The Bees
A Novel
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Narrated by:
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Orlagh Cassidy
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By:
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Laline Paull
About this listen
Flora 717 is a sanitation worker, a member of the lowest caste in her orchard hive, where work and sacrifice are the highest virtues and worship of the beloved Queen the only religion. But Flora is not like other bees. With circumstances threatening the hive's survival, her curiosity is regarded as a dangerous flaw, but her courage and strength are assets. She is allowed to feed the newborns in the royal nursery and then to become a forager, flying alone and free to collect nectar and pollen. A feat of bravery grants her access to the Queen's inner sanctum, where she discovers mysteries about the hive that are both profound and ominous.
But when Flora breaks the most sacred law of all - daring to challenge the Queen's preeminence - enemies abound, from the fearsome fertility police who enforce the hive's strict social hierarchy to the high priestesses jealously wedded to power. Her deepest instincts to serve and sacrifice are now overshadowed by a greater power: A fierce maternal love that will bring her into conflict with her conscience, her heart, and her society - and lead her to perform unthinkable deeds.
Thrilling, suspenseful, and spectacularly imaginative, The Bees and its dazzling young heroine will forever change the way you look at the world outside your window.
©2014 Laline Paull (P)2014 HarperCollins PublishersListeners also enjoyed...
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- Narrated by: Lillian Yves
- Length: 1 hr and 40 mins
- Unabridged
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Untold darkness rules the Unseelie realm of the Land of Faerie. Hidden in this vast area, Aveta, the future queen of the Unseelie Army, perfects her gifts over lifetimes. Learning that magic isn't the only way to manipulate the world around her, this naive girl grows into a woman of strength and cunning, ultimately becoming one of the most feared leaders in Faerie.
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Excellent! Dark Prophecy, faery princess, forbidden love and an Evil Queen
- By sherry Christenson on 02-22-17
By: Alexia Purdy
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Undertaker's Moon
- By: Ronald Kelly
- Narrated by: J. Rodney Turner
- Length: 15 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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The rural town of Old Hickory. Tennessee was a quiet, picturesque community...until the O'Sheas came to town. Becoming the new proprietors of the town's only funeral parlor, with the help of their charming patriarch, Square McManus, the Irish family was wholeheartedly accepted by the local town folk. The thing began to happen. Strange things...horrible, unspeakable things...in the dead of night. The sighting of wolfish beasts congregating around an open grave in the town cemetery.
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good story but
- By simon lucas on 02-19-20
By: Ronald Kelly
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Maleficent
- By: Disney Press
- Narrated by: Lucy Rayner
- Length: 4 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
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Maleficent was a different sort of faerie. For one thing she was raised by all the Fair Folk after her parents were killed. For another she believed there had to be some good in everyone, even humans. Happy and spirited, Maleficent was beloved by all who knew her. That is until she experienced the ultimate betrayal by a trusted friend.
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Just like the movie but better detail!!
- By artist4rags on 05-08-15
By: Disney Press
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Illuminations
- A Novel of Hildegard von Bingen
- By: Mary Sharratt
- Narrated by: Tavia Gilbert
- Length: 9 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
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Skillfully interweaving historical fact with psychological insight and vivid imagination, Sharratt's redemptive novel brings to life one of the most extraordinary women of the Middle Ages: Hildegard von Bingen, Benedictine abbess, visionary, and polymath. Offered to the Church at the age of eight, Hildegard was entombed in a small room where she was expected to live out her days in silent submission as the handmaiden of a renowned but disturbed young nun, Jutta von Sponheim.
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Strong woman; weak novel
- By connie on 12-01-12
By: Mary Sharratt
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The Woodcutter
- By: Kate Danley
- Narrated by: Sarah Coomes
- Length: 7 hrs and 41 mins
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Deep within the Wood, a young woman lies dead. Not a mark on her body. No trace of her murderer. Only her chipped glass slippers hint at her identity. The Woodcutter, keeper of the peace between the Twelve Kingdoms of Man and the Realm of the Faerie, must find the maiden’s killer before others share her fate. Guided by the wind and aided by three charmed axes won from the River God, the Woodcutter begins his hunt, searching for clues in the whispering dominions of the enchanted unknown. But quickly he finds that one murdered maiden is not the only nefarious mystery afoot....
