Erick Setiawan

Meridia is unhappy at home while growing up. When she falls in love with Daniel, and seems to get along well with his family, she is happy to marry him and move into his home. Unfortunately, what she learns of his family (and especially his mother) has her very much questioning her decision.

This is probably my highest rated book of magical realism, as I'm not usually a big fan. However, I really enjoyed this one (though the parts where the magical realism came into play, I wasn't as show more interested in). But, I was very interested in the main storyline and finding out what was going on in Daniel's family. And I certainly can't disguise my absolute hatred of his mother!!! show less

Meridia grows up in a house with ghosts in the mirrors, mysterious mists outside, and a staircase with strangely shifting dimensions. Also a cold, belittling father; a mother who often seems (possibly quite literally) to forget she exists; and vague, troubling memories of something very bad that happened when she was a baby. Eventually she grows up and gets away from that horrible place only to end up living with a mother-in-law who is a million times worse.

The fantasy elements here -- or show more maybe they're magic realism elements; I admit I've never been entirely clear on or cared all that much about the division between the two -- made this seem like it would be right up my alley. But while there were moments where those elements were interesting, mostly they just didn't do all that much for me. I get what the author is doing with them. There's a lot of taking the characters' personal issues and magically projecting them out into the world, so that marital infidelity might manifest as a descending mist, or the manipulative words of an abusive gaslighter take form as a swarm of bees. And that seems at least potentially interesting, but, I don't know, in the end it didn't necessarily feel like it added much to these characters' stories. And those stories themselves are just overwhelmingly awful, a constant cavalcade of oppressive, abusive nastiness. Which, again, could potentially be worth reading if I felt it was saying something really profound about abusive family dynamics or providing some moving emotional catharsis or something. I suppose I could see how some might find those things in it. But for me, mostly it was just... unpleasant. show less

Erick Setiawan’s debut novel Of Bees & Mist will take you on an epic journey to a mystical place. Prepare to suspend your disbelief and be jolted to an unfamiliar time and place where your imagination will be required to work overtime. This new author’s creative skill is unquestionably evident in his evocative imagery which will have you really hearing the buzz of angry bees, smelling the lingering scent of verbena and finding your vision obscured by colored mists.

This dark fairy tale show more features many engaging characters but mainly traces a character called Meridia. She grows up in a cold, lonely and loveless home full of deceit and humiliation. During her childhood she struggles to uncover the mysteries of her parents’ marriage and the mists which strangle their home. When Meridia marries she moves into a new home that is not what it initially appears. She is forced to engage in an ongoing war with her spiteful mother-in-law in order to preserve herself and the love of her husband. Over and over again she must reach inside herself and connect with her inner strength in order to survive.

There are many bizarre elements in this book which can be interpreted metaphorically or literally. The strange occurrences seem to dramatize the dynamics within a dysfunctional family and describe negative emotions as they would look if released visibly. The mist which hovers over the house also hovers over the book in general. I loved the ambiguity of the time and place in which the book is set. The more questions a good book evokes in our minds the better. I enjoy a book that is open to numerous possible interpretations because you can interact with it more. You can play with the ideas, language and setting in your own mind and build upon the scaffolding put up by the author. Of Bees and Mist is such a book.

Setiawan’s book depicts the universal theme of good against evil. It has a very dramatic feel in the way it slowly builds up to a crescendo. His unique interpretation of the theme places the battle in a fantasy realm and on a domestic scale. Essentially this book is about real family relationships; the hate, jealousy, betrayal, manipulation and ultimately love that binds people together. Of Bees & Mist is a timeless book that not only invites numerous readings but will echo in your subconscious long after you have savored every word. show less

From birth Meridia seemed different. She sees ghosts in the mirrors of her magical and mysterious home, and her parents treat her oddly for reasons unknown to her. Gabriel her father resents her, never allowing the girl to speak unless spoken to, while her mother, Ravenna, forgets she exists. Even her nurse acts weird and won't let her out of the house much, for fear of infections and a mist that never leaves their front door. Oh, how she longs to escape her miserable life.

When Daniel enters show more her life it's a magical moment of true love, and they soon marry, but with marriage comes another odd family, and poor Meridia seems to leap from one strange house
hold to another; swarms of bees appear at will, along with that colour changing mist again, but worse of all her mother-in-law, Eva, appears to only be happy when making Meridia and Daniel's life hell. Both sets of parents are as bad as each other, and will use whatever method they can to get what they want, regardless of the mental torture and troubles they put Meridia and Daniel through. How many secrets can these two families hold? Can Meridia fathom out what is going on, and stay one step ahead, before her own marriage is destroyed? And what will become of her own child who doesn't seem to stand a chance?

If anyone believes themselves to have Mother-In-Law problems and they read this book, I guarantee they will feel so much better about their lives. Both Meridia's parents and her In-Laws wore me out with their conniving, scheming ways that almost tear the young couple apart, but that's what made me read faster in order to find out how the story ended. This is a
story of love overcoming everything, while at the same time it's also heart breaking. I found it to be something of a cross between a modern fantasy and a Grimm fairytale, which is down to the author's wonderfully bizarre imagination and his unusual upbringing; Born in Jakarta, Indonesia, to Chinese parents. Of Bees and Mist is an atmospheric epic of a story. I loved the way Meridia and her husband learn to overcome the two forces that try to break them up and the clever techniques that the young girl is forced to put into place to protect her family from the atrocities thrown at them from both sides.

Overall: This engaging plot, along with Setiawan's captivating descriptions and ability to make the story flow in such a mystical and strange world, makes this tale one to recommend.

Review posted on Amazon UK. show less