Rating: 
Summary: Recovery in a small Southern town
Review: "Queen Bee" is a book that explores the processes of self-examination and recovery from life's abrupt curves in the setting of a small Southern town that has both supportive as well as suffocating aspects. Fifty-year-old and newly divorced Linwood Scott did not want to move back to her childhood home in Mimosa Branch, GA to live with her overbearing, elderly parents and an aunt, uncle, and brother - all with medical or personal problems. But Lin's life had taken a dramatic left turn when her husband of thirty years completely depleted the family's financial resources in an out-of-control pursuit of an exotic dancer. Though leery of the closeness and nosiness of her hometown, Lin quickly finds support among old friends, even finding work in a drugstore where she worked as a teenager. The author has a keen eye for the Southern manners, think, and talk that Lin had gotten away from in her life as a suburban matron. But the nagging issue for Lin is to come to grips with her apparent lack of understanding of men. The author conveniently supplies the male element in the form of the smooth, handsome owner/pharmacist of her drugstore. Lin, despite many misgivings, simply cannot resist his charms and her own needs for self-reclamation. Though Lin gains strength from an affair, it is done at the sacrifice, as many readers may feel, of the doc to stereotypical characterization. In addition, the concerns of the political corruption of Mimosa Branch, a not uncommon fact of small-town Southern life, provide a useful device for the repair of Lin's self-assurance, as she becomes a part of a vigorous campaign to combat the forces of city hall. There may be just a bit too much feel-good about this novel. It is not totally implausible that many long-standing family issues can be resolved, a completely disconsolate and rejected woman finds herself and triumphs over an insensitive male, and the town's boss is sent packing, all within a few weeks, but belief may be stretched. Nonetheless, the novel does have a certain appeal.
PS. For non-Georgian readers, Mimosa Branch is the pseudonym for the very real town of Flowery Branch.
Rating: 
Summary: ok, but save your money...
Review: After reading the back cover of this book and surveying it I decided to pick this book up and settle in for a good laugh and spend a pleasurable few hours reading. For the most part this book did that and wasn't a bad read overall but, in the end, it just left something amiss. The characters were fun & likeable in the beginning and had a good start. This book had a lot of strong points in that it had some solid, grounding parts but was also very funny and had a whole lot of potential but until the last 3rd or so of it. I give this book only 3 stars however because torwards the last 3rd or so of the book it is definitely clear that all men are the scum of the earth. There are some good guys I promise! This book was good to begin w/ I thought and had a whole lot of potential but it quickly went from good to bad with the extreme man-bashing towards the end and though not a horrible book I would skip this title next time and stick to something a little less ridiculously man bashing where the men are more realistic and human.
Rating:
Summary: ok, but save your money...
Review: After reading the back cover of this book and surveying it I decided to pick this book up and settle in for a good laugh and spend a pleasurable few hours reading. For the most part this book did that and wasn't a bad read overall but, in the end, it just left something amiss. The characters were fun & likeable in the beginning and had a good start. This book had a lot of strong points in that it had some solid, grounding parts but was also very funny and had a whole lot of potential but until the last 3rd or so of it. I give this book only 3 stars however because torwards the last 3rd or so of the book it is definitely clear that all men are the scum of the earth. There are some good guys I promise! This book was good to begin w/ I thought and had a whole lot of potential but it quickly went from good to bad with the extreme man-bashing towards the end and though not a horrible book I would skip this title next time and stick to something a little less ridiculously man bashing where the men are more realistic and human.
Rating: 
Summary: Books get NO BETTER than this!
Review: After thirty years of marriage Linwood Scott's husband ran off with a stripper. With no money and a broken heart, Lin was forced to return to the home of her eccentric parents near Atlanta, Georgia. She knew things would be crazy when she pulled up to the house and witnessed Uncle Bedford stride out the front door in nothing but Depends, carrying a TV tray with his shoes on it, yelling accusations at the empty air about a boy stealing his shoes. ***** This gives readers the PERFECT example of how hilarious this novel was for me to read! The book is overflowing with such unforgettable characters, quotes (from long deceased people), and a few serious messages. This is the type of book that begins when the main character has hit rock bottom and readers cheer them on as they pull themselves up and become even better than before! I cannot recommend it highly enough and will never let this book go! ***** Reviewed by Detra Fitch.
