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Queen Bee
Fifty-year-old Agatha Doyle loves her empty nest – until hot flushes, a pair of killer heels and an overbearing man who won’t stop talking conspire to change her life. In one moment of madness, she unwittingly becomes a heroine to women everywhere.
But can she become the heroine of her own life?
Sometimes you just have to wing it.
But can she become the heroine of her own life?
Sometimes you just have to wing it.
432 pages, Paperback
Published February 2, 2023
174 people are currently reading
478 people want to read
About the author
Ciara Geraghty
16 books201 followersCiara Geraghty is an Irish bestselling author. She lives in Dublin with one husband and three children.
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April 2, 2023
I haven't laughed this hard in years!
Queen Bee by Ciara Geraghty is about a menopausal Irish writer, Agatha Doyle, who's about to turn fifty.
She's bamboozled by the changes in her body that include: insomnia, hot flashes, night sweats, extreme moodiness/crankiness, brain fog and many other smaller and bigger irritations. Why didn't anybody warn her? How is she going to write her next historical novel when she's got brain fog, and can't concentrate on anything?
This novel was delightful, that rare combination of unintentionally funny, sarcasm, language play and situational humour, with a splash of Irishiness, which made it even more charming.
From one contrary woman to another, Agatha Doyle, I salute you!
Shout-out to Angeline Ball whose splendid narration made me feel like I was in the room with Agatha.
This is going to be on my 2023 favourite reads of the year.
Queen Bee by Ciara Geraghty is about a menopausal Irish writer, Agatha Doyle, who's about to turn fifty.
She's bamboozled by the changes in her body that include: insomnia, hot flashes, night sweats, extreme moodiness/crankiness, brain fog and many other smaller and bigger irritations. Why didn't anybody warn her? How is she going to write her next historical novel when she's got brain fog, and can't concentrate on anything?
This novel was delightful, that rare combination of unintentionally funny, sarcasm, language play and situational humour, with a splash of Irishiness, which made it even more charming.
From one contrary woman to another, Agatha Doyle, I salute you!
Shout-out to Angeline Ball whose splendid narration made me feel like I was in the room with Agatha.
This is going to be on my 2023 favourite reads of the year.
May 6, 2023
A contrarian review of a Misery-menopause-memoir in which Menopause: the movie, the pin-up girl for menopause, torture-porn, the fuck-fuck cult—fucking the patriarchal capitalists, and the Queen Bee in the back garden, collide. Then it all becomes the book My Life In Bits and Pieces, which is not a memoir, insisted fifty-year-old Agatha Doyle. And it is NOT her sixteenth historical fiction novel which was supposed to flesh out
1) the Holocaust;
2) WWII;
3) anything to do with the British royal family;
4) or royalty in general;
5) WW1;
6) let’s just say War, in general;
7) Also: celebrities (any1)
Neither was it a soupçon of a nuclear family in Dublin with her husband Luke, his restaurant, The Full Shilling, her two boys Aidan and Colm, and her dad.
Note to self: the restaurant with its traditional menu serves as a metaphor for traditional cultures and preferences on the way out.
And Lukes's auld clientele? They were fast-disappearing (read: dying)
Nope, it was a melodramatic soup of resentments between menopause and the patriarchy, in particular the cis, middle-aged white men with their capitalist, misogynistic plot to defraud women of money and self-esteem. Fuck the patriarchy, says Menopause. All mansplainers will...be...emasculated.
Agatha's You Can Quit notebooks become a menopausal diary of Agatha, the involuntary, accidental firebrand social warrior with at least 50 symptoms of ... let's call it a farewell to Periodgate and hello to ... well... spontaneous combustion. You know, when The Period becomes a Full Stop.
Side note from Agatha: Remember, all worker bees are female. And wait for it...MARY arrived in Bethlehem on a donkey.
Talk about emasculation and metaphors. Meet 'Poor Dermot' the neighbor.
That was only the beginning of 'Poor Dermot's' emasculation: his karma-esque encounters with destiny. Remember all worker bees are female. Well, even they had enough of him and swarmed over the fence...
Agatha, the Queen Bee of this saga, had to rescue him. Her alter ego, the real queen bee of the hive, and Agatha's actual metaphor were missing in action. That was a sweet, sweet moment to behold.