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Fantasy for fairy tale lovers
- By A. Sines on 03-25-15
By: Kate Danley
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The Summer Dragon
- First Book of The Evertide
- By: Todd Lockwood
- Narrated by: Ali Ahn
- Length: 17 hrs and 59 mins
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Maia and her family raise dragons for the political war machine. As she comes of age, she anticipates a dragon of her own to add to the stable of breeding parents. Her peaceful life is shattered when the Summer Dragon - one of the rare and mythical High Dragons - makes an appearance in her quiet valley. Political factions vie for control of the implied message, threatening her aspirations, her aerie, her entire way of life.
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5 star plotline, 2 star main character
- By Allison on 12-01-16
By: Todd Lockwood
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Rhapsody
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- Narrated by: Kevin T. Collins
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Rhapsody is a woman, a singer of some talent who is swept up into events of world-shattering import. On the run from an old romantic interest who won't take no for an answer, Rhapsody literally bumps into a couple of shady characters: half breeds who come to her rescue in the nick of time. Only the rescue turns into an abduction, and Rhapsody soon finds herself dragged along on an epic voyage--one that spans centuries and ranges across a wonder-filled fantasy world.
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Good story! Terrible narration.
- By CharmY2K on 04-30-15
By: Elizabeth Haydon
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The Vagrant
- By: Peter Newman
- Narrated by: Jot Davies
- Length: 13 hrs and 24 mins
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The Vagrant is his name. He has no other. Years have passed since humanity's destruction emerged from the Breach. Friendless and alone he walks across a desolate, war-torn landscape. A s each day passes the world tumbles further into depravity, bent and twisted by the new order, corrupted by the Usurper, the enemy, and his infernal horde. His purpose is to reach the Shining City, last bastion of the human race, and deliver the only weapon that may make a difference in the ongoing war.
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It was the concept and the prose that kept me goin
- By Alexandra on 08-18-15
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The Sekhmet Bed
- The She-King, #1
- By: L.M. Ironside
- Narrated by: Amanda C. Miller
- Length: 9 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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The second daughter of the Pharaoh, Ahmose has always dreamed of a quiet life as a priestess, serving Egypt's gods, ministering to the people of the Two Lands. But when the Pharaoh dies without an heir, she is given instead as Great Royal Wife to the new king - a soldier of common birth. For Ahmose is god-chosen, gifted with the ability to read dreams, and it is her connection to the gods which ensures the new Pharaoh his right to rule.
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Never listened to a story about Egypt before...
- By E. M. on 12-14-13
By: L.M. Ironside
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Silverwing
- By: Kenneth Oppel
- Narrated by: John McDonough
- Length: 7 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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Shade, a young silverwing bat, is the runt of his colony. Determined to show how brave he is, Shade breaks one of the ancient rules that governs the bats. As punishment, owls burn the bats' roost, forcing them to migrate earlier than normal. While on the trip south to the Hibernaculum, Shade becomes separated from his flock during a rain storm. His destination is millions of wing beats away. Now he must find a way to make the journey on his own.
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A great story for all ages
- By Hayley on 10-13-24
By: Kenneth Oppel
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Miranda and Caliban
- By: Jacqueline Carey
- Narrated by: Gemma Dawson, Alex Wyndham
- Length: 10 hrs and 34 mins
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A lovely girl grows up in isolation where her father, a powerful magus, has spirited them to in order to keep them safe. We all know the tale of Prospero's quest for revenge, but what of Miranda? Or Caliban, the so-called savage Prospero chained to his will? In this incredible retelling of the fantastical tale, Jacqueline Carey shows listeners the other side of the coin - the dutiful and tenderhearted Miranda, who loves her father but is terribly lonely. And Caliban, the strange and feral boy Prospero has bewitched to serve him.
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Beautiful, charming, slightly scary story
- By DabOfDarkness on 09-16-17
By: Jacqueline Carey
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What listeners say about The Bees
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- BookReader
- 06-30-15
The Bees
Any additional comments?
Read by Orlagh Cassidy, approximately ten hours of listening.
A first observation. The religious aspects of phrases like, “Our mother, who art in labor, hallowed be thy womb.”, made me cringe. There are several. It’s a bit of a sacrilege to those that are pious believers, and offensive to compare a queen bee to the Virgin Mary … it’s paraphrasing a well known prayer. I mean, common! I’m not a religious person, at all … but geez.
A second observation. The Bees is one of the most creative stories I’ve read (listened to). This is the story of Flora, a bee. And it is told entirely from her point of view. The author went to extreme detail in the hive mentality, the flora for nectar and pollin, the fauna of other insects and birds, the birthing of bees, the different roles of drones, the queen, her ‘ladies in waiting’, etc. Research for this story and overall creativity is superb.
