I picked this one up because scrolled across the top of the cover were the words ” A New York Times Notable Book of the Year”, and also because I have taken a liking to the topic of bees. The only interesting fact I learned from this novel is that honey bees across the nation are dying from mites. I found this very sad, but short of being a genetic engineer, there is not much we can do about it. My overall recommendation, don’t get further than the cover. Perhaps I was spoiled by “The Secret Life of Bees”, but this just seems a like a shallow imposter, a hollow story with characters that I could not relate to. If you are looking for bees, read some Tori Amos lyrics, or of course, Sue Monk Kidd;-)