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A review by _askthebookbug
The Bee Sting by Paul Murray
5.0
The Bee Sting is a layered 650 paged novel that explores a single family in a small Irish town. This mammoth of a book reads easily, pulling us to be a witness of everything that happens to the characters. And as you stand and watch this once prosperous family being reduced to nothing, your heart goes out to them. To each flawed and difficult character and the painful pasts that they have been tugging along for a while now. Paul is an exceptional writer as he shifts from the past to the present, brining forth two timelines never once making a mess of it. It all seems like an inevitable train collision that is bound to happen but you can’t look away all the same.
Dickie runs a car dealership taken over by his father but it’s instantly clear that he doesn’t have a natural head for business. His wife Imelda is a beauty Queen and together they make an odd couple. When the economy is hit, the business faces a loss and the fancy life that the family has built comes crumbling down. Their marriage which was never perfect to begin with starts to collapse and the immediate aftermath of this is their kids’ taking a hit. Cass, a teenage girl is hell bent on impressing her toxic friend while 12 year old PJ is depraved of affection so tries to seek it somewhere else.
These characters have built walls around themselves and Paul carefully tries to dissect them for us. There are no good or bad people as he makes it abundantly clear, just a few flawed ones. There are interesting revelations, those that define why these people do what they do and as you start watching the world from their perspective, you find yourself completely immersed in their lives. The narration is fantastic, it keeps you engaged from the very first page and it doesn’t let you go until the last one. And as we jump between the timelines, the entire story fits together like perfect puzzle.
What happens when you combine a great story with incredible narrative? The result is something like The Bee Sting. There’s tragedy written all over it but you just can’t look away. And that’s the beauty of it.
I couldn’t be happier that this novel has now been shortlisted for @thebookerprizes
Dickie runs a car dealership taken over by his father but it’s instantly clear that he doesn’t have a natural head for business. His wife Imelda is a beauty Queen and together they make an odd couple. When the economy is hit, the business faces a loss and the fancy life that the family has built comes crumbling down. Their marriage which was never perfect to begin with starts to collapse and the immediate aftermath of this is their kids’ taking a hit. Cass, a teenage girl is hell bent on impressing her toxic friend while 12 year old PJ is depraved of affection so tries to seek it somewhere else.
These characters have built walls around themselves and Paul carefully tries to dissect them for us. There are no good or bad people as he makes it abundantly clear, just a few flawed ones. There are interesting revelations, those that define why these people do what they do and as you start watching the world from their perspective, you find yourself completely immersed in their lives. The narration is fantastic, it keeps you engaged from the very first page and it doesn’t let you go until the last one. And as we jump between the timelines, the entire story fits together like perfect puzzle.
What happens when you combine a great story with incredible narrative? The result is something like The Bee Sting. There’s tragedy written all over it but you just can’t look away. And that’s the beauty of it.
I couldn’t be happier that this novel has now been shortlisted for @thebookerprizes