Book Review: Queen Bee

You guys.... it's only Thursday. It feels like it needs to be Friday and I need to be excited about sleeping in tomorrow. But no. It's only Thursday and I have one more hellish day of this incredibly long week. Ugh.

So I say this every June I think, but it isn't summer until I have the latest from Dorothea Benton Frank. It's always one of my go-to reads to kick off summer and her books always make me happy. 

Queen Bee - Dorothea Benton Frank 

A woman wounded by her past comes to Sullivan's Island, South Carolina to find new meaning in life and to find herself. As she takes up a new hobby of beekeeping, she begins to come into her own and rebuild her life. When a new friend comes in and she finally allows for something more than just "friendship", everyone will realize that life could use a little taste of sweetness.

In what is sure to be another classic, Dorothea Benton Frank weaves a fun tale of self-discovery, love, and friendship with her signature charming wit, indelible poignancy, and hallmark themes.

The thing about Dorothea Benton Frank is her books are always fun. You can always relate to them, you love the characters, as flawed as they sometimes are, because they are always like people you know. This could be your family and she always expertly nails what a personality is, what that personality would say or do in any given situation, and she can have you laughing and crying throughout the same book, and this one wasn't any different. 

So this one is a book around two sisters and a mother who really is demanding and Holly is the one left to care for her after her sister Leslie left the island. Well Leslie is back because she's had a pretty big shakeup in her life, but coming into the routine and life that Holly and their mom has isn't easy. They butt heads but ultimately they reconnect to each other and that's the main piece of this book. We also have a little romance thrown it, but don't call this a romance novel, we have bees (and Holly- who talks to her bees all of the time), the cute little boys next door, and tons of times where I laughed out loud. All of the characters are so completely set in their ways and aren't necessarily open minded (looking at you, Leslie) and throughout the book things change and happen and you can see them (slowly) turn more laid back and willing to roll with the punches versus "my way or the highway" and that's what makes you feel like this could be your family.

It really was the best, light, summery read to basically kick off my summer reading list. I also want to mention how much I love these books because every time I read them I want to go to this place. I feel like I've read enough of them that I would fit completely in with these fictional people and it would be totally normal. 

It should be noted that while this is Lowcountry Tales #12, you don't have to read anything before this, these really are stand alone novels, and I suggest you read any/all of the ones you can get your hands on! I really, really enjoyed this one and if you're looking for the perfect summer read for vacation, the beach, your backyard, wherever? This is the one you need. 

   

Thank you to TLC Book Tours and William Morrow for my review copy, all thoughts and opinions are my own. Let me know what you think of this one! This post contains affiliate links and that helps this blog keep going. What is on YOUR summer reading list? 

All the Single Ladies

Your summer reading list cannot be complete unless you have a book by Dorothea Benton Frank on it. It doesn't even matter which one, but lucky for you, she must have an intense writing schedule because she always seems to have a new one out in time for summer. (Which is incredibly smart because that means her book tours must be an absolute blast!)

All the Single Ladies - Dorothea Benton Frank

The perennial New York Times bestselling author returns with an emotionally resonant novel that illuminates the power of friendship in women’s lives, and is filled with her trademark wit, poignant and timely themes, sassy, flesh-and-blood characters, and the steamy Southern atmosphere and beauty of her beloved Carolina Lowcountry.

Few writers capture the complexities, pain, and joy of relationships—between friends, family members, husbands and wives, or lovers—as beloved New York Times bestselling author Dorothea Benton Frank. In this charming, evocative, soul-touching novel, she once again takes us deep into the heart of the magical Lowcountry where three amazing middle-aged women are bonded by another amazing woman’s death.

Through their shared loss they forge a deep friendship, asking critical questions. Who was their friend and what did her life mean? Are they living the lives they imagined for themselves? Will they ever be able to afford to retire? How will they maximize their happiness? Security? Health? And ultimately, their own legacies?

A plan is conceived and unfurls with each turn of the tide during one sweltering summer on the Isle of Palms. Without ever fully realizing how close they were to the edge, they finally triumph amid laughter and maybe even newfound love.

