The Death of Bees: A Novel

( 26 )

Overview

A riveting, brilliantly written debut novel, The Death of Bees is a coming-of-age story in which two young sisters attempt to hold the world at bay after the mysterious death of their parents.

Marnie and Nelly, left on their own in Glasgow's Hazlehurst housing estate, attempt to avoid suspicion until Marnie can become a legal guardian for her younger sister.

Written with fierce sympathy and beautiful precision, and told in alternating ...

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The Death of Bees: A Novel

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More About This Book

Overview

A riveting, brilliantly written debut novel, The Death of Bees is a coming-of-age story in which two young sisters attempt to hold the world at bay after the mysterious death of their parents.

Marnie and Nelly, left on their own in Glasgow's Hazlehurst housing estate, attempt to avoid suspicion until Marnie can become a legal guardian for her younger sister.

Written with fierce sympathy and beautiful precision, and told in alternating voices, The Death of Bees by Lisa O’Donnell is an enchanting, grimly comic tale of lost souls who, unable to answer for themselves, can answer only for each other.

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Editorial Reviews

From Barnes & Noble

Fifteen-year-old Marnie Doyle and her kid sister Kelly harbor a little secret: Their mom and dad are buried in the back garden of their Glasgow home. Fearing foster care more than other possible consequences, the pair have concocted a somewhat shoddy ruse to protect themselves, but the solicitude of a lonely gay neighbor threatens to bring down the entire charade. Told by the sister in alternate first-person chapters, The Death of Bees grabs us first with the promise of suspense, then keeps us rapt with its strong characterizations. (P.S. The Scotsman hailed this debut fiction as "warm without being cozy, explicit without being shocking, and emotive without being schmaltzy....a powerful coming-of-age tale."

