Queen Bee of Mimosa Branch

By Haywood Smith

Book Overview

Linwood Breedlove Scott's life has officially hit rock bottom. Her husband of thirty years has run off with a stripper. The IRS has taken everything but her coffee table. And her hot flashes are four-alarmers. The only thing that could make being flat-broke and fifty any worse is having to crawl home to her parents' house in Mimosa Branch, Georgia...which is exactly where she's headed. Lin's barely prepared for the loony bin that greets her, from her controlling, eighty-year-old mother and shockingly blunt father to her long-suffering Aunt Glory and her deranged Uncle Bedford who is convinced a cannibal lives under the furniture. Nor is she ready for the instant love-hate attraction she feels for her handsome new next-door neighbor. Trying to navigate her way through the second act of her life with nothing more than a prepaid calling card, a broken heart, and plenty of Prozac, Lin's about to discover that it's never too late for old friends, new romance, the ties of family, and a second chance to survive it all on the road to becoming the person you were always meant to be...

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312989393
• ISBN13: 9780312989392
• Release Date: October 2003
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press
• Length: 416 Pages
• Weight: 0.46 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 4.2" x 6.8"

Customer Reviews

Funny, Brilliant Southern Fiction

Well, as I've said many times before, sometimes you just have to be born and bred in the SOUTH to 'get' good Southern fiction. Those yankee reviewers are just out of the loop and need to spend a few summers below the Mason-Dixon line. And it helps to even better understand this one if you're a Boomer and have already experienced a hot flash/mood swing or two!! LOL! This book had me howling with laughter and nodding my head in appreciatation of Ms. Linwood's fabulous wit. And her family is priceless. Talk about typical Southern family!! I loved every single character. My only regret was that Lin didn't get a good romp in the hay with old Grant before she booted his butt out the door...but her munching the (unknown to her at the time) marijuana-laced brownies from her old lesbian pal more than made up for the disappointment. I highly recommend this book if you need a good laugh. Thanks for a great novel, Ms. Smith. How about a sequel???? Pretty please!!!

Heartwarming and inspirational!

Lin has been through a LOT. Yes, she's understandably bitter, but not overly so, and we root for her as she finds herself in this honeyed southern tale. This is a great book for curling up on the porch with your mint-spiced tea. Funny, poignant, and at times bittersweet, there is a lot to love about this book! I highly recommend it!

I loved this book!

I opened this book and couldn't put it down. It was so refreshing to read about a character who could laugh at herself as she started over and tried to date again after thirty years as a sheltered housewife. I laughed out loud right along with her. And I cried as she faced her father and her uncle's Alzheimers. I especially liked the wonderful small-town chartacters and the way Lin pulled the rug out from under the corrupt mayor to bring about truth, justice, and the American way. Wish we could clean house on the national level that easily. I can't wait to read Haywood Smith's next one.

Colorful,

Haywood Smith has typified the characters in small town Georgia.Her colorful descriptions and attention to the smallest detailsmake 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 peoplewho suffer from this dreadful disease could use any help making light of a sometimes dire situation. Read this book!