I absolutely am a Dorothea super fan. I have read almost all of her books (I'm working on completing them all!), I have purchased many copies of her books as gifts, and I look forward to summer every year because she always comes out with a great read to put you into the summer mindset. Another reason I love her books? They aren't heavy. They aren't depressing, they make you want to move to the Lowcountry area, you love all of the characters and it's such a great story. Always. She is always consistently great and I love it. 

In All the Single Ladies, we have three women who are middle age, and trying to start over. We have Carrie, who is on the hunt for yet another husband after the last prospect dropped dead at the altar, leaving her broke. We have Suzanne, who isn't sure her latest foray into dating is going to end well. Then Lisa, who struggles with her daughter's marijuana tour business, is financially unsteady and unlucky in love, meets Carrie and Suzanne after their friend Kathy dies. The three of them end up living together and getting sage advice from Miss Trudie, Suzanne's elderly grandmother. (And let's be honest here- I kind of want a Miss Trudie of my very own.) All three women navigate the waters or dating, all while trying to prove that Kathy's landlord is an absolute thief and stealing from Kathy's estate which ends in a kind of hilarious conclusion. Just picturing it in my head made me chuckle. 

This was such a fast and fun read, I highly recommend adding this to your summer reading! It's light, it's fun, and it'll be a great afternoon well spent soaking up the sun while reading this gem. 

You can purchase this through Amazon or Barnes & Noble. In the meantime, visit Dorothea Benton Frank's website, Facebook and Twitter! 

The Hurricane Sisters

I don't even need to read a synopsis of her books anymore, I just know I'm going to love them and I go for it with no questions asked.

The Hurricane Sisters - Dorothea Benton Frank

Best friends since the first day of classes at The College of Charleston, Ashley Anne Waters and Mary Beth Smythe, now 23 years old, live in Ashley's parents' beach house rent-free. Ashley is a gallery assistant who aspires to become an artist. Mary Beth, a gifted cook from Tennessee, works for a caterer while searching for a good teaching job. Though they both know what they want out of life, their parents barely support their dreams and worry for their precarious finances.

While they don't make much money, the girls do have a million-dollar view that comes with living in that fabulous house on Sullivans Island. Sipping wine on the porch and watching a blood-red sunset, Ashley and Mary Beth hit on a brilliant and lucrative idea. With a new coat of paint, the first floor would be a perfect place for soirees for paying guests. Knowing her parents would be horrified at the idea of common strangers trampling through their home, Ashley won't tell them. Besides, Clayton and Liz Waters have enough problems of their own.

A successful investment banker, Clayton is too often found in his pied-a-terre in Manhattan--which Liz is sure he uses to have an affair. And when will Ashley and her brother, Ivy, a gay man with a very wealthy and very Asian life partner--ever grow up? Then there is Maisie, Liz's mother, the family matriarch who has just turned eighty, who never lets Liz forget that she's not her perfect dead sister, Juliet.

For these Lowcountry women, an emotional hurricane is about to blow through their lives, wreaking havoc that will test them in unexpected ways, ultimately transforming the bonds they share.

First of all, every time I read one of Dorothea's books, I want to book a flight to Charleston. I swear to you- one of these days I'm going to spend a solid week on the beach and just soak it all in. Second of all, I love the cover of this book and I need that umbrella in my life. 

I'll start by telling you how much I absolutely adored this book. I love how it switches character point of view seamlessly. All of the characters are flawed, but you love them anyways. You don't get irritated with them. Even when Liz is critical of Maisie of something, yet Liz is guilty of it with her own daughter. It's just... family nailed down perfectly. The story is really about a family trying to figure out how to be happy together. They all have issues with each other and with themselves, but at the end of the day they are still a family- you have to work it out. 

In this story you'll deal with Ashley, who is an under employed college graduate kind of floundering through life. Ivy, who is the gay son living with his tech savvy partner in San Francisco and his parents are a bit unsure what to think about that. Maisie, 80 something and spry as ever living in sin with her "driver", Skipper and has a llama named after her. Then we have Liz and Clayton, both waffling through life as well and as their marriage hits the skids because Clayton is a bit of a dog, they have to figure out where they go from there. But let's not forget Mary Beth, Ashley's friend. She has issues of her own and while I thought her story line was just going to drop off into nothing, the author rallied and gave her a great ending that totally works. 