Publishers Weekly
When 15-year-old Marnie Doyle finds her father’s body on the sofa of their seedy Glasgow home and her mother hanging in the garden shed, she and her younger sister, Nelly, decide to bury them both in the back garden, in British screenwriter O’Donnell’s debut novel. Fearing that social services will put them into foster care, the girls undertake a desperate charade; they claim that Gene and Isabel are off on a trip. Notorious druggies and neglectful parents, at first their purported abandonment seems plausible. That’s what Lennie, the lonely gay man next door, believes; though an indecency arrest in the neighborhood park has branded him a “pervert,” the girls accept his invitation to come under his wing, with food, shelter, and companionship. But his kindness can’t erase the damage that’s already been done: Nelly, a violin prodigy who was molested by her father, has nightmares and screaming fits. Though she gets straight As in school, Marnie starts selling drugs, drinking vodka daily, and having sex with a married man. The situation grows even darker when their sinister maternal grandfather, Robert MacDonald, insists on taking them in, which Lennie doesn’t like. But his battle with Gramps becomes complicated when Lennie is diagnosed with—but doesn’t disclose—a fatal illness. The sisters and Lennie narrate alternating chapters, moving the story along at a fast clip, but the author’s decision to give precocious Nelly a prissy vocabulary and a stilted, poetic delivery (“A white syringe. The coarsest cotton. It’s abominable”) makes her a less believable character, especially as Marnie’s voice is rife with expletives and vulgar slang. The difference between the sisters in terms of personality and maturity puts them at odds despite their shared fear of discovery. But their resilience suggests hope for their blighted lives. Agent: Alex Christofi, Corville and Walsh, U.K. (Feb.)
Herald (Scotland)
“The Death of Bees is compelling stuff, engaging the emotions from the first page and quickly becoming almost impossible to put down.”
Scotsman
“Warm without being cozy, explicit without being shocking, and emotive without being schmaltzy . . . a powerful coming-of-age tale.”
Daily Mail (London)
“This vibrantly-imagined novel, by turns hilarious and appalling, is hard to resist.”
Guardian
“Mixing The Ladykillers with Irvine Welsh’s The Acid House… O’Donnell adeptly balances caustic humour and compassion.”
Financial Times
“The Death of Bees steadily draws you into its characters’ emotional lives.”
Library Journal
Marnie and Nellie have a problem: they buried their parents in the back garden after finding them dead. Ages 15 and 12, they are desperate to avoid being placed in foster care before Marnie turns 16, when she can live on her own under British law. Lennie, their next-door neighbor in the Glasgow, Scotland, housing estate, has noticed the girls are on their own. Old, lonely, and a great cook, Lennie takes them in and has his own reasons for not wanting to report them to the authorities. The three get along quite well until the girls' grandfather shows up. There are other complications as well, such as the issue of the money the girls' drug-dealing father has hidden, and Lennie's dog, who loves to dig in his neighbors' yard. VERDICT Quirky characters with distinct voices enliven this sometimes grim and often funny coming-of-age story in the vein of Karen Russell's best seller Swamplandia! 'Donnell's debut is sure to be a winner with adults and young adults alike.—Nancy H. Fontaine, Norwich P.L., VT
Kirkus Reviews
An unusual coming-of-age novel that features two sisters who survive years of abuse and neglect. The story is set in Scotland, written with a distinct Scottish flavor, in very brief chapters told from the alternating points of view of the two girls and a neighbor who takes them in and ultimately covers for them when their dark secret is uncovered. The story starts when the older sister discovers both of her parents dead, her father suffocated in his bed and her mother hanging in an outdoor shed. She and her younger sister decide to bury their parents in the garden rather than risk a return to the foster care which they had previously endured and disliked. To anyone who asks, including a drug dealer to whom their father owed money, they say their parents are in Turkey, but eventually the drug dealer finds the passports the parents would have needed to travel abroad. The neighbor, who has his own secrets and heartache, looks after them, feeds them and takes them into his home. Meanwhile, the dead mother's father, who had abandoned her not once but twice, comes looking for her to make amends since he got himself sober and discovered God. He does not, however, treat his granddaughters in a very loving way. In the midst of these developments, the neighbor's dog discovers the bones in the garden, and the neighbor, in an effort to protect the girls he has come to love and cherish as his own children, moves the bones to his own garden and eventually claims to have murdered the pair. While dealing with this strange and surreal experience, the two girls also go through the more mundane trials of female adolescence--peer pressures at school, menstruation and the confusions that accompany awakening sexuality. The author's experience as a screenwriter is most definitely apparent, as the reader always hears the voices and can visualize the dramatic, sometimes appallingly grim scenes. Recommended for readers who love film.
Booklist
"O’Donnell’s finely drawn characters display the full palette of human flaws and potential. Told in the alternating voices of Marnie, Nelly, and Lennie, this beautifully written page-turner will have readers fretting about what will become of the girls."
Herald (Scotland)
"The Death of Bees is compelling stuff, engaging the emotions from the first page and quickly becoming almost impossible to put down."
Scotsman
"Warm without being cozy, explicit without being shocking, and emotive without being schmaltzy . . . a powerful coming-of-age tale."
Daily Mail (London)
"This vibrantly-imagined novel, by turns hilarious and appalling, is hard to resist."
Guardian
"Mixing The Ladykillers with Irvine Welsh’s The Acid House… O’Donnell adeptly balances caustic humour and compassion."
Financial Times
"The Death of Bees steadily draws you into its characters’ emotional lives."
Examiner (Northern California)
"[A] chiller told in three voices which will intrigue readers to the last pages…O’Donnell has done a masterful job of sketching her characters…The end is largely unexpected and highly dramatic, but at the same time is the perfect ending to this chilling tale…[a] brilliant book."
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
"Lisa O’Donnell, an award-winning screenwriter, grabs the reader from the get-go..."
RT Book Reviews
"The author brilliantly paints the characters’ best traits through the eyes of the other characters, and their worst traits through their own voices."
Spencer Daily Reporter
"In more ways than the first line, The Death of Bees reminds me of Donoghue’s Room. Maybe it’s because both authors originated from the United Kingdom. Maybe it’s because both stories carry a darkness brightened only by the innocence of the main characters.
The Hub
"The quirky characters and thrilling plotlines will leave readers anxious to find out what will become of the girls. This poignant, compelling, and hopeful tale teaches readers that a desperate situation can always be alleviated by reaching out to others."
Bibliophage
"This is a sweet, funny book filled with two sister’s unrelenting love for each other and their determination to stay together at all costs…it is a good read and if you are interested in being taken on a crazy ride, this is the book for you."
Columbus Dispatch
"As a gothic novel and a psychological look at the effects of trauma, it had verve and nerve…O’Donnell knows how to keep a reader engaged, and her sympathy — and hope — for her characters tempers what could have been a sordid tale."
New York Times
"In this first novel she pulls off the unusual pairing of grisly and touching."
Booklist (starred review)
“O’Donnell’s finely drawn characters display the full palette of human flaws and potential. Told in the alternating voices of Marnie, Nelly, and Lennie, this beautifully written page-turner will have readers fretting about what will become of the girls.”
Shelf Awareness
"O’Donnell’s wildly original debut examines the intricacies of betrayal and loyalty within one family and their effects on two vulnerable young girls…With a gritty but redemptive take on family and the price of secrets, O’Donnell’s debut will be well-received by fans of mainstream literature and Scottish noir mysteries alike."
Alison Espach
"The Death of Bees is completely addictive. A beautiful and darkly funny story of two sisters building a fantasy within a nightmare."
Helen Fitzgerald
"The most original and incredible piece of writing I’ve come across in years."
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Product Details

