A review by stephen_coulon
The Bee Sting by Paul Murray

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense 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

4.0

It's a suspenseful family drama by Irish novelist Paul Murray whose last issue, An Evening of Long Goodbyes, is one of my all-time favorite books. That book is crafted in a wry intellectual tone and features a whirling virtuosity of diction. It’s Wildean, truely, and a joy to explore. The narrative voice in that novel, which I suspect is Murray’s natural tone, is exhibited in The Bee Sting too, though only in one of four POVs, so parts of the book flourish with that sophisticated cadence I love so much. The other voices differ, purposefully, and to great effect as Murray tracks an upper middle class family that completely falls apart. It’s almost all characterization, which is Murray’s strong point in storytelling. This family is so real. What’s remarkable about The Bee Sting is Murray’s ability to build suspense in a literary fiction that’s not exactly driven by storyline. The plot is simply this: how far will this family fall apart? Amazingly, by the end of the novel you will be on the edge of your seat anticipating the answer.