A heart breaking read that's powerful and beautiful

This book took me by surprise. I wasn't expecting to enjoy it as much as I did. The writing was beautiful and lyrical and I loved how the chapters flowed into each other. The subject matter was not pleasant. Going through the terrifying journey of a desperate Nuri and Afra from Syria to England was difficult to read. Much like the Tattoist of Auschwitz, this story was a real eye opener for me. I have obviously read stories on the news about the conflict in Syria and people trying to get to England for asylum but until you read a story from a personal perspective, you never truly start to understand how horrible, scary and daunting the whole thing must have been. It made it an emotional read to see how much horror people have to encounter in their daily lives and made me realise how lucky I am in comparison. This book really makes you truly grateful for what you have. Although the story get going from present day to sometimes seemingly random, chronological memories sometimes jarred for me, I believe this is a must read as it highlights such as important subject that I admit I hadn't given enough thought about until now. I also loved how the use of bees throughout the novel was a subtle yet constant sign of hope and happiness to the characters in the book which tied the whole story together. I would recommend this book whole heartedly, especially to fans of the Tattooist of Auschwitz as they are both poignant and beautiful at the same time.