Note from the contrarian reviewer: The word f..ck features more or less 108 times in the book. Hence the contrarian reviewer's coining of a fuck fuck cult. There is no correlation between the primary use of the word and the salacious descriptions of just about every single character's libidinous escapades. You're in for an operatic extravaganza if that's your music, dear reader.
You know how it goes: just say f..ck when your vocabulary is lacking. It's so totally okay, okay?!
Nothing to see here, folks.
So by the way, the word ‘menopause’ features around 200 times.
Nevertheless, this is a funny, often hilarious menopause-driven book, with colorful characters populating the LGBTQ+ community, as well as multiple one-liners resulting in peals of laughter.
So, if you prefer menopause fictionalized as, actually, a protagonist in a satirical send-up of social mores and values in Agatha's circle of touchy-feelys in today's 'mindful' world, this is a worthy read.
The book is a diary, Agatha. Get real.
THE GRIPES:
The contrarian reviewer found some piffle elements doing the rounds in the book. For instance, those ...endless....info-dumping pages, filled with unnecessary menopause sufferers' emails and social media messages to Agatha. Almost ad infinitum. Someone must have stopped that. Argh! Added to that are the notated fifty menopause symptoms as chapter headings: my word, one after the other—the precursors of events in each new chapter, which confirms that this book is not story-, or character-driven, but subject-driven. Menopause it is. Agatha the character becomes Agatha the search engine, and she is mighty proud of it. The Bridget Jones Diary format was used. In this instance, the too many symptoms, with way too many characters to support them, became long-winded and boring. Boring. Boring. Boring.
NOW FOR MY OWN SOAPBOX—sorry!
Just a suggestion should you wish to skip these preachy pages, indulge in a web surge yourself. You do that if you want the facts quickly and nicely summarized, without a basket full of opinions/ideologies/emotional rip-offs hidden behind fictional characters.
First reality check: menopause exists since Eve. Until Agatha hit the social warrior scene, it was never weaponized.
A quick search will confirm the thousands of articles and scientific reports spanning over decades (yep the capitalistic-piggish kind of endeavor, you know, the women's groups, medical practitioners, health companies) summarizing these FIFTY symptoms. The openly plagiarized articles, included, and written by journalists who mimic each other in a propaganda campaign can be taken with a ton of salt. Hit the primary sources.
The scientific reports, presented by medical practitioners, or academic research institutes in particular will confirm or condemn the use of Hormone Replacement Therapy as the solution to this natural condition bestowed on all biological entities with child-bearing capabilities. Yes, all XX creatures are programmed to begin and end the child-bearing cycles. They are also naturally programmed to manage these cycles—with mostly decorum and dignity built in. However, menopausal schizophrenia, and many other psychological issues, occur, and treatment of the origin(Menopause) is often overlooked or ignored.
Interesting though is that there is a natural ending to this period, which the Chinese describe as a Second Spring; a new beginning. In most cultures, it is acknowledged, respected, supported, and honored. The alleged stigma and shame in these menopause sufferers' odes in this book possibly add an emotionally-driven fairy tale element to Agatha's Woman Matters campaign. Possibly. (MY SOAPBOX JUST TANKED. I'M OFF!)
In Agatha's world, where there is money to be made from the 'condition', the campaign is launched as though occurring for the first time ever, yes out of the blue, yes, never talked about by anybody, and yes, had a whiff of stigma and shame. All the aforementioned are at last done for and the word can now be said loud and proud, as if for the first time ever. Also, Women Matters is now on it. Agatha is unofficially declared the Queen of the world for talking about it. Menopause-friendly policies in the workplace are coming up. Embrace or be canceled. And yes, just fuck nature too while we're at it. We need HRT, as in toot sweet.
Well, Women Matters can cancel and defund while raking in billions in the media circus. However, oh pardon the irony, there is MOTHER NATURE—who created Man; allegedly discovered HER mistake; created women; and now shakes her head in wonder. SHE cannot be canceled or defunded. Now take that with a touch of chamomile and ginger tea, girls. And that's a fact.
Menopause will be menopause. Oops, I almost added ...now get over it, but I won't. Fact is, decorum and dignity were genetically supplied, remember, but then later on, humans, for financial gains, added support groups, medicines, and psychologists - all in the name of moral and physical support. If there is no money in it, no one will bother. That's a promise. Now a new echo chamber preferred to add its own elements: a circus and its clowns for financial benefits—and also in the name of moral, mental, and physical support. So noble. I'm in tears.