  • ISBN-13: 9780062209849
  • Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
  • Publication date: 1/2/2013
  • Pages: 311
  • Sales rank: 33361
  • Product dimensions: 5.90 (w) x 8.38 (h) x 1.07 (d)

Meet the Author

Lisa O'Donnell won the Orange Screenwriting Prize in 2000 for The Wedding Gift and, in the same year, was nominated for the Dennis Potter New Screenwriters Award. A native of Scotland, she is now a full-time writer and lives in Los Angeles with her two children. The Death of Bees is her first novel.

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Interviews & Essays

A Conversation with Lisa O'Donnell, author of THE DEATH OF BEES

You started out as a screenwriter and won a couple of awards early on — the Orange Screenwriting Prize in 2000 for The Wedding Gift, which, in the same year was nominated for the Dennis Potter New Screenwriters Award. What made you shift gears towards writing fiction?
I worked in TV for a while but found myself working on other people's ideas. I wanted to see my own stories come to life and though I considered novel writing I was a little afraid of the medium. It took me a long time to pluck up the courage to write something down and when I did I wrote: "Today is Christmas Eve. Today is my birthday. Today I am fifteen. Today I buried my parents in the backyard. Neither of them were beloved". These are the first words Marnie says in The Death of Bees. I must have looked at those words for about 6 months before I had Marnie say something else. I just wasn't sure where I was going to place those words, in the context of a screenplay or a novel? I'm glad I chose a novel.

The voices of your two young protagonists, Marnie who is 15 and Nelly who is 12, seem completely authentic - their fears and joys are distinctly those of teenagers who've just buried their no-good, drug-addicted, alcoholic parents in the backyard of their Glasgow housing development. How did you get inside their minds and hearts?
I knew them already. I am a social gleaner. I listen to people with my eyes as well as my ears and I am fortunate enough to have known all kinds of people in my life, for better or worse. I have known poverty and the challenges that come with it and I have lived in environments where those challenges have affected the lives of others.

I knew many Marnie's in my adolescence. I was always drawn to the kind of girl who holes herself up in a cloudy bathroom. I can't deny I was afraid of these girls and I suppose another person might have run away from them, but I ran towards them. I wanted to know their stories and when they eventually confided in me I would hoard those secrets like a bag lady might. It was easy to write Marnie. It was like writing an old friend. When writing Nelly I just flipped Marnie upside down. They are bound together by love and secrets but if you look closely they are essentially the same person.

Where did the idea for The Death of Bees come from? Does any of the story come from your own experiences?
Living on the East Side of L.A I see the same level of poverty I experienced as a child during 80's Thatcherism. I was in my car recently when I saw this little girl maybe about seven walking in front of her mother and pushing a stroller. The mother was also pushing a stroller and holding the hand of a small toddler, but it was the young girl that caught my attention. I thought to myself "She's a wee mother" which later translated in The Death of Bees as "Wee Maw" when referring to Marnie raising Nelly.

