a teenage girl, the dialogue sounded less like conversation and more like an adult wrote dialogue to sound like a teen.

All of the characters lacked Picoult’s usual depth. If Asher, not Olivia had written his POV, we might have had more insight into him. Having Olivia always present in his scenes didn’t flow as well or serve the story.

I hated the ending, especially the Last Big Message, Lily wasn’t killed for being trans, she was killed for being a girl. I’d rather have read a trans panic story or that Asher was found guilty despite being innocent or anything other than a public service announcement.

Picoult is a great writer and sometimes I enjoy her books better when I revisit them after a few years or on audiobook. Most of the reviews for the book are better then mine; I rounded up because I liked the parts I liked very much.

I know that when I start a Jodi Picoult book, I will get absolutely nothing accomplished for the next 24-48 hours. Mad Honey was no exception. She has a way of taking real life issues and controversies and turning them into an amazing drama. One that keeps you at the edge of your seat. One that will teach you so much about the subject.

Asher and Lily are 2 young adults, head over heels , passionately in love with each other. Asher does something to upset Lily and she retreats from him for a few days. Wanting to get past everything, Asher goes to her house to talk things out with her. He shows up to her house, finding the door open, and walks in. She is lying at the base of her stairs. He is the only one there, so the police assume he must have had something to do with it.

A huge surprise twist in the middle. I thought I knew was the twist was going to be. I was completely wrong.

Thank you Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan for coming together to create such a fascinating story! And thank you Netgalley and publishers for the ARC.

Oh, this book! This is classic Jodi Picoult. Teens. A crime. Court room drama. Jordan McAfee. I recommend going into this one blind so that you don’t get spoiled because there is a reveal in here that I never saw coming that shocked me to my core. I also thought I had figured out what happened, but I was completely wrong. This book will stay with me for a long time. I learned so much from it and I am really grateful for that knowledge in addition to the enjoyable time I had reading it.

In true Jodi Picoult fashion, she really blew me away with this novel! Her and Jennifer came together to craft the most thought-provoking, raw, emotional read that may be my favorite 2022 read so far! For those who loved The Pact and Nineteen Minutes, you’ll recognize some familiar names and get the same courtroom vibes as I did for those two.

So many topics were touched in this story and the execution was done flawlessly. The alternating POVs between Lily, a young women who is found dead by her boyfriend, and Olivia, the mom of Asher, Lily’s boyfriend, kept the story moving as they jumped back and forth. The only complaint I have is that Lily’s chapters followed a backwards timeline. That made it a little hard for me to truly grasp her relationship with Asher. Other than that, I loved every second of this book that I flew through it this weekend!

As usual with books by Jodi Piccoult, I loved this (and was really fascinated by the partnership with Jenny Boylan and how it came about, which is at the end of the book). This story centers on Olivia, whose son Asher is dating the new girl in school, Lily, and Lily herself, who is navigating some heavy stuff as she tries to fit in at the new school. You know from the synopsis that Lily dies and the book does a great job of exploring the aftermath from Olivia's POC while alternating with the events leading up to it from Lily's POV.

There is a lot going on here and were plenty of surprises tied in with deep characterizations of the protagonists- the story itself was profoundly sad when all was said and done and contained a stark irony like Piccoult often does in her books. You can't help but feel for most of the characters as you are taken along on their journeys. As usual, Piccoult puts a ton of research into her books and teaches me about something I never thought I even wanted to learn- beekeeping, in this case. I have a lot of random knowledge about a lot of things that I have picked up from reading her books over the years.

I won't say more because I don't want to risk spoiling the twists, but will end this review by recommending the book and challenging you to NOT finish it in 1 day and to NOT cry on a plane, both of which I did. Thanks to Netgalley for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I liked the book. They mystery is exciting and makes you guess and relate to the characters.
There is a big surprise in the middle of the book, and it was explored beautifully.
The ending is satisfying and gives a closure.
The book's chapters feature each of the main characters, and the action spans months and years from before and after the death happened. I really liked how the story developed and opened a window into the character's souls.

I received a free copy of the book from NetGalley

Olivia and her son, Asher, have been on their own for twelve years, ever since Olivia had the courage to leave her cardiothoracic surgeon husband with a dark side and return to where she grew up, taking up the reins of raising bees and expanding the enterprises. It’s still not a lucrative living, but it’s quiet and Asher is doing well these days, playing varsity hockey.

Ava and her daughter Lily have also come to this small town to leave secrets behind. Seniors Lily and Asher hit it off right away, but no relationship is perfect. When Lily is found dead at the bottom of the stairs by Asher, the prosecution assumes that an angry, volatile boyfriend is to blame. Initially, Olivia is certain her son isn’t responsible, but then she wonders if his father’s temper may have been passed on—maybe leaving when he was 6-years-old wasn’t soon enough to change his behavior. Because Olivia has moments of doubt, we, the readers have moments of doubt, and the first half of the book is tense. The second half of the book I realized I wasn’t going to get anything else done until I found out how things resolved, and I couldn’t put it down until I knew.

This is a wonderfully written book, but one thing that didn’t ring true to me was that Olivia's ex, Braden, didn’t fight for custody of his son. Men like that think of children and wives as property, and even if he didn’t want to raise Asher, he would have fought. Instead, he lets them be and dutifully pays child support each month. Other than that, I found this compelling and at times heartbreaking, because the bad things that happen to these characters might be fictionalized for the novel but happen in one way or another every day in real life.