Everything is for sale, not only by capitalist pigs but also by warriors of all kinds. In this case, it is menopause's turn to be ... well, exploited.
Tongue in cheek, in case you miss it: The whole saga lost me when Agatha wore her mustard-colored silk shirt tucked into her black leather skirt—a fabulously tight and short affair—, and her favorite blood-red velvet shoes with kitten hills. For crying out loud, Agatha! Why did you do this to me!? I'm offended and traumatized. Mustard, black, red. Oy! (Don't mind me, I will get over it.)
That was a metaphor too since Agatha pulled her shoes(old mores, values, beliefs) off on stage and delivered a passionate, menopausal-induced speech, which became Menopause: The Movie and made her famous on Instagram, Facebook, Tik Tok, in women's groups, on radio, television, magazines, and everywhere social media could reach out to. The old Agatha was kicked off to make way for the new Agatha, right in that moment. Agatha, the historical fiction novelist, became Agatha the Social Justice Warrior when she chucked off those shoes, which made her feet swell like feverish glands and made her do a sort of hybrid waddle-walk interlaced with groans that seemed to come directly from her feet in her fast-shrinking shoes. It felt like childbirth through her feet.
All in all, it was a funny, satirical, entertaining read, if you are not mainlining on fact-checking too much, and appreciate the power of metaphors. And if you are okay with getting force-fed menopause along with tofu and vegetable stir fry, carrot sticks with honey on toast, tea(decaf or herbal), water(sparkling or still), gluten-free brownies, for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and everything else in between, or beyond.
I enjoyed this read. Believe it or not. Highly entertaining it was. Three stars mean it was a good read.
With this, and toot sweet, it's toodle-pip on menopause for now.
1) the Holocaust;
2) WWII;
3) anything to do with the British royal family;
4) or royalty in general;
5) WW1;
6) let’s just say War, in general;
7) Also: celebrities (any1)
Neither was it a soupçon of a nuclear family in Dublin with her husband Luke, his restaurant, The Full Shilling, her two boys Aidan and Colm, and her dad.
Note to self: the restaurant with its traditional menu serves as a metaphor for traditional cultures and preferences on the way out.
And Lukes's auld clientele? They were fast-disappearing (read: dying)
Nope, it was a melodramatic soup of resentments between menopause and the patriarchy, in particular the cis, middle-aged white men with their capitalist, misogynistic plot to defraud women of money and self-esteem. Fuck the patriarchy, says Menopause. All mansplainers will...be...emasculated.
Agatha's You Can Quit notebooks become a menopausal diary of Agatha, the involuntary, accidental firebrand social warrior with at least 50 symptoms of ... let's call it a farewell to Periodgate and hello to ... well... spontaneous combustion. You know, when The Period becomes a Full Stop.
Side note from Agatha: Remember, all worker bees are female. And wait for it...MARY arrived in Bethlehem on a donkey.
Talk about emasculation and metaphors. Meet 'Poor Dermot' the neighbor.
Poor Dermot: Isn't it well for you ladies, nothing to do all day but sit around and drink tea and eat biscuits.
Agatha: I stood up and he took a step back and placed his foot in the bowl of water Melissa had filled for LuLaBelle, which tipped over and soaked his argyle socks.
That's karma fucking with you, Dermot.
That was only the beginning of 'Poor Dermot's' emasculation: his karma-esque encounters with destiny. Remember all worker bees are female. Well, even they had enough of him and swarmed over the fence...
Agatha, the Queen Bee of this saga, had to rescue him. Her alter ego, the real queen bee of the hive, and Agatha's actual metaphor were missing in action. That was a sweet, sweet moment to behold.
Note from the contrarian reviewer: The word f..ck features more or less 108 times in the book. Hence the contrarian reviewer's coining of a fuck fuck cult. There is no correlation between the primary use of the word and the salacious descriptions of just about every single character's libidinous escapades. You're in for an operatic extravaganza if that's your music, dear reader.
You know how it goes: just say f..ck when your vocabulary is lacking. It's so totally okay, okay?!
Nothing to see here, folks.
So by the way, the word ‘menopause’ features around 200 times.
