The multi-million-copy-bestselling novel that has delighted readers around the world, from the award-winning author of The Invention of Wings. Set in the United States' Deep South during the turbulent civil rights era, the coming-of-age novel explores divine female power, racial injustice, and the power of love and forgiveness.

'Charming, funny, moving' The Times

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

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

Lily has grown up believing she accidentally killed her mother when she was four. She not only has her own memory of holding the gun, but her father's account of the event. Now fourteen, she yearns for her mother, and for forgiveness.

Living on a peach farm in South Carolina with her father, she has only one friend: Rosaleen, a black servant whose sharp exterior hides a tender heart. South Carolina in the sixties is a place where segregation is still considered a cause worth fighting for.

When racial tension explodes one summer afternoon, and Rosaleen is arrested and beaten, Lily is compelled to act. Fugitives from justice and from Lily's harsh and unyielding father, they 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.

What readers are saying about The Secret Life of Bees:

'One of the most poignant and heart tugging books I have ever read' Amazon reviewer, 5 stars

'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' Amazon reviewer, 5 stars

'One of the best books I've read in a while. Touching, well-written, beautiful, full of expression, insightful' Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars

'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' Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars