· A QUEEN'S READING ROOM PICK 2023

· OVER 125 WEEKS ON THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER LIST

· MADE INTO AN AWARD-WINNING MOVE STARRING QUEEN LATIFAH, DAKOTA FANNING, ALICIA KEYS, SOPHIE OKONEDO AND JENNIFER HUDSON

· AN ACCLAIMED STAGE MUSICAL

Lily has grown up believing she accidentally killed her mother when she was four years old. Now, at fourteen, she yearns for forgiveness and a mother's love. Living on a peach farm in South Carolina with her harsh and unforgiving father, she has only one friend, Rosaleen, a black servant.

When racial tension explodes one summer afternoon, and Rosaleen is arrested and beaten, Lily chooses to flee with her. Fugitives from justice, the pair follow a trail left by the woman who died ten years before. Finding sanctuary in the home of three beekeeping sisters, Lily starts a journey as much about her understanding of the world as about the mystery surrounding her mother.

'A wonderful book, by turns sad, full of incident and shot through with grown-up magic reminiscent of Joanne Harris' Daily Telegraph

'Charming, funny, moving' The Times

'Wonderfully written, powerful, poignant . . . read it' Joanna Trollope

What readers are saying about The Secret Life of Bees:

'One of the most poignant and heart tugging books I have ever read'

'Emotional and heart-breaking, yet full of hope and love. I laughed and cried equally through the book. This wonderful book will stay with me for a long time to come'

'One of the best books I've read in a while. Touching, well-written, beautiful, full of expression, insightful'

'A beautifully written masterpiece. I loved the writing, the descriptions, the humour sprinkled through the story. There was sadness and love, hope and forgiveness. I highly recommend this book'