I will say that I was pleasantly surprised to see the author take on an issue such as domestic violence, especially with a younger demographic. I think it's really important for young women to take violence and abuse against them seriously. A really great point is brought up in the book: we always look to the women and say, "why don't they just leave" when really the question of "why do we let men behave this way" is what really should be asked. I just think that's so great and if nothing else, it raises awareness to the important issue of domestic violence. It's happening all around us in places we least expect it. But don't be fooled, it may have a serious story line running through it, but this is still going to be a really fun summer read. You will laugh, you will have your heart strings tugged a bit, and you're going to just love this book. You will, I promise. 

Dorothea has a Facebook you can keep up on and a website. Please check those out and see what other books you're missing out on. I've read quite a few and they are all really wonderfully written. 

The Last Original Wife

I am a pretty big fan of this author because her books make me want to go to South Carolina, every single time. I have read almost all of her Low Country books and was a fan of all of them, so naturally when I saw this tour become available I jumped for the opportunity.

The Last Original Wife - Dorothea Benton Frank

Leslie Anne Greene Carter is the last original wife among her husband's group of cronies. They've all traded in their first wives-the middle-aged women they long ago promised to love and cherish 'til death did them part-for riper peaches: younger . . . blonder . . . more enhanced models.

Leslie is proud of her status and the longevity of her marriage. Sure the spark isn't quite as bright and sometimes takes a little longer to flame. And it wouldn't be too much to ask if her husband paid just an itty bit more attention to her desires. But there's something to be said for a comfortable and deeply familiar relationship. Or at least she thinks until the day, out golfing with her husband and his friends, she slips into a manhole. And nobody realizes that she's gone.

That one misstep opens Leslie's eyes to the sham her perfect life has become. No longer will she be invisible. No longer will she accept being taken for granted. With the healing powers of South Carolina's lush white beaches, candy-colored sunsets, and fiesty and funny residents, Leslie is going to transform herself and reclaim the strong, vibrant, sexy woman she was meant to be.

The Last Original Wife is classic Dorothea Benton Frank: an intoxicating tale of friendship and love that is as refreshing as a soothing breeze across a golden lowcountry marsh and as invigorating as a dip in cool, salty waters on a sizzling South Carolina summer day.

First and foremost, I loved these characters particularly Leslie. Maybe because I could identify with Leslie and the way she speaks and her opinions on the "new wives" is something that you'd expect to come out of my mouth. I also love that she falls into a manhole and sustains some pretty terrible injuries and how nobody noticed she was gone, but more importantly, how her husband doesn't even think it's a big deal. Even more so, he's angry she had the audacity to fall into a hole in the first place and try to ruin his golf game he had to (gasp!!) schedule two years in advance. 

But the greater story here is how marriages fall apart over time for no concrete reason you can point out. Sure, there are instances (like the fall into the manhole) that you can point at and say that's when you knew things aren't the way they should be. Maybe they never were, but life keeps you busy and we always think someday it'll get better. Some times it doesn't and that's the story of Leslie and Wesley (her husband). It takes the manhole fall to spur her impromptu trip to Charleston and in her absence her husband and children realize all that she actually was doing for them. Some make changes, and some realize all the changes in the world can't fix how a person just is. But while gone, Leslie realizes how terribly things actually were going and she has to decide if she's willing to continue with good enough or strive for more. 

I'll be honest, the ending was good, but I really thought she was going to turn things around for the family. I can't really say any more than that because it ruins it for you. But when the book starts off as both main characters in counseling, I thought we'd have a different ending. I do love the ending though. I feel like both characters come to an agreement and realize the other's point of view for all of those years. It doesn't mean you agree, it means you understand it.

If you are a chick lit fan, a Dorothea Benton Frank fan, or just need a fun summer read? Pick this one up, you won't be disappointed and you'll find yourself laughing and relating to it on some level.