Book Review: The Honeybee Emeralds by Amy Tector

The Honeybee Emeralds by Amy Tector
Publication Date: March 29, 2022
☆☆☆☆☆

Thanks to the author for giving me an Advanced Reader Copy to enjoy and review!

I began writing the first few paragraphs of this review while still fresh off the last pages of The Honeybee Emeralds by debut author Amy Tector (@amytectorwrites) and now a few weeks later I’m aching to read it again as I re-read snippets and re ponder the story as I write the review.  Quite helpfully, my mother, who was sitting on the other side of the living room when I’d finished the novel asked me: what kind of novel is it? This in response to a combination of gasps, sighs and revelatory oooohs as I’d read the last 100 or so pages one evening in early January.

Good question mum.  Well it’s not a contemporary romance, nor historical fiction, nor crime or thriller, but there are elements of those genres throughout the book.  If you’re used to the contemporary side of the dual (or multi) period historical fiction novels that seem to be popular these days, this is a novel that fits in that side of the genre.  It’s also got nodes of romance, some crime and some thrills (some scary and some exciting).  It’s also set in Paris which is kind of its own genre, right?  If, like me, you’re a fan of the blockbuster hits The DaVinci Code and National Treasure (yes I know), then you’ll probably enjoy the history treasure hunt that the main characters embark on in and about Paris.

Image of book, The Honeybee Emeralds, with a beige apron adorned with the words “Paris” and images of a wine glass, a bottle of wine, a croissant, a baguette, the Eiffel Tower, a croissant, the Seine (river), brie, Notre Dame and the Arc de Triomphe. RM

Tector tells us that the story itself is fictional, but based around the lives of three remarkable women: Marguerite Bellanger, Mata Hari and Josephine Baker.  Tector ties the true stories of these three powerful women to a single piece of jewelry, enter the Honeybee Emeralds.  And she does this through the story of three contemporary heroines that I think you as a reader will be able to relate to.

First up is Alice Ahmadi, an intern at ex-pat magazine Bonjour Paris in contemporary (but not COVID!) times.  Alice finds the necklace in the pocket of a jacquard jacket in a nook of the cavernous basement while hunting for the furnace room with the magazine’s aloof yet handsome next door neighbour Alexandre (a perfumier).  And so the mystery begins, Alice and Alexandre joining forces with an impressive cast of characters who all have a stake in the magazine, and it would seem, the necklace.  Of particular note, our second and third heroines: Lily and Daphne, old friends who’ve drifted apart but for whom this quest provides an opportunity to reconcile, or perhaps to examine old wounds.  Luc (*swoon*) and Jacob (meh) also figure prominently and certainly help the women along, but Tector has woven the story in a way that it truly belongs to Alice, Lily and Daphne.

It is Alice who spends countless hours in the archives researching the necklace and the women who wore it.  It is Lily whose existence (she thinks) depends on the continued success of Bonjour Paris and the feature article on said necklace that will save the magazine.  And it is Daphne, art historian, database expert and microfilm reel reader extraordinaire (with an honourable mention to Theo!) who uncovers vital details that advance the team (or fellowship’s) quest.

And last but not least, it is Élise who, like the whales she is so fascinated with, breaches for a breath, surprising all before again disappearing from view (and that is as close to a spoiler as you’re getting my friends!).

This is the kind of book that makes me wonder (in awe!) about just how the story came together.  Tector’s own experience in archives and as an ex-pat do more than lend authenticity to the work – she’s clearly woven her years of experience, love of history and honing of the craft of writing into this stunning debut.

As someone who’s spent some time in France and a lot of time in libraries and archives, this book really spoke to me.  It is a smart, contemporary comment on the value of primary source research (nerd alert!), the relationship between the French and the rest of us (both other Europeans and North Americans), and the always enticing storyline of both finding and being happy with where our paths have brought us in life.  And the gleeful smattering of Parisian edible delights, one vineyard and really old, fabulous libraries doesn’t hurt one bit!

To conclude, as stated so well by Jacob: “This is going to be an incredible story.”