Narration by Orlagh Cassidy is great. I’ve only listened to her a few times, David Baldacci books, and I have very much enjoyed her interpretations.
Well worth the credits, if you can take some tongue-in-cheek sacrilege, at least I hope it’s tongue-in-cheek. Enjoy!
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- Cynthia R Phillips
- 02-27-17
The hive as metaphor
While the elite class and the middle class battle, the lowliest and least respected rise to leadership.
A "foreign" untouchable sanitation worker preservers to become a respected leader bringing change from the least expected sect.
I read a print version while listening and had to keep pausing the audible version while annotating my print copy. Some lovely language throughout. Lots of interesting tidbits for gardeners and want-to-be bee keepers or regular folk wanting to provide habitat for pollinators.
Provocative take on some social concepts and behaviors... I think this would make an interesting book group choice paired with Animal Farm, Handmaid's Tale or even The Giver trilogy
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- Lesli
- 09-21-15
points for originality!
fascinating viewpoint of life in a. bee colony. at times brutal and often thought provoking. the reader is extremely skilled
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- Lionel
- 08-22-16
A Fable
Okay,so this was clearly a fable. Clever, but not complete. I did not get the moral or the point. And the anthropomorphism was not committed 100%. It bothered me that there were people in the prologue and epilogue, but the bees referred to "people" in reference to the bee population. Oversight or lack of attention to detail. I did finish and even got emotional at moments, but it was surface emotion.
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- Julia Felix
- 07-13-18
Slow but interesting
I really didn’t like this book much until the very end. It had been recommended to me as something similar to Watership Down, which I don’t feel is a good comparison.
Watership Down was really artfully written to incorporate and explain daily and realistic rabbit life while still telling a story of a great adventure from the rabbit’s point of view. The Bees uses a lot of crutches to explain what’s going on, with lots of human-like objects, expressions, etc., that made me feel like it wasn’t all that necessary for it to be about Bees (it could have easily been done as an alternate universe or future society with humans).
The story was pretty slow, and I spent most of the book wondering where it was going and why I was supposed to care about the main character. However, it all came together in the last 30 minutes of the book, and suddenly it became an interesting story that probably could not have been done without making it about Bees (the mating thing would have been really weird if it were about people!).
So overall I suppose I was satisfied with the story, and am giving it 4 stars instead of 3 because of that. Performance was pretty good with exception to a Glenda-the-Good-Witch voice that the narrator used pretty frequently.
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- Fantasy Manic
- 09-18-15
A buzzing hive of insights!
This is an excellent book personifying the complexities and brutalities of a bee hive. It took a little to get me to buy into the storyline, bit after a few chapters I was hooked. The performance is well done, a few mispronunciations only slightly detracted from the experience (i.e. gras = grace). The narrator's voices are great and add to that feeling of peering into a bee's inner courts. Thanks!!
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- Bond James Bond
- 08-06-15
almost as good as Watership Down
If you liked Watership Down, I suspect you'd like this too. It's bees instead of rabbits, but we learn their speech, their habits, their struggles. A better than average story, well told, decently read.
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- Gramma Les
- 06-16-18
Beekeepers’ delight
Beekeepers and laypeople alike will marvel at the author’s ability to humanize the bees. Every scientific fact that I have learned through my beekeeping is an important part of the story of Flora and the hive. Very interesting. Not your normal book. I really enjoyed this.
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- SuzieQ
- 08-29-16
Expertly written, a bit long.
This book was gifted to me by a friend who loved it. I had high expectations, and while the story was very creative and vividly imagined, I thought it a bit long. I give it high marks for creativity and imagination. Wonderful command of English language. Expertly narrated.
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- Gabriel
- 08-12-15
Great first novel! More Please Laline!
Would you listen to The Bees again? Why?
I would recommend it to a friend, and potentially listen again.
What did you like best about this story?
A fabulous tale of drama, love, and survival that is magically blended with science.
If you could take any character from The Bees out to dinner, who would it be and why?
HAH this is a funny question! I suppose I would take Flora out to dinner to a nice patio restaurant with wild flowers on the table. Cause you know, she's a bee.
Any additional comments?
I would love more from Laline. Possibly another book with a very unique perspective, and keep up the marvelously well done research that you put into your first book.
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