Later, my sister sent me a docudrama about families in Scotland living with drugs and poverty, and again, the maturity of the children immersed in such a heartbreaking situation struck a chord. One child in particular was talking to the journalist about a father who might not return with the groceries for the week and go on a bender instead. She worried about Welfare Services getting involved in her life again. I wondered what the girl who waited for her father to return home with the groceries would do if she had had the money to go for the groceries herself, I wondered what she would do if it was in her power to get the electric bill paid, and what lengths she would go to in order to survive parents who had essentially vanished from her life. The thought then occurred to me that these children would be better off raising themselves. That's when I came up with the idea of The Death of Bees and had two children bury their parents in the yard making them disappear forever, leaving the girls to their own devices.

It seems that in Marnie and Nelly's world, the adults are the children and the children are the adults - the roles are switched. Except for their neighbor Lennie who is a deeply flawed character with secrets of his own, there aren't many real adult role models for the two girls. What were you trying to say here? And how does this bode for Marnie and Nellie's future?
It's a sad truth but lots of children out there are left to take care of themselves and if you pay attention you'll see it all around you. The sin is not paying attention. These children possess a level of maturity that's almost obscene and it's thrust upon them if they are to survive the abuses of the people who are supposed to take care of them, but I wanted these girls to survive it. I wanted to illuminate the reliance, the strength, and the character it requires to endure what these girls are put through. I created adults as a device to bring love and protection back in their lives but when I wrote their grandfather it was to illuminate how little they were willing to tolerate and to underline how strong these girls have become.

There's a lot of humor in the book - readers will especially enjoy the scenes when Lennie's dog keeps digging up the bones of the dead parents - did you have fun writing these scenes? What other scenes and characters are your favorites?
In Macbeth to relieve tension Shakespeare creates comedy through the Porter. The dog is my Porter. I find people are more willing to pay attention to intense subject matter if they know they're going to be relieved with a bit of humor. It would have been too bleak a story if I hadn't peppered it with comedy. I like the scenes with the dog but I also enjoyed writing the scenes where Nelly and Marnie are burying their parents. That was comic to me and I got away with a lot, but at this stage of the material, though a grueling read, the reader knows that laughs are expected and forthcoming and give themselves permission to read on.

You've moved from Scotland to Los Angeles - Have you been able to see fictional characters and settings more clearly from that distance? Has your writing life improved in any other ways?
I love the US and I love living in Los Angeles. It is a city awash with experience and everyone has a story here. I glean from people what I can, but I can't shake the Scottish thing. It's what I know best, I hear Scotland whenever I write. It's where my second book is set and hope to look at themes that affect us all.

What's next for you?
I come from a small island in Scotland where everyone knows everything about everyone and so I love the thought of things that are actually kept secret in a world like that. My next book will focus on a big secret having repercussions for everyone who keeps it.

Who have you discovered lately?
The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce [A Fall 2012 Discover Great New Writers Selection. -Ed.] is a wonderfully vivid book full of charm and tenderness. It's an amazing debut and I am looking forward to reading more from her in the future.

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Customer Reviews

Average Rating 4
( 26 )
Rating Distribution

5 Star

(13)

4 Star

(4)

3 Star

(3)

2 Star

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1 Star

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See All Sort by: Showing 1 – 20 of 26 Customer Reviews

  • Anonymous

    Posted Fri Jan 11 00:00:00 EST 2013

    Amazing

    One of the best books I've ever read. So raw and wonderfully written.

    5 out of 5 people found this review helpful.

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  • Posted Mon Jan 28 00:00:00 EST 2013

    more from this reviewer

    Eugene Doyle. Born 19 June 1972. Died 17 December 2010, aged thi

    Eugene Doyle. Born 19 June 1972. Died 17 December 2010, aged thirty-eight. Isabel Ann Macdonald. Born 24 May 1974. Died 18 December 2010, aged thirty-six.

    Today is Christmas Eve. Today is my birthday. Today I am fifteen. Today I buried my parents in the backyard. Neither of them were beloved."

    The opening prologue of Lisa O'Donnell's book The Death of Bees hooked me right away. Aren't you wondering? Where can the story go after such a beginning? Well, O'Donnell takes it place I wouldn't have imagined......

