Recommended by the Reviewers Club

The Bee Sting, by Paul Murray

Cover of The Bee Sting, by Paul Murray.

I loved this book and, in spite of being 600 pages long, I immediately chose it for my other book club.

Shortlisted for the 2023 Booker Prize, the book depicts the lives of four family members. It is intergenerational as Murray brilliantly conveys teenage angst as well as middle age complexities. All of his characters are credible, flawed individuals navigating their way through life. Murray’s novel is funny, wise and thought provoking.

The tension builds slowly throughout the novel and revelations keep coming until the end; the story is compulsive and has many twists and turns, and Paul Murray’s identification and insights into human weaknesses and the consequences of their actions is breathtaking.

A brilliant and engrossing tale of contemporary Ireland.

4.8/5 Stars