Kiss of the Bees: A Novel of Suspense

Rating:
Summary: A slow start, but worth it.
Review: I always look forward to a new J. A. Jance and couldn't wait for this one. It's pretty dark and doesn't really compare with J P Beaumont or JoAnna Brady series, but it is a good read. It took a while for me to remember the story line as the first book was published some time ago. I do recommend it to adults who enjoy the JA Jance books. Read Hour of the Hunter first and you won't have the slow start that I did.

Rating:
Summary: Kiss of the bees
Review: I am a J.A. Jance fan...forever. This is an excellent sequel to Hour of the Hunter...which is actually the first book of hers which I read. Keep up the good work. I still love Joanna Brady and JP Beaumont.... What I'm wondering is when Joanna and JP work together in a novel?

Rating:
Summary: Jance at her worst
Review: I didn't even want to finish the book. Bring back JP Beaumont and forget these "silence of the lambs" type books.

Rating:
Summary: Haven't I read this before?
Review: I have never read Hour Of the Hunter so I can only judge this book on it's own merits. But, I was not impressed. If you take away all the Native American references you are left with a pale imitation of a Diehl, Cornwell, or Harris book. Lani, of course, is the perfect daughter whom no real harm comes to. In the end Davy's intervention isn't even needed and I couldn't help wondering if the time spent on him wasn't for the purpose of upping the page count. As for the parents they show no insight or realization into their own culpability regarding their children's present day circumstances. This might have actually made them interesting characters. And did anyone not know the killer would die by falling in the hole in the cave?

Rating:
Summary: Riveting read
Review: I have read a majority of works by J. A. Jance and found this to be her best yet. I have particularly enjoyed her detective Beaumont series. This single book of hers was difficult to read in places as the villians were perverted men with no morals. The spirituality of the Indian culture was told with wisdom. I especially like the beginning of each chapter with its' Indian folklore. I enjoyed the interweaving of several mini stories within the book. It is difficult to do this type of writing well but it was admirably done here. I would hope that Ms. Jance will write more books with a similar theme.

Rating:
Summary: Poor character development
Review: I like her JP Beumont books but this book seems to think I have been acquainted with the characters in other books, which I have not. I never could get into the book because the characters were confusing so I quit.

Rating:
Summary: WOW
Review: I usually can't wait for a new Jance book, whether it be J. P. Beaumont, or JoAnna Brady. I have read them all, but this is by far her best. Jance introduced us to the American Southwest through JoAnna Brady, and has perfected the telling with the Walker Family. Jance has intermingled Native American Folklore, modern day trials and tribulations, pure evil, and just the right hint of spirituality to keep you on the edge of your seat. Andrew Carlisle could not have been more evil, or Diana Ladd Walker a better foil. Although you half expect to see JoAnna Brady show up at some time in the story, and would not have minded it at all, the Walkers grab your attention from the beginning. The end of Kiss of Bees leaves the perfect opening for a follow up book about the Walkers, and I for one can't wait. Just think of it, we now have Jance's Walker and Brady, and Hillerman's Chee and Leaphorn.

Rating:
Summary: still no calls from Harvey Weinstein?
Review: I wonder if Jance wrote this just to get a movie credit based on her novel. One cannot help but be suspicious of writers who shift gears in their careers and write in a Tom Clancy or John D. Macdonald style just because that's what film-going audiences like. I do not think this is a bad thing, but I, like some of the reviewers here, are so fed up with cliché plots that just borrow from i.e., Macdonald's "Cape Fear," or use that tired Native American romanticism that certainly sells the box office tickets through the roof. As for her writing style, she really should stay away from those scenes where character developments have not fully grown. What we're left with are people who are one dimensional like both the Walker parents, Davy, his fiancee, and to some extent, Lani, who just never convinced me that she had the fire of the budding Medicine Woman. Her male voice is very forced machismo that is typical of female writers who are testosterone-challenged. The men in this novel just weren't credible when they spoke. I kept seeing Jance speaking for them. So we're left with a high-concept piece that is still waiting for Hollywood to call and possibly star Penelope Cruz as Lani Walker. What's the Tohono O'otham word for "2 thumbs down?"

Rating:
Summary: Interesting but terrifying
Review: In Kiss of the Bees Ms Jance follows the story of the Walker family and the Indian traditions discussed in Hour of the Hunter. However, in this book there is much more detail of the mysteries involved in the Indians' belief in medicine men and women. I found the brutality of the man (tutored by the villain in her first book) who continued to pursue Diana Ladd Walker by tormenting and torturing her 16 year old daughter hard to read. My husband was so turned off he refused to finish the book after the first 50 pages. I stuck with it and found by the end it was a very special story of the power of faith and endurance by a serious young woman much more mature than her 16 years. There are lessons to be learned here, and I am glad I stayed till the end! However, one night at 3 AM I read some of it and couldn't get back to sleep! I prefer Jance's lighter stories, especially about Joanna Brady. But it is interesting that she can also write this kind of book. I have heard her lecture and some of her story is autobiographical--she taught at one time on the reservation, her first husband had gone to the University of Arizona, etc. Interesting how she was able to tie it in.

Rating:
Summary: don't get stung!
Review: It's too bad that this book is so bound to it's predecessor....I can't imagine reading it without having read Hour of the Hunter first. Once again I loved the story telling parts about the Native American culture, but I found the characters in this to be shallow and not as believeable. Perhaps I am tired of spending my time reading stories about these psychopaths who just want to get even. There were parts that I found somewhat unbelievable in the characters--the husband, ex-sheriff was a wood cutting wimp for most of the book. The son couldn't make up his mind or take a stand about his marriage--and the guy was going to be a lawyer! Come on, j.a., I think you can do better. I sure hope you do not visit this poor tortured family again with yet another sequel! I'd probably have to read it...