This was a delightful book of “short stories” that really flow together as chapters in a longer tale. The story of the Lacewing King is woven together with stories of other characters and other stories that provide moral lessons and social commentary. I enjoyed the first part of the book superbly, but felt that the second half slowed down a bit, and I was slightly disappointed with the ending. However, this book is a solid 4 stars for me, and is one I would recommend to those who enjoy fantasy and fairy tales.

Joanne Harris (author of Chocolat), offers a creation myth frame around a compilation of updated morality tales and fables in her upcoming release, Honeycomb. The beautiful and emotional illustrations are by renowned artist Charles Vess. Split into two “Books,” the collection presents a world of insect-like fairies that is parallel, but invisible, to the human one. Book One, “Long Ago,” describes the formation of the insect universe and its various tribes. Most of the action in the chapters centers around the development arc of the main hero, The Lacewing King. In a nod to Ulysses, the Lacewing King embarks on a long journey of self-discovery and eventual redemption and reconciliation. His path intersects with a cast of characters that mirror the villains and heroes of traditional lore (but in insect form). There are rivalries and games of dominance, feats of endurance and bravery, and challenges to the King’s fatal flaw of hubris. Death and Dishonesty are incorporated as the main adversaries in the King’s quest, but it is his own inability for compassion that continually defeats him. The second book (“Far Away”) continues the Lacewing King’s journey after a particularly grueling battle. Having ceded his strength and power, he needs redemption and forgiveness by others to complete his journey home. Themes include balancing power with empathy, what it means to be able to “see” truth, the genuine versus the fabricated/manipulated, self-sacrifice and the value of artistic creation. The ability of stories to communicate across worlds is embodied by the bees, who act as the collective conscience and chorus buzzing throughout the book. With Honeycomb, Joanne Harris alludes to numerous motifs that have been integral to all stories for centuries: ideas culled from international sources of mythology, fables, folklore and parables. While Harris’ main storyline provides cohesion, it is the smaller asides and micro tales interspersed throughout that provide the most delight. Honeycomb will appeal to folklorists and fantasy fiction lovers, and would be a good choice for anyone looking for a new interpretation of the universal tales that continue to  course through our shared language today.

Thanks to the author, Saga Press (Simon & Schuster) and Edelweiss for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an impartial review.

A lovely collection of fairy tales with a darker, macabre side, interspersed with some beautiful illustrations. The narrative and descriptions are wonderfully written, and there are stories that will appeal to everyone. A wonderful read for anyone who loved reading Grimms' fairy tales while growing up.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange of an honest review.

"Long ago, and far away,
 Far way and long ago.
 The worlds are honeycomb, we know;
 The world's our honeycomb."
 
I like to say these words, it's kind of magic and mysterious like you're going to see a goup of bees appearing behind you!

Well this book was so long with so many short stories, there is book one, then book two but the main story divided into many short adventures is the one about The Lacewing king.

I loved the story of the Lacewing king and his adventures and misadventures, it was so long, really I don't see why the author didn't give it its own book. The stories were kind of dark about and with plenty of characters which some were important for the story of the Lacewing king like the Clockwork Princess and the watchmaker's boy and the Harlequin and some characters ,with their stories, were irrelevant. Sometimes, I felt like the author was just writing whatever came in her head and created some sort of a story to add in this book.

The story of the Lacewing king was what made me carry on which was pretty interesting with a crazy developement, the author took her time to finish it and between each adventure of the lacewing king you have a number of short stories that you must read because it could be related to the main story of the Lacewing king. That's why I really took my time reading this book and the ending was not what I expected. 

I'm giving 4 stars because the process of creating such a number of short stories and trying to relate them with each other, I'm sure it wasn't easy for the author and also because I liked the Lacewing king and some of the other stories. I loved the author's style and her nice story telling ways. The illustrations were just amazing, I just hoped for much more.

This collection of fables and short stories seemed to revolve around one focus on the Faerie world of the Lacewing King and a series of stand-alone stories, some of which were independent, others which crossed paths with the faerie world. Some of these characters are really nasty, and there are some painful parts, but that’s what is often expected of life in the world of Faerie.

First, I have to say the drawings looked amazing. I can’t wait to see a print version because reading on a small screen didn’t do them justice.  Next, following the life of the Lacewing King, from the beginnings of his mother, the Honeycomb Queen, to his birth, and following throughout his life was an amazing journey. The Barefoot Princess was my favorite character, she was the purest character in Faerie. The stories with the Clockwork Princess were the best feel-good stories.  I didn't like every story, but I really enjoyed most of them and  overall these are stories that will stay with me for a lone time.

Thank you to NetGalley and Saga Press for providing this ARC; this is my honest review.

I'm sorry to say that I could not finish this book. I read 50 percent or more and realized I wasn't enjoying it.  Many of the stories were the length of a chapter, and there wasn't much cohesion between them.
thank you netgalley for the chance to review this.

I got a digital ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

First, I'm looking forward to seeing a print copy because Vess's illustrations are gorgeous.

Honeycomb is a collection of what seem to be whimsical tales, some of which are about the Lacewing King and his adventures, others of which seem disconnected (but fun nonetheless). I loved "The Bookworm Princess" and the farmyard tales.

But as I read on, I realized that the book is also about growth, transformation and redemption (told through fairies, clockwork princesses, and girls who fix and ride mechanical tigers as well as harlequins and spider queens). Throughout the earlier chapters, the Lacewing King is self-centered, selfish and utterly unlikeable. Why is there an entire set of stories focused on such a spoiled boy-king protagonist? I wondered. But there are enough stand-alone tales that are whimsical and wonderful that I kept reading.