Nevertheless, this is a funny, often hilarious menopause-driven book, with colorful characters populating the LGBTQ+ community, as well as multiple one-liners resulting in peals of laughter.
So, if you prefer menopause fictionalized as, actually, a protagonist in a satirical send-up of social mores and values in Agatha's circle of touchy-feelys in today's 'mindful' world, this is a worthy read.
The book is a diary, Agatha. Get real.
THE GRIPES:
The contrarian reviewer found some piffle elements doing the rounds in the book. For instance, those ...endless....info-dumping pages, filled with unnecessary menopause sufferers' emails and social media messages to Agatha. Almost ad infinitum. Someone must have stopped that. Argh! Added to that are the notated fifty menopause symptoms as chapter headings: my word, one after the other—the precursors of events in each new chapter, which confirms that this book is not story-, or character-driven, but subject-driven. Menopause it is. Agatha the character becomes Agatha the search engine, and she is mighty proud of it. The Bridget Jones Diary format was used. In this instance, the too many symptoms, with way too many characters to support them, became long-winded and boring. Boring. Boring. Boring.
NOW FOR MY OWN SOAPBOX—sorry!
Just a suggestion should you wish to skip these preachy pages, indulge in a web surge yourself. You do that if you want the facts quickly and nicely summarized, without a basket full of opinions/ideologies/emotional rip-offs hidden behind fictional characters.
First reality check: menopause exists since Eve. Until Agatha hit the social warrior scene, it was never weaponized.
A quick search will confirm the thousands of articles and scientific reports spanning over decades (yep the capitalistic-piggish kind of endeavor, you know, the women's groups, medical practitioners, health companies) summarizing these FIFTY symptoms. The openly plagiarized articles, included, and written by journalists who mimic each other in a propaganda campaign can be taken with a ton of salt. Hit the primary sources.
The scientific reports, presented by medical practitioners, or academic research institutes in particular will confirm or condemn the use of Hormone Replacement Therapy as the solution to this natural condition bestowed on all biological entities with child-bearing capabilities. Yes, all XX creatures are programmed to begin and end the child-bearing cycles. They are also naturally programmed to manage these cycles—with mostly decorum and dignity built in. However, menopausal schizophrenia, and many other psychological issues, occur, and treatment of the origin(Menopause) is often overlooked or ignored.
Interesting though is that there is a natural ending to this period, which the Chinese describe as a Second Spring; a new beginning. In most cultures, it is acknowledged, respected, supported, and honored. The alleged stigma and shame in these menopause sufferers' odes in this book possibly add an emotionally-driven fairy tale element to Agatha's Woman Matters campaign. Possibly. (MY SOAPBOX JUST TANKED. I'M OFF!)
In Agatha's world, where there is money to be made from the 'condition', the campaign is launched as though occurring for the first time ever, yes out of the blue, yes, never talked about by anybody, and yes, had a whiff of stigma and shame. All the aforementioned are at last done for and the word can now be said loud and proud, as if for the first time ever. Also, Women Matters is now on it. Agatha is unofficially declared the Queen of the world for talking about it. Menopause-friendly policies in the workplace are coming up. Embrace or be canceled. And yes, just fuck nature too while we're at it. We need HRT, as in toot sweet.
Well, Women Matters can cancel and defund while raking in billions in the media circus. However, oh pardon the irony, there is MOTHER NATURE—who created Man; allegedly discovered HER mistake; created women; and now shakes her head in wonder. SHE cannot be canceled or defunded. Now take that with a touch of chamomile and ginger tea, girls. And that's a fact.
Menopause will be menopause. Oops, I almost added ...now get over it, but I won't. Fact is, decorum and dignity were genetically supplied, remember, but then later on, humans, for financial gains, added support groups, medicines, and psychologists - all in the name of moral and physical support. If there is no money in it, no one will bother. That's a promise. Now a new echo chamber preferred to add its own elements: a circus and its clowns for financial benefits—and also in the name of moral, mental, and physical support. So noble. I'm in tears.
Everything is for sale, not only by capitalist pigs but also by warriors of all kinds. In this case, it is menopause's turn to be ... well, exploited.
Tongue in cheek, in case you miss it: The whole saga lost me when Agatha wore her mustard-colored silk shirt tucked into her black leather skirt—a fabulously tight and short affair—, and her favorite blood-red velvet shoes with kitten hills. For crying out loud, Agatha! Why did you do this to me!? I'm offended and traumatized. Mustard, black, red. Oy! (Don't mind me, I will get over it.)
