Summary
"If I could only read one writer from now until the end of my life, it would be Dorothea Benton Frank." --Elin Hilderbrand, the New York Times bestselling author
Immerse yourself in the enchanting world of New York Times bestselling author Dorthea Benton Frank's Carolina Lowcountry in this evocative tale that returns at long last to her beloved Sullivan's Island.
Beekeeper Holly McNee Kensen quietly lives in a world of her own on Sullivan's Island, tending her hives and working at the local island library. Holly calls her mother The Queen Bee because she's a demanding hulk of a woman. Her mother, a devoted hypochondriac, might be unaware that she's quite ill but that doesn't stop her from tormenting Holly. To escape the drama, Holly's sister Leslie married and moved away, wanting little to do with island life. Holly's escape is to submerge herself in the lives of the two young boys next door and their widowed father, Archie.
Her world is upended when the more flamboyant Leslie returns and both sisters, polar opposites, fixate on what's happening in their neighbor's home. Is Archie really in love with that awful ice queen of a woman? If Archie marries her, what will become of his little boys? Restless Leslie is desperate for validation after her imploded marriage, squandering her favors on any and all takers. Their mother ups her game in an uproarious and theatrical downward spiral. Scandalized Holly is talking to her honey bees a mile a minute, as though they'll give her a solution to all the chaos. Maybe they will.
Queen Bee is a classic Lowcountry Tale, warm, wise and hilarious, roars with humanity and a dropperful of whodunit added for good measure by an unseen hand. In her twentieth novel, Dorothea Benton Frank brings us back to her beloved island with an unforgettable story where the Lowcountry magic of the natural world collides with the beat of the human heart.
Dorothea Benton Frank was born and raised on Sullivan's Island, South Carolina. She is the New York Times bestselling author of the Lowcountry Tales Series which includes the books Sullivan's Island and Plantation. Her title's have often made the Best Seller List such as: Porch Lights, The Last Original Wife, The Hurricane Sisters, All the Single Ladies, All Summer Long, Return to Sullivans Island, and Same Beach, Next Year.
Dorothea Olivia Benton was born on Sept. 12, 1951, on Sullivan¿s Island. Her father, William, died when she was 4; her mother, Dorothea Cecilia Blanchard, was a homemaker who raised her children with the two men she married after Mr. Benton¿s death. After graduating from the Fashion Institute of America in Atlanta, she became a buyer for Kerrison¿s Department Store in Charleston and then an executive for a sportswear line in New York and San Francisco. After marrying Mr. Frank, an investment banker, in 1983, she left the fashion industry, had two children and raised money for various charities. She Shifted to writing novels because it suited her storytelling style. She was soon turning out a book a year. Dorothea Benton Frank passed away on September 2, 2019 at the age of 67.
(Bowker Author Biography)
