Mad Honey

We’ll be discussing Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan.

From the Back of the Book

Olivia McAfee knows what it feels like to start over. Her picture-perfect life—living in Boston, married to a brilliant cardiothoracic surgeon, raising their beautiful son, Asher—was upended when her husband revealed a darker side. She never imagined that she would end up back in her sleepy New Hampshire hometown, living in the house she grew up in and taking over her father’s beekeeping business.

Lily Campanello is familiar with do-overs, too. When she and her mom relocate to Adams, New Hampshire, for her final year of high school, they both hope it will be a fresh start. 

And for just a short while, these new beginnings are exactly what Olivia and Lily need. Their paths cross when Asher falls for the new girl in school, and Lily can’t help but fall for him, too. With Ash, she feels happy for the first time. Yet she wonders if she can trust him completely. . . .

Then one day, Olivia receives a phone call: Lily is dead, and Asher is being questioned by the police. Olivia is adamant that her son is innocent. But she would be lying if she didn’t acknowledge the flashes of his father’s temper in Ash, and as the case against him unfolds, she realizes he’s hidden more than he’s shared with her.

About the Authors

Jodi Picoult is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of thirty novels, including By Any Other Name, Wish You Were Here, The Book of Two Ways, A Spark of Light, Small Great Things, Leaving Time, Nineteen Minutes, and My Sister’s Keeper, and, with daughter Samantha van Leer, two young adult novels, Between the Lines and Off the Page. She lives in New Hampshire with her husband.

Jennifer Finney Boylan is the bestselling author of more than a dozen books. She is the inaugural Anna Quindlen Writer-in-Residence at Barnard College of Columbia University and a 2022–2023 Fellow at Harvard University’s Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study. A nationally known advocate for human rights, she is a trustee of PEN America. For many years she was the national co-chair of GLAAD as well as a contributing opinion writer for The New York Times. She lives in New York City and Belgrade Lakes, Maine, with her wife, Deedie. They have a son, Sean, and a daughter, Zai.

Boylan shared in an interview with the website LitHub about the process of collaborating on this novel: “I had a dream that I was co-authoring a book with Jodi, and when I woke up I tweeted out my dream. Jodi saw my tweet, and said, what was the book about, and I told her, and she said, Let’s do it. Mom would have loved that. There was something mysterious and magical about it—that something that began as a dream turned into something real.”

Why this Book?

Jodi Picoult is an author who is no stranger to having her books challenged, and this book is no exception. Though this text has not been challenged as often as many of her others (Especially Nineteen Minutes which has been challenging 151 times!) it has created a lot of controversy and conversation. Thus, it is perfect for us to dive deep and discuss!

What to Expect

This session will focus on carefully selected excerpts, held within a supportive and respectful container. We’ll approach the text with context, intention, and space to pause.

You’re welcome to listen quietly, reflect privately, or share thoughtfully, whatever feels right for you.

We hope to see you there!

-Banned Book Becky

This event is open to all genders and races, our book club is rooted in curiosity over certainty, connection over debate, and the belief that thoughtful stories can gently shift how we see ourselves and the world.