That was a metaphor too since Agatha pulled her shoes(old mores, values, beliefs) off on stage and delivered a passionate, menopausal-induced speech, which became Menopause: The Movie and made her famous on Instagram, Facebook, Tik Tok, in women's groups, on radio, television, magazines, and everywhere social media could reach out to. The old Agatha was kicked off to make way for the new Agatha, right in that moment. Agatha, the historical fiction novelist, became Agatha the Social Justice Warrior when she chucked off those shoes, which made her feet swell like feverish glands and made her do a sort of hybrid waddle-walk interlaced with groans that seemed to come directly from her feet in her fast-shrinking shoes. It felt like childbirth through her feet.
All in all, it was a funny, satirical, entertaining read, if you are not mainlining on fact-checking too much, and appreciate the power of metaphors. And if you are okay with getting force-fed menopause along with tofu and vegetable stir fry, carrot sticks with honey on toast, tea(decaf or herbal), water(sparkling or still), gluten-free brownies, for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and everything else in between, or beyond.
I enjoyed this read. Believe it or not. Highly entertaining it was. Three stars mean it was a good read.
With this, and toot sweet, it's toodle-pip on menopause for now.
November 25, 2023
Queen Bee is the ninth novel by best-selling Irish author, Ciara Geraghty. At nearly fifty, and with both her twenty-fifth wedding anniversary and the deadline for the first draft of her sixteenth novel fast approaching, Agatha Doyle wonders if she wouldn’t rather an empty nest than the one she’s got: her elder son, Colm is trying to heal his broken heart by hiding under the duvet; his younger brother, Aidan has dropped out of Uni to keep bees and grow organic vegetables in Agatha’s backyard (a chicken coop also threatens); her husband, Luke is stressing over his failing café with its leaky roof and his twin brother’s demand for his half share.
Meanwhile, Agatha’s widowed-ten-months Dad is in the spare room while his house is being renovated; and his new girlfriend Leonora’s dog, LuLaBelle is in a fancy kennel in the backyard while her mistress is in the hospital getting a new pair of hips: a temporary dog-sitting that may extend when the couple goes salsa dancing in Cuba. Agatha lacks anyone to moan to as her best friend since school has moved to LA to work.
And maybe Agatha can use those distractions as excuses for the fact that she hasn’t written a word of her historical novel featuring a pair of witches (the advance for which would really help with that leaky roof), but the truth is that, unbeknown to her agent and editor, she has writers’ block, and the constellation of menopausal symptoms she’s been trying to ignore aren’t helping. She’s not telling anyone about the menopause, sure “I’ll be treated differently. I’ll be othered. I’ll be diminished. Over the hill. That’s what people will say. Over the hill and far, far away.”
Is it any wonder she has a meltdown at a writers’ festival? Her diatribe about being menopausal is posted on TikTok under “Menopause: the movie”. Agatha becomes an instant internet sensation: “Invitations to speak on panels, radio and TV interviews, articles you’ve been asked to write. Everybody wants a piece of pin-up girl for menopausal women everywhere.” The fact that they’re paying gigs (not many of those around for a menopausal writer with writer’s block) can’t hurt, and the presenter on her first interview remarks about the listeners’ responses “You seem to have touched a national nerve there, Agatha”
An unexpected side effect of this fame is the half-her-age radio producer who “found me attractive and interesting and funny in no particular order.” Does that help with the feeling that Luke is neglecting her in favour of his new, young, attractive waitress, Fernanda from Brazil?
Her agent wants her to come up with “a pithy soundbite solution for menopause and we’re golden. Simples! Oh, and if you could put a bit more of yourself in your content: a map of your emotional landscape”, all a bit too personal for Agatha, but messages from other menopausal women assure her that she is not alone. It’s heartening to hear “Agatha’s taken the sting of stigma out of the equation. We should have done that a long time ago. In fact, it never should have been stigmatised in the first place.”
Geraghty tells Agatha’s tale as a series of entries in a menopause diary (as recommended by Dr Lennon-call-me-‘Susie’), and the dialogue, which includes exchanges with her dead Mam, is presented in the format of a movie script. While her protagonist does jump to a somewhat predictable conclusion, we might attribute that to her hormonal state. As well as being topical and thought-provoking, Geraghty’s latest is very entertaining.