Slowly, throughout the tales that make up the main plot, the reader starts to see changes as the Lacewing King grows. (I'll stop here to avoid inadvertent spoilers.)

Liked the first half after that things started to get bland to me so I skimmed alot. Characters were unable to hooked me. The main king was so annoying and boring.

I cannot believe that this book is currently available to just READ on NetGalley. It's a beautiful collection of fairy tales, some relevant to an overarching narrative and others left there to make you think. Add in the beautiful illustrations drawn for the pivotal moments, and it's perfect. I'd recommend this to fans of The Starless Sea or The Invisible Life of Addie Larue.

This is a collection of short stories from bestselling author Joanne M. Harris and legendary artist Charles Vess.  This collection is definitely worth a read.   You will find the stories within reminiscent of old folk tales with a bit of a dark side.  Illustrations are sprinkled throughout the book and give it a bit of an old school flare. 

I want to thank NetGalley, the author and publisher for the e-ARC of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are honest, my own and left voluntarily.

The book seems to be a collection of fairy tales, somewhat related to each others. I only read a few first ones, but decided I wouldn't want to continue. The tales are pretty weird, going onto disgusting, going more on more heavy on the latter. At some point I couldn't read any more of maggots going out through the skin and such as there was nothing to counterweight it - it seemed to be told more for the disgust factor rather than for the story, but I might be wrong here as I did not continue reading.

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<p>Review copy provided by the publisher.</p>
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<p>This book is a maddening mix of beautiful and obnoxiously trite.</p>
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<p>It's a set of very short stories in fairy tale style, some of which form an arc plot and some of which do not. There's a lot of lovely stuff with the intersection of insects and Faerie that gets in very neatly at the sense of the alien in the best Faerie fiction--they're literally not like us if they're a swarm of bees, okay, cool. (I am reminded of Robert Levy's <em>The Glittering World</em>, which is in every way a better book.)</p>
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<p>But the down side of fairy tale locution is that in this case Harris stretches it so that the characterizations have length but no depth, so that when the story returns to previous characters, I had no sense of "oh cool, it's that person"--they remained shallow, mostly heartless archetypes at best, and sketches less charming than their literal illustrations at worst.</p>
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<p>The heavy-handed parables were the worst of it. Interspersed with the whole were messages that Harris apparently just <em>had to</em> get across, in fairy tale language, including such gems as "don't get obsessed with your cell phone." Thanks, Polonius! Without you I would never have thought of such a message! As a full-time genre professional, I can tell you that you do not get bonus points for making your snotty and obvious life advice slightly princessified. At least not from me.</p>
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<p>And then there's the use of Hel, which is a very specific spelling with specific cultural connotation, to just mean...Hell. If you have a <em>lord</em> of it and it's full of the damned, it is not Hel and what are you even doing. Why. It doesn't make you fancy, it's not like spelling your name Jynnyfer where the meaning doesn't change.</p>
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<p>So what to make of this book. Honestly I'm not sure it's worth your time to try. The occasional beautiful image isn't worth all the flaws. Her books are sure to be bestsellers even without your time and attention, because of who she is and the marketing campaign they're given. I haven't read any of the others, but maybe one of them is better. It's probably worth at least giving that a try.</p>
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I really enjoyed this collection of dark and sinister stories. I really hope the author puts out another collection in the future.

this had what I loved from The Gospel of Loki, and this was a great read. The art was done beautifully and I really loved going on this story.

Honeycomb is a wonderfully macbre fairytale book.  It's a little slow going but the dark content makes it worth the read. I highly enjoyed seeing how all these little stories fell into place within the bigger story of The Lacewing King.

This collection of short stories gave me The Brothers Grimm and old Irish folk tale vibes. I already love old stories about the fae and so I enjoyed the stories in this collection. Like any collection there were stories I enjoyed and a few that I didn't as much. Overall I loved the old fairy tale feel of this collection and found the illustrations interesting and a nice bonus. Anyone who likes short stories about faeries or Brothers Grimm style fairy tales would enjoy this collection.

I received a free copy of this eBook from Gallery Books Gallery/Saga Press and NetGalley

I liked these short stories, of course I liked some stories more than some others. But in general and in whole the book itself I really enjoyed. I loved how the tales came off as if someone was making them up in there head and saying them out loud. I also loved how some of the stories were pretty dark. I really loved the cover of the book. The illustrations in the book were ok I guess I honestly didn't really like them but that could just be me. I want to thank netgalley and the publisher for sending me an e arc copy of this book for my honest review

Like the brothers Grimm there is light and darkness in the Honeycomb. I had a pre publication copy so some of the illustrations were still in the pencil, pen and ink stage but still wonderful. The chapters are very short, an ideal distraction from the everyday worlds pressures before light out.

I'm a fan of Joanne Harris' work, specifically her 'Chocolat' series, but unfortunately I did not connect to the stories contained in the 'Honeycomb.' Some were better than others and I'm not exactly sure what type of audience she was writing for? The stories seemed a bit juvenile and others were a little dark. I think writing one singular story about the honeycomb would have been more interesting.

“Dream is a river that runs to the Sea To the Sea, to the Sea Death is a country that longs for the Sun For the Sun, for the Sun.”

Lovely fairytale stories that all link up. Fast paced and a joy to read. It had an old time fairytale feel that you don't get all that often with new books. The drawings in between the pages really brought the whole thing together.