Reviews with content warning for Sexual content - Mad Honey

Wow. This book blew me away and has me not being able to stop thinking about it. I could not stop listening (audio book was excellent, btw!) and it kind of took over my days. I love when that happens … especially after being in a bit of a reading slump. I did not know anything about this book. I also love that. The moment when the coroner announced that Lilly was transgendered was a complete shock to me. It was surprising and was done so very well. I really appreciated how this was handled and how I learned a lot … even as an ally to a few trans people, I learned new things and felt that the information seemed accurate and authentic.

The plot twist that Maya killed Lilly was NOT what I expected and I did not love that at all. I kind of hated it, in fact. I kept waiting for the fathers to be held accountable! I was SURE that Lilly’s father was the murderer and I was so deeply disappointed that he did not come back to be served justice. Also, where was Braden at the end? I was grateful not to see more of him than we already did, but I could not believe that he would have been more involved all along the way.

I enjoyed the references to the bees but at times, it did feel a bit forced and somewhat overdone. And I wanted Olivia and Mike to hook up … but that plot line didn’t get a ton of careful attention.

Truly a well-written book. For the most part, the pacing was masterful. It dragged at a few points during the trial … but then again: that is real.

Thank you to both authors for this impressive work.

Content Warnings

sav_j's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Content Warnings

kades26's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging emotional hopeful informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Content Warnings

lydiarh's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Content Warnings

boba_nbooks's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Spice Rating: 🌶️ .5 / 5

Mad Honey is one of those books that sucks you in and just doesn't let go. I went into it not knowing much, and there were multiple times where I audibly gasped at this story.

Olivia and her son, Asher, have been through hell and back. To escape Olivia's abusive ex-husband, the pair moved back to Olivia's childhood home in New Hampshire to take over her father's beekeeping business. Lily is a high school student who also needed a new start. She and her mother moved to New Hampshire to start over. Asher and Lily eventually cross paths at their school, and the two teenagers can't help but fall in love with each other. Olivia is so happy for her son, but one day, she gets a call from Asher: "Lily is dead." Of course, as Lily's boyfriend and the one who found her body, Asher is the number one suspect. Through a dual timeline and dual POV, we follow Lily through the past leading up to her death and Olivia as we watch Asher's trial.

This novel surprised me in so many ways, and it really was such an amazing collaboration between the two authors. I listened to the author's note at the end and found out that Jodi Picoult wrote Olivia's POV while Jennifer Finney Boylan wrote Lily's POV, but I would have never known that from the way their writing styles complemented each other and blended together. It was such a unique story that centers around secrets. What secrets are that, secrets? And what secrets are ones that are private information that should only be shared by their owner?

Content Warnings

dmswack3's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional inspiring sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

This book started a little slow, and some bits remained that way, but I really enjoyed the duel timeline (moving backwards and forwards) and the two points of view. Lilly's perspective was much more insightful and fun to read, as I did tend to find Olivia overbearing and distasteful at times.

The ending was very anti-climactic which was a huge let down from the exposition.

Content Warnings

torturedreadersdept's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Content Warnings

More...