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Harper Collins UK.
Meanwhile, Agatha’s widowed-ten-months Dad is in the spare room while his house is being renovated; and his new girlfriend Leonora’s dog, LuLaBelle is in a fancy kennel in the backyard while her mistress is in the hospital getting a new pair of hips: a temporary dog-sitting that may extend when the couple goes salsa dancing in Cuba. Agatha lacks anyone to moan to as her best friend since school has moved to LA to work.
And maybe Agatha can use those distractions as excuses for the fact that she hasn’t written a word of her historical novel featuring a pair of witches (the advance for which would really help with that leaky roof), but the truth is that, unbeknown to her agent and editor, she has writers’ block, and the constellation of menopausal symptoms she’s been trying to ignore aren’t helping. She’s not telling anyone about the menopause, sure “I’ll be treated differently. I’ll be othered. I’ll be diminished. Over the hill. That’s what people will say. Over the hill and far, far away.”
Is it any wonder she has a meltdown at a writers’ festival? Her diatribe about being menopausal is posted on TikTok under “Menopause: the movie”. Agatha becomes an instant internet sensation: “Invitations to speak on panels, radio and TV interviews, articles you’ve been asked to write. Everybody wants a piece of pin-up girl for menopausal women everywhere.” The fact that they’re paying gigs (not many of those around for a menopausal writer with writer’s block) can’t hurt, and the presenter on her first interview remarks about the listeners’ responses “You seem to have touched a national nerve there, Agatha”
An unexpected side effect of this fame is the half-her-age radio producer who “found me attractive and interesting and funny in no particular order.” Does that help with the feeling that Luke is neglecting her in favour of his new, young, attractive waitress, Fernanda from Brazil?
Her agent wants her to come up with “a pithy soundbite solution for menopause and we’re golden. Simples! Oh, and if you could put a bit more of yourself in your content: a map of your emotional landscape”, all a bit too personal for Agatha, but messages from other menopausal women assure her that she is not alone. It’s heartening to hear “Agatha’s taken the sting of stigma out of the equation. We should have done that a long time ago. In fact, it never should have been stigmatised in the first place.”
Geraghty tells Agatha’s tale as a series of entries in a menopause diary (as recommended by Dr Lennon-call-me-‘Susie’), and the dialogue, which includes exchanges with her dead Mam, is presented in the format of a movie script. While her protagonist does jump to a somewhat predictable conclusion, we might attribute that to her hormonal state. As well as being topical and thought-provoking, Geraghty’s latest is very entertaining.
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Harper Collins UK.
May 5, 2024
Funny and real, filled with sarcastic, almost brutal at times humour, but most importantly well observed and realistic portrait of a woman living with a menopause.
Menopause affects women in many different ways. Agatha Doyle, our heroine, is definitely having a hard time with it and yet somehow she ends up being a pin up girl for all the menopausal women out there.
Witty and smart, Queen Bee is a great read.
Menopause affects women in many different ways. Agatha Doyle, our heroine, is definitely having a hard time with it and yet somehow she ends up being a pin up girl for all the menopausal women out there.
Witty and smart, Queen Bee is a great read.
February 18, 2023
“I am a menopausal woman, standing here before you all in a lather of sweat, terrified that I might forget a word in the middle of a sentence with the threat of brain fog that looms over me on a daily basis as I sit at my desk and attempt to write to a deadline. I have insomnia, none of my clothes fit me, and there’s a chance I’m more irritable than I used to be.”
Accepting an invitation to join a panel at the Flights of Fancy Writers Festival feels like a gamble for Agatha Doyle who is supposed to be writing her next bestseller, but is instead documenting her menopause symptoms in a diary which her GP insists will be helpful in reducing her stress. Agatha has her doubts. Still, despite brain fog, hot flushes, resentment, and blistered, bloodied stumps, Agatha is holding it all together until a Beardy Man from the author asks the wrong question and Agatha’s ensuing rant goes viral, making her an icon for menopausal women everywhere.
As a woman experiencing the vagaries of the onset of menopause myself, I really enjoyed Queen Bee. Written in the form of a diary, entries often begin a list of symptoms that are all too familiar to me.
