Shortlisted for the 2015 Women's Prize for Fiction
Born into the lowest class of her society, Flora 717 is deemed fit only to clean her orchard hive. Yet Flora has talents that are not typical of her kin. And while mutant bees are usually instantly destroyed, Flora is reassigned to feed the newborns, before becoming a forager, collecting nectar and pollen on the wing. Before long she finds her way into the Queen’s inner sanctum, learning secrets both sublime and ominous.
Flora’s ascent disturbs the natural hierarchy of the colony, incensing powerful enemies. But when she feels compelled to break the most sacred law of all, Flora’s instincts are overwhelmed by love, as all-consuming as it is forbidden…
