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A review by sarahmcg
Mad Honey by Jennifer Finney Boylan, Jodi Picoult
challenging
emotional
informative
mysterious
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? It's complicated
4.0
I haven’t read a book by Jodi Picoult in a long time (but she was a favorite growing up) and it was incredible to see how her and Jennifer Finney Boylan co-authored a dual POV book that read so seamlessly!
This book gave classic Jodi with mystery/drama, multiple twists, a compelling court case where you feel like a juror, social commentary that feels organic and not “preachy,” ethical dilemmas that cause you to consider things from a new perspective…
There was so much interesting information about bees and honey! I do think the book could have been shorter without some of this (because the book did feel so long, even on audio), and I don’t think all the bee info was strictly necessary, but it was an interesting aspect to the book and Olivia’s character, and the facts brought up tended to connect back to the story.
The dual timeline was a bit out of order in the past, but as long as I was paying attention, this didn’t bother me much. What did both me though was the ending - the last big twist in regards to the case felt rushed and not fully fleshed out, and then I didn’t feel satisfied with the explanation.
This book gave classic Jodi with mystery/drama, multiple twists, a compelling court case where you feel like a juror, social commentary that feels organic and not “preachy,” ethical dilemmas that cause you to consider things from a new perspective…
There was so much interesting information about bees and honey! I do think the book could have been shorter without some of this (because the book did feel so long, even on audio), and I don’t think all the bee info was strictly necessary, but it was an interesting aspect to the book and Olivia’s character, and the facts brought up tended to connect back to the story.
The dual timeline was a bit out of order in the past, but as long as I was paying attention, this didn’t bother me much. What did both me though was the ending - the last big twist in regards to the case felt rushed and not fully fleshed out, and then I didn’t feel satisfied with the explanation.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Deadnaming, Toxic relationship, Bullying, Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Suicide attempt, Gaslighting, and Outing