    Marnie and her sister Nelly live on a housing estate in Glasgow. With the death of their parents Marnie is determined to keep herself and the younger Nelly together. So she lies - if anyone asks, their parents have gone to Turkey for a bit. It's not that much of a stretch - the girls have been left to fend for themselves many times as Gene and Izzy drink, smoke and party their lives away. But, Lennie, the lonely old man next door does notice. He begins to help them, feeding them and providing a clean, warm place for them to stay. But the questions start coming from all sides - teachers, friends and more. And Lennie helps the girls by lying as well. Until......

    The story is told in chapters alternating through the three main characters. The same events are seen very differently in some cases. O'Donnell's characters are wonderful. Marnie is tough, resilient, brilliant but tiring of holding it all together. Nelly is wounded in many ways and seeks solace in her own world, often speaking as though she's in an old movie. Lennie too, is wounded by the world, having endured his own hardships. But the three together are able to find pockets of happiness and joy together and - dare I say it - the family that each has been yearning for. Until.....

    As I crept nearer to the end of the book, I accepted my fate - I was going to be up very late that night - there was no way I could possibly put it down without knowing the outcome. O'Donnell manipulates the reader magnificently. We are given subtle insights into the girls' past with each of their narratives that only intensifies the need to know more (and the rapid turning of just one more page) Their situation is appalling, but there is that little glimmer that maybe, just maybe it will be okay. (precipitating more rapid page turning)

    I absolutely adored this book. Every year there a few books that stand out for me, ones that I immediately think of when someone says 'Can you recommend a good read? Definitely - The Death of Bees.

    4 out of 4 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted Mon Feb 04 00:00:00 EST 2013

    I felt this story was far fetched and not believable. Maybe life

    I felt this story was far fetched and not believable. Maybe life is this much different in Scotland that 2 adults could go missing for months and their 2 minor children would be able to hide it from the authorities. Also the narrative used English or Scotish phrases and words so the speech patterns are different than most books I read. For me this was like a fairy tale that goes to the dark side that a teenager who hates her parents might dream up of life on her own.

    2 out of 7 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted Thu Jan 17 00:00:00 EST 2013

    This is an amazing book. A must read. Lisa O'Donnell is a fantas

    This is an amazing book. A must read. Lisa O'Donnell is a fantastic writer and I'm looking forward to her next book!!

    2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

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  • Posted Wed Feb 13 00:00:00 EST 2013

    Check out the full review at Kritters Ramblings Quite an intere

    Check out the full review at Kritters Ramblings

    Quite an interesting book and definitely different from most of what I read, this book centers around two sisters who are burying their parents and at the young ages of 15 and 12 are trying to keep up the appearances to avoid being separated.  Their inquisitive neighbor enters the picture and provides another voice to the book with his own issues that he is trying to live with.  

    1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted Fri Feb 08 00:00:00 EST 2013

    Once I began reading, I couldn't put it down. 

    Once I began reading, I couldn't put it down. 

    1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted Sat Jan 26 00:00:00 EST 2013

    Five stars!

    Loved it

    1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted Tue Apr 30 00:00:00 EDT 2013

    Anonymous

    ?

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  • Posted Fri Apr 19 00:00:00 EDT 2013

    more from this reviewer

    This book started out with such intensity and intrigue but quick

    This book started out with such intensity and intrigue but quickly fizzled down. It did seem to pick up toward the end, however, there were some parts that were difficult for me to get through. I kept desperately trying to like it and get through it, and it took me putting it down for a few months and coming back to it to seem to be able to pick it up a little easier and continue on to finish it.
    Once I got started again, it was a rather fast read.

    I felt like the story moved from crisis to crisis, which maybe created just a tad too much drama for one book, that wasn't that long to begin
    with. I did find difficulty in following some of the story and the importance of the characters mentioned. The book also is written from the
    POV's of the three main characters, but I found the writing to be odd, as in who they were speaking to, sometimes I was uncertain. 