Rating:
Summary: hilarious slice of life
Review: At nineteen, she married Phil to flee her controlling mother who told her never to come back. Now turning fifty, Linwood Breedlove Scott is an ex wife as Phil deserted her for a stripper taking their life savings with him. With no place to go, Lin returns to the family home in Mimosa Branch, Georgia. Her first sight as she parks near the house is seeing her Alzheimer's victimized Uncle Bedford running outside wearing only Depends. That might be tough to deal with, but Lin loves her uncle and will help care for him. Her mother Miss Mamie with her "I told you so" will be more difficult to contend with. However, Lin refuses to bury herself in pity or even in a proper southern woman's cocoon as defined by Miss Mamie. Instead Lin obtains a job at the drugstore and finds herself attracted to her boss Grant Owens. His butt is so tight, pennies could not fall out, but the new Lin decides to loosen his change as she begins the seduction of Grant. The QUEEN BEE OF MIMOSA BRANCH is a witty look at a woman struggling to find herself though she is middle age. The tale works best when Lin provides amusing acerbic asides to the reader that focus on what she wants, which is often opposite of what she does. Thought the tale turns into a warm buttercup near the end, fans of small town Southern living seen filtered through the eyes of a former practitioner will gain plenty of delectation from Haywood Smith's hilarious slice of life. Harriet Klausner
Rating:
Summary: Colorful,
Review: Haywood Smith has typified the characters in small town Georgia.
Her colorful descriptions and attention to the smallest details
make this a much better read than the typical "southern belle"
humor novels. As to the review from Library Journal, I agree that Alzheimer's is not funny but those who care for the people
who suffer from this dreadful disease could use any help making light of a sometimes dire situation. Read this book!
Rating:
Summary: The best of the south
Review: Haywood Smith's novel is filled with humor and poignant moments which come straight from the heart. You'll laugh, you'll cry, and you'll root for Lin Breedlowe as she overcomes a devastating turn of events in her life and returns to her small town roots where she discovers that there is truly no place like home or no greater love than a mother for a child.
Rating:
Summary: Queen Bee of Mimosa Branch
Review: I began to feel the characters in this book were family. In every family there is irration, aggravation , embarrasment and love. If we are lucky love prevails. The Southern nuances made me feel the breeze on the front porch with an ice cold drink in hand. Ms. Smith has done a wonderful job with sexy, smart, fuuny and stong women----hay, aren't we all.
Rating:
Summary: Riveting!
Review: I brought this book home, sat down to read a few pages and surfaced 4 hours later, having read half the book! Characters leap right off the page and Linwood grabs you by the heart from the get-go. Her determination to reclaim her life will make you cheer. The plot is well done and the dialog is so true to life you can almost hear these people talking.
If you don't see glimpses of yourself somewhere in this story, you'll recognize someone you know. The story is not only funny, but warm, wise, pithy and more complex than it seems at the beginning.
Veteran author Haywood Smith has taken a step in a bold new direction and the result is pure gold. I can't wait to see what she comes out with next!
Rating: 
Summary: It's hard to believe life is this predictable!
Review: I enjoy easy light-hearted reads in the summer. They're great to pick up, put down, stick in your beach bag, etc. However, I do prefer the book to have some "meat" to it or at least be well-written. I can't say that "Queen Bee" fills either bill. The dialouge is trite, the plot is predictable, and the characters are one-dimensional. While likeable, Lin, her whole family, and other characters in the book have no depth. Being from the south, and Georgia in particular, I could appreciate some of the references she made to the cultural climate here. My mind's eye can see Mimosa Branch,the drug store, the tub of flowers on the porch, and even feel the summer heat. It's too bad the author didn't develop the characters as well as the setting. However, I hope that anyone outside the southern region will not read this book and assume this is the "status quo". About a third of the way through the book I realized it wasn't very good and by two thirds of the way through I skimmed to the predictable end only because I can't stand to not finish a book that I start. If you're still interested - it's an easy read, there is no violence or raunchy sex and you won't mind if you drop it in the pool or get sunscreen on it.
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