A review by kvclements
The Music of Bees by Eileen Garvin

hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

This is a delightful, hopeful read of very different, broken people coming together to make something new. Jake is an 18-year-old who's life has fallen apart after an accident left him wheelchair-bound. Alice is a widowed beekeeper struggling with panic attacks after her husband's death and taken advantage of by her co-workers at the county development department. Harry is a 24-year-old whose anxiety (and possible autism) has left him homeless with a criminal record. Yet they come together working with Alice's bees and find themselves healing and becoming better, findings their place with their community, their jobs, and within themselves. It's a lovely work featuring found family, how communities can come together and make a positive difference, and, of course, bees! (Fortunately, although there is a lot of really cool info about bees and beekeeping, it is placed throughout and adds rather than detracts from the narrative.)

Definitely recommend (and this is coming from someone who normally doesn't care for contemporary fiction!)
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