Listen free for 30 days
Listen with offer
-
The Bee Sting
- Narrated by: Heather O’Sullivan, Barry Fitzgerald, Beau Holland, Ciaran O'Brien, Lisa Caruccio Came
- Length: 26 hrs and 10 mins
Failed to add items
Add to basket failed.
Add to wishlist failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
99p for the first 3 months
The Bee Sting
Buy Now for £16.99
No valid payment method on file.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Listeners also enjoyed...
Summary
The Barnes family is in trouble. Dickie's car business is going under, but instead of doing anything about it, he's out in the woods preparing for the actual end of the world. Meanwhile his wife Imelda is selling off her jewellery on eBay and half-heartedly dodging the attentions of fast-talking local wrongun Big Mike. Their teenage daughter Cass, usually top of her class, seems determined to drink her way through the whole thing. And twelve year old PJ is spending more and more time on video game forums, where he's met a friendly boy named Ethan who never turns his camera on and wants PJ to run away from home.
Digging down through layers of family history, the roots of this crisis stretch deep into the past. Meanwhile in the present, the fault lines keep spreading, ghosts slipping in through the cracks, and every step brings the Barneses closer to a fatal precipice. When the moment of reckoning finally arrives, all four of them must decide how far they're willing to go to save the family, and whether - if the story's already been written - there's still time to give it a happy ending...
Critic reviews
I experienced just about every possible human emotion while reading The Bee Sting, and at an intensity I have not felt with a work of fiction for a long time. Its ambition and scale are astonishing, and as a sheer technical feat of storytelling it is remarkable. Reading it, I was constantly reminded of what the novel as an artform is capable of, and what it is for. It might be a bold claim to make, of the author of Skippy Dies, that this new book is the best thing Paul Murray has ever done - but I'm making it anyway, because it's true (Mark O'Connell, author of 'To Be A Machine')
This novel is as generous, expansive, and glorious as a cathedral, as intimate as pillow-talk, and as funny and heartbreaking as nothing you've read before. Paul Murray may just be the most spellbinding storyteller writing today. A magisterial piece of work (Neel Mukherjee, author of 'The Lives of Others')
More from the same
Author
What listeners say about The Bee Sting
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Miss G Charlesworth
- 13-09-23
Fantastic
I am devastated to have finished this - for so many listening hours, the time just flew by, and I have found myself missing the characters now. Without giving away any spoilers - that ending…..
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 01-10-23
Best narrators for an audible book
This book was a rollercoaster and such a joy. The story telling of the narrators was amazing. A lot of audible books could learn from this and invest in excellent narration.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall3 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story4 out of 5 stars
- Mr C.
- 04-09-23
Ending spoils the novel
I enjoyed the novel increasingly as I read on but the ending was a coip out. Totally spoiled it for me.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story4 out of 5 stars
- catherine waldron
- 14-01-24
Enjoyed but annoying ending
It held my attention throughout. Liked the way it moved back and forward through time. Annoying ending (no spoilers)
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Joanne Plett
- 18-01-24
Excellent. Excellent. Excellent
This is an incredibly crafted story. Every character is well developed and engaging. It’s narrated by several people and each one is as good as the other. Do not hesitate to buy it.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story4 out of 5 stars
- Miss s.
- 24-01-24
Don’t stop!! Write more
Great book with a fantastic climax - made excellent by the narration. So glad I listened rather then read this!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Richmond Reader
- 16-10-23
This is Pretty Perfect...
No plot spoilers, so I'll just say that this is a fantastic novel in every way. Plot, characters, story arc, pathos - it has everything. The writing is surprisingly spare for a reasonably longish book, but I think that may be because not a single word is wasted. Really pleased that this has been long-listed for the Man Booker and will be rooting for it.
Production and narration were absolutely first class as well.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- ian daniels
- 01-03-24
absorbing
one of them where you gobble it all up, all the heartbreak, the anxiety the frustration, the redemption.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars
-
Story4 out of 5 stars
- C S Walker
- 13-04-24
A sprawling tail of longing and belonging
Wow. I had to stop explaining the plot to my wife. So many intricate threads weaving through this epic family history…
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- FJI
- 24-02-24
The ending
Loved the stories of each character. Slightly too long introspection by some characters. This would make a great film.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!