Clara’s Verdict
Short fiction does something that novels cannot: it forces a story into its essential components and demands that every sentence carry weight. Liane Moriarty – best known for Big Little Lies and Nine Perfect Strangers – brings her characteristic dark wit to this 56-minute short story, the first entry in the Deadly Ambition collection from Amazon Original Stories. It is not a full novel. That has caught some listeners off-guard, and with some justice – the listing could be clearer about the format. But taken on its own terms, The Price of Honey is a sharp, satisfying piece that does exactly what Moriarty does best: builds an apparently civilised social situation and then reveals the complicated dynamics of power, money, and female solidarity underneath it.
At under an hour, this is not a casual commitment – it is a single sitting, finished before you have properly settled in. Which means Moriarty has to establish character, situation, and theme at considerable speed, and she does it with the confidence of someone who knows exactly what she is doing.
About the Audiobook
Honey Beckett is in the car on the way to her husband Barney’s funeral, still adjusting to his sudden death. Barney Beckett was a tech billionaire – charismatic, innovative, romantic by turns, and always, fundamentally, in control. At the service, Honey finds herself drawn to sit with his three ex-wives: practical Rita, fiery Svetlana, ambitious Meredith. Each, in succession, had broken up the other’s marriage. They have every reason to be hostile to each other and to Honey. What happens instead is more interesting.
The story is set in a near-future with a light speculative gloss – Moriarty deploys the futuristic technology deftly, letting it emerge through the narrative rather than explaining it, which is the correct technique for short fiction where exposition is fatal. The central theme – what women who have all loved the same controlling man owe each other – is handled with intelligence and a satisfying amount of dark wit. The first twist arrives where you might expect it if you are paying attention; the second does not. As the opener for the Deadly Ambition collection (stories about greed, control, and the sinister underside of ambition), it sets the tone effectively.
The Narration
Anthea Greco narrates with a composed, wry energy that suits Moriarty’s register well. The prose at its best has a dry observational quality – a sense of watching characters with clear-eyed amusement – and Greco captures that without becoming detached. At under an hour, there is no room for a slow settling-in; she establishes the tone immediately and maintains it throughout. The Amazon Original Stories production is clean and professional.
What Readers Say
Kat called it “brilliant” with strong themes of “female revenge and solidarity”, noting the final twist caught her off guard even after she had anticipated the first. TriciaN, reading outside her usual genre, found it “quite enjoyable” and declared she would seek out more Moriarty. Richard Latham appreciated the subtlety of the futuristic elements – technology that reveals character rather than overwhelming plot. One listener gave it three stars purely because they had not realised it was a short story on purchase – a useful warning for potential listeners. Ivyjar, an existing Moriarty fan, called it “very good” and felt she was “breaking new ground”. Rated 3.7 out of 5 from 7 Audible UK reviews, though the lower average partly reflects format confusion from listeners expecting a full novel.
Who Should Listen?
Liane Moriarty fans who want more of her voice, particularly her interest in the social dynamics between women navigating powerful men. Also ideal for listeners who genuinely want something complete in under an hour – a commute, a lunch break, a bath. If you approach this as a very good short story by a reliable author working at the top of her craft, you will find it sharp, satisfying, and genuinely surprising at the end. If you purchase expecting a full novel and are then disappointed by the format, that disappointment is understandable but not a reflection of the quality of what is actually here.
Listen on Audible UK: Get The Price of Honey on Audible UK