I wouldn’t read too much about this book before you devour this. Just see the name Jodi Picoult and have faith that this is going to be great, which it is.

Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to review this novel, which RELEASES OCTOBER 4, 2022.

"Mad Honey" by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan was a great book! I have always liked Picoult's books, but I believe this one was the first by Boylan that I have read. I will be looking into reading more of her books. This book is written in 2 different voices, one Olivia, the mother of a young man named Asher, and Lily, a young woman who is dating Asher. Lily dies, and Asher is accused of her murder. The trial reveals many surprises and the end of the story is a twist that I didn't expect.

Jodi Picoult’s latest release Mad Honey is a thought-provoking story about family, friendship, murder, and, most importantly, bees. The novel begins when Olivia and her son, Asher, move to Adams, New Hampshire in an attempt to escape their ominous past and continue to grow the family apiary. Their story is complicated when Asher finds his new girlfriend, Lily, dead in her home and is accused of her murder. The plot then develops into a story of trial, devotion, and adversity, and the reader slowly learns more about Olivia and Asher’s past while uncovering long-hidden secrets about the other characters. In typical Jodi Picoult fashion, her novel is beautifully written. She examines issues our society is currently facing and includes important life lessons, all through the metaphor of beekeeping. However, her novel contains trauma that can be, at times, difficult to read and could trigger an adverse response. It can also be hard to follow because it constantly switches from the past to the present. Overall, while the story opened my eyes to the ins and outs of beekeeping, it was not my favorite Jodi Picoult novel. However, if you enjoy Jodi Picoult and her interpretation of current events, it is an interesting and informative read.

I received an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Jodi Picoult does it again! She has always been one of my favorite authors, and this reminded me of some of her earlier work.
I loved everything about this book! The characters seemed real, relationships developed and I loved the twists!

Oh Jodi Picoult - you and your thought provoking, intelligent, beautifully worded storytelling are my fav. Thank you for introducing me to Jennifer Finney Boylan as well!

The queen of POVs & alternating timelines is back at it. This time with only 2 POVs and timelines that start together and move in opposite directions with plenty of flashbacks for both POVs thrown in.

I was pretty proud of myself for figuring out the first big twist. It is a HUGE spoiler so we will leave it at that.

Per usual we have a very hot topic (it’s a spoiler) at the center of this novel. I really enjoyed that this was a book from two authors. Having an expert on the topic to be a co-author really brought a depth to the topic that would be hard to articulate without Jennifer writing.

My only teeny tiny criticism is that I think the book could have been a little shorter.I felt like a few things were repeated too many times.

I LOVED that Jordan from Nineteen Minutes and the Pact was back. Those are two of my favorite of Jodi’s novels (Nineteen Minutes is one of my favorite of ALL TIME) so it was great to have a familiar character.

I encourage people with trigger warnings to look at this for this book before reading. I won’t get into them because it gives away the story.

Thank you Random House - Ballantine Books & NetGalley

This was such a great story. Very informative and interesting. I absolutely loved it. I love how you always learn something while being immersed in the story

Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney

Jodi's courtroom dramas are outstanding.
She does such a good job of discussing controversial issues.
This book has a little of everything: mystery, love, drama, and even some familiar faces.
I loved the shocking twist!

I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a thought provoking, binge-able book!
Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC

Mad Honey written by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan tells a rich, complicated and compelling story from two perspectives: Olivia, a beekeeper and divorced mother of a teenage boy, Asher, and Lily, a young girl in a relationship with Olivia's son.
I devoured the book. I did nothing else but read for a full day- it was glorious and just the kind of book that I like to fall into. I could not do or enjoy anything else until I read the full story. And it was SO worth the day I gave it. I found the pacing perfect, the story compelling and the two storylines (one is told in chronological order after THE event, the other is told backward from the event) to be very effective in building suspense and revealing character. The characters (especially our two narrators) were beautiful and complex. And, if you are a Jodi Picoult fan like I am, a character from an old book makes an appearance!
The book raised so many questions.....questions about love, identity, parent/child relationships, gender, privacy vs secrets. I love when books make me really think about and question my place in this world and my relationships and views. This one did and there where I had to pause my reading and stop and think about the issue, the quote, the event the authors brought up before I could go on. I believe that when this happens, the book makes me a better person, thinker, reader.
The author notes at the end of the book made me love it even more! This book was successful because it was two voices, two perspectives telling a story both authors cared about. I love how the two come together (it's a story worth reading about) and the details of their writing come out in the notes at the end. Their craft is so strong, and knowing the details behind it made me feel just a little closer to the book.

Olivia McAfee is a divorcee. After leaving an abusive marriage several years ago, she moved to the property she inherited that contained her fathers beekeeping business. Now she’s back in her hometown of Adams, New Hampshire where she lives with her son, Asher.

Lily Campanello is Asher’s girlfriend. She recently moved to Adam’s with her mom and she and Asher fell for each other fast. When Lily is found murdered, the police suspect Asher. He’s arrested and put on trial where secrets begin to come to light. How well does Olivia know her son? What secrets does Lily’s family hold? How did Lily die and why?

I’ve read several books by Jodi Picoult and this one did not disappoint. It was a powerful story that influenced my perspective. Definitely worth the read. You will not be disappointed.

Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.