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danpeachey's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Child death, Death, and Car accident
Minor: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal death, Bullying, Cancer, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Antisemitism, Dementia, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic
franceselsie's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Gun violence, Sexual content, and Vomit
Moderate: Drug use, Pedophilia, Toxic relationship, Dementia, Stalking, and Car accident
misscaitie's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, and Car accident
Moderate: Alcoholism, Biphobia, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Dementia, and Stalking
Minor: Addiction, Biphobia, Gun violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit, Death of parent, Murder, and Gaslighting
gvstyris's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
So many of the bad things that happen in the world come from people pretending to be something they’re not.
The consideration of these four perspectives is where much of The Bee Sting's genius lies. Cass and PJ's two-dimensional perception of their parents' beliefs and ambitions, for example, is challenged as soon as we reach Imelda's first chapter. I was surprised by how convincingly Murray writes each character, portraying both women and younger voices with sensitivity and understanding. Each perspective adds something to the overall narrative, and I particularly enjoyed delving into Dickie's psyche.
Murray's prose also plays an important role in this novel's success. Imelda's chapters are written without punctuation, offering the reader a stream-of-consciousness that seems to mirror her anxiety and disorientation with her life's trajectory. That being said, I did listen to the audiobook and would recommend it for a more seamless reading experience -- a couple of Murray's stylistic choices would likely have bugged me without it. I also loved how each section decreases in length as the novel progresses, slowly building the tension as it becomes clearer and clearer that the Barnes' family is irreparably damaged. Similarly, the symbolism here is beautiful: the squirrels, Imelda's fairytales, the bee sting itself.
Given that this book is a 650 page marathon, it delves into too many other themes to summarise here. The discussion around climate anxiety and human destruction also stuck with me, as well as the religious guilt that underpins much of Dickie's (and Imelda's, I suppose) struggle. I will be thinking about the ending for a long time, but am definitely a believer that
Graphic: Death, Homophobia, Rape, and Grief
Moderate: Animal death, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Misogyny, Suicidal thoughts, Dementia, Murder, and Alcohol
Minor: Vomit, Car accident, and Lesbophobia
torihope98's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
Minor: Animal death, Bullying, Infidelity, Pedophilia, Suicidal thoughts, Antisemitism, and Dementia
risemini's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Forced institutionalization, Dementia, Grief, Car accident, and Alcohol
kk_gotit_goinon's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Dementia, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
e11en's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Homophobia, Suicidal thoughts, Dementia, Kidnapping, Grief, Car accident, Outing, and Toxic friendship
katha_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
At the same time, getting through the book was hard work: Especially the style in Imelda's part, although fitting, was very hard to read. And the book is pretty long, and while I think I understand the role the family members play, I wonder whether one or two POVs could have been left out.
Graphic: Death, Sexual assault, Violence, and Car accident
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Drug use, Gun violence, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual content, Excrement, Vomit, Abortion, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Outing, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Cancer and Dementia
orla_h's review against another edition
3.75
Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, and Car accident
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Bullying, Hate crime, Homophobia, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Violence, Vomit, and Dementia