    I never did really understand the importance of the Jeffrey character that Lennie continually is "speaking to" throughout the story, other than
    he was an important person to Lennie. It was difficult to read through as not really any of the characters were likable. Marnie was difficult
    and temperamental and just out of control and Nellie was weird, odd, and quirky. Lennie was the only halfway normal and the author tried to
    butcher that thought by part of the story line in the beginning. There didn't seem to be many good qualities about any of the characters that
    would keep the reader feeling invested in their lives. 

    I found that the book started out by quickly drawing the reader in, but as quickly as I was drawn in, I was cast out by the slow-moving story.
    I did feel that once I picked the book up again after a temporary hiatus, that the story moved along at a more comfortable pace and became
    more interesting and worth reading. I seem to think that this book is one of those that either you like or you don't!

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  • Anonymous

    Posted Fri Apr 12 00:00:00 EDT 2013

    Loved this book!!!

    Absolutely entertaining as you love and hate the various characters. Would highly recommend this book about two of today's teenagers and their good and bad caretakers. It's a must read.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted Fri Apr 12 00:00:00 EDT 2013

    Sister story

    Really keeps you on the edge of your seat, wondering when the gig will be up!
    Great story about learning not to judge at first sight and the power of love on many levels.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted Thu Mar 28 00:00:00 EDT 2013

    One of my all time favorites. I could not put this book down!

    One of my all time favorites. I could not put this book down!

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  • Anonymous

    Posted Thu Mar 28 00:00:00 EDT 2013

    brilliant and well written

    brilliant and well written

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  • Posted Sat Mar 23 00:00:00 EDT 2013

    Marnie and Nelly are alone.  If I write a normal description, pe

    Marnie and Nelly are alone.  If I write a normal description, people might think this is a normal book and it isn't.  I want to call it weird but it isn't weird so much as artistic.  It really comes down to how the story is told.  The story is told from the perspective of Marnie, Nelly, and Lennie.  Each chapter has a different perspective and focuses on the year after Marnie and Nelly's parents disappear.  It's a bit different because at times, there is a bit of overlap and the reader might hear about the same incident from multiple points of views.  Perhaps most interesting is how the reader is often mislead because a character believes something that turns out to be untrue.  It's a puzzle but not quite a mystery.  Have I confused you enough?  Essentially, Marnie and Nelly know where their mom and dad are but they hide it because they each believe that the other is guilty of murder.  But it is difficult for them to keep their secret as their parents previous behavior have resulted in the creation of some major issues in both Marnie and Nelly.  Though, both deal differently.  Lenny is a lonely man who has his own issues but who is desperately needed by the girls and he needs them, though they don't quite realize it.




    I loved loved this book.  At first, I was a bit skeptical because I realized that the story was told from multiple perspectives and reads like diary entries.  All of the events have occurred and the character is retelling each event and including their thoughts.  But I soon found myself feeling so close to the characters and I felt so connected.  There is a charm to the writing style that really drew me in.  While various events happen in the girls lives, the background story of what their parents were like and what happened to them slowly unfolds.  It's as if it is unintentional and I find that beautiful.  My emotions were high and my instincts were true (most of the time) and I was invested.  There is a bit of heartbreak, sex, and tangy language but it's said in a roundabout way.  Nothing really in your face.




    Overall a lovely read once you adjust to style.  It ends up adding a whole new dimension.  Just wonderful.

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  • Posted Sat Mar 16 00:00:00 EDT 2013

    It's not a happy book. I didn't expect to like it. But I loved i

    It's not a happy book. I didn't expect to like it. But I loved it; couldn't put it down.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted Fri Mar 15 00:00:00 EDT 2013

    Very good read

    A jarring and raw plot, but ultimately a book about family. Two girls left on their own when their parents die (don't weep for the parents, they were scum) must find a way to stay together. The people who hurt and help them define the families these girls form. Loved it.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted Sat Mar 02 00:00:00 EST 2013

    A wonderful way to spend my Saturday

    It's been a long time since I've read an entire book in one day, but I just couldn't put it down.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted Wed Jan 02 00:00:00 EST 2013

    Nook ap review

    The nook ap is not very friendly. No place to enlarge font or bookmark or search capability .

    0 out of 53 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted Wed Jan 02 00:00:00 EST 2013

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted Sat Jan 05 00:00:00 EST 2013

    No text was provided for this review.

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