A review by issysamb
The Bee Sting by Paul Murray

dark emotional reflective tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I was struggling a lot to get through this because of the length, as well as the relatively slow pace. I also really struggled to get through Imelda’s sections because of the writing style. I can appreciate why Murray used the ‘train of thought’, lack of grammar writing style, but it did make the book difficult to get through and I put it down for months at a time avoiding reading Imelda’s sections. But the ending…. Wow. It really pushed the book up a star for me. And reflecting now on all the foreshadowing, the insanely clever use of metaphors, the mrecurring motifs, it all sort of makes sense now seeing it all come to a close. Usually ambiguous endings frustrate me, but I feel like this story absolutely warrants this ending. I can’t see it being concluded any one way. This was nuts and I swore I would never read it again but I might have to flick back through and tag some sections because the foreshadowing and the motifs and the metaphors and everything is just crazy. 
Paul Murray is a fantastic writer, and watching everything come together in the final section of the book proves that. But the sheer length and incredibly slow pace of this story that was at times extremely dull makes it difficult to recommend it to others unless you have a cognitive stamina of titanium because it took me almost 2 and a half months of very hard work (granted I am a very slow reader) to be able to experience the incredible ending in all its beauty. I guess it’s ultimately a decision of whether it’s worth enduring the first 600 pages to enjoy the last 40. 
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