The Hive
by Melissa Scholes Young
320 pages
Published June 2021 by Keylight books
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About the Book:
A story of survival, sisters, and secrets.
The Fehler sisters wanted to be more than bug girls but growing up in a fourth- generation family pest control business in rural Missouri, their path was fixed. The family talked about Fehler Family Exterminating at every meal, even when their mom said to separate the business from the family, an impossible task. They tried to escape work with trips to their trailer camp on the Mississippi River, but the sisters did more fighting than fishing. If only there was a son to lead rural Missouri insect control and guide the way through a crumbling patriarchy.
After Robbie Fehler’s sudden death, the surprising details of succession in his will are revealed. He’s left the company to a distant cousin, assuming the women of the family aren’t capable. As the mother’s long-term affair surfaces and her apocalypse prepper training intensifies, she wants to trade responsibility for romance.
Facing an economic recession amidst the backdrop of growing Midwestern fear and resentment, the Fehler sisters unite in their struggle to save the company’s finances and the family’s future. To survive, they must overcome a political chasm that threatens a new civil war as the values that once united them now divide the very foundation they’ve built. Through alternating point-of-views, grief and regret gracefully give way to the enduring strength of the hive.
My Review:
An interesting depiction of a family with a controlling, misogynistic father and an emotionally checked out mother. When the father passes, the grown-up children need to determine how they will move forward. The overall story was interesting as most character-driven stories are.
However, there is a lot going on this book! So many important societal items are touched on but then the story moves right past them. I was surprised the first few times, thinking that the story was going to come back around and dive in, but no. It seemed to skip from one big topic to the next. Additionally, the story is told from many characters so there is a lot of switching POV’s
The one item that I don’t understand is name of the Hive led me to believe that there would be many comparison’s to a hive of bees. But mostly what was talked about was bedbugs. And I’m really not a fan of bugs, so that was hard for me.
I loved all the references of the mom being a Doomsday Prepper. I found that storyline fascinating and I could have read more about that.
Thank you to the author for this gifted book. All opinions expressed are my own.
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