Those symptoms, which include (but are not limited to) insomnia, resentment, rage, brain fog, hot flushes and anxiety are bad enough, but add a full house that includes Agatha’s recently widowed father, her father’s girlfriend’s dog, LulaBelle; her heartbroken son Colm; her college drop out son Aiden, who is building a beehive in the backyard; and her husband Luke, plus financial concerns regarding their family business, and it’s new gorgeous waitress, it’s no wonder Agatha is overwhelmed, and stymied by writers block. She is rather bewildered by her new ‘heroine’ status, particularly since she feels like she’s not handling things well at all.
I couldn’t help but empathise with Agatha and found her to be a very appealing character. I enjoyed her sense of humour, which is quite heavy on the sarcasm, and her blunt assessments of everything. Agatha’s ‘conversations’ with her late mother add a layer of poignancy to the story, and her struggle to maintain her equilibrium attracts sympathy.
Witty, smart and ingenuous, Queen Bee is an entertaining, easy read.
Accepting an invitation to join a panel at the Flights of Fancy Writers Festival feels like a gamble for Agatha Doyle who is supposed to be writing her next bestseller, but is instead documenting her menopause symptoms in a diary which her GP insists will be helpful in reducing her stress. Agatha has her doubts. Still, despite brain fog, hot flushes, resentment, and blistered, bloodied stumps, Agatha is holding it all together until a Beardy Man from the author asks the wrong question and Agatha’s ensuing rant goes viral, making her an icon for menopausal women everywhere.
As a woman experiencing the vagaries of the onset of menopause myself, I really enjoyed Queen Bee. Written in the form of a diary, entries often begin a list of symptoms that are all too familiar to me.
Those symptoms, which include (but are not limited to) insomnia, resentment, rage, brain fog, hot flushes and anxiety are bad enough, but add a full house that includes Agatha’s recently widowed father, her father’s girlfriend’s dog, LulaBelle; her heartbroken son Colm; her college drop out son Aiden, who is building a beehive in the backyard; and her husband Luke, plus financial concerns regarding their family business, and it’s new gorgeous waitress, it’s no wonder Agatha is overwhelmed, and stymied by writers block. She is rather bewildered by her new ‘heroine’ status, particularly since she feels like she’s not handling things well at all.
I couldn’t help but empathise with Agatha and found her to be a very appealing character. I enjoyed her sense of humour, which is quite heavy on the sarcasm, and her blunt assessments of everything. Agatha’s ‘conversations’ with her late mother add a layer of poignancy to the story, and her struggle to maintain her equilibrium attracts sympathy.
Witty, smart and ingenuous, Queen Bee is an entertaining, easy read.
February 2, 2023
‘I hate the word ‘menopause’. Something battered and forlorn about it, like a pulpy, dog-eared paperback in a charity shop.’
Queen Bee is a hilarious yet perceptive read as Ciara takes her readers on a wonderful menopausal journey. If that ‘m’ word resonates with you then you are sure to completely identify with the lead character, Agatha. This is the book to read, not only for the humour, but for the absolute truths provided as Ciara rips away all the myths surrounding this time of life for women.
‘I am a menopausal woman, standing here before you all in a lather of sweat, terrified that I might forget a word in the middle of a sentence with the threat of brain fog that looms over me on a daily basis … I have insomnia, none of my clothes fit me, and there’s a chance I’m more irritable than I used to be. Although my husband may have a different view on that.’
This is a story that speaks to women and it is sure to capture attention as it makes women feel no longer alone on this often silent journey. Yes, on the surface it's about a woman coming to terms with the changes taking place in her body, however, it is that and so much more. Always open to reads about menopause, this was the book I needed to read as it provided a healthy tonic to this condition many of us experience at varying levels of discomfort. It’s full of laughter and sarcasm but there are real moments that hit home and will cause readers to pause and ponder. Ultimately, the message is that you are not alone in this life changing period.
‘ME: What is happening?
AIDAN: I think you’ve touched a collective nerve?
ME: I didn’t mean to.
AIDAN: It’s a good thing.
ME: How is it a good thing?
AIDAN: From the comments, it looks like there’s a lot of
people out there who are glad you’ve come out as
menopausal.’
Agatha is a wonderful character who captures all the many and varying aspects of experiencing menopause - not only on a personal level but also to those nearest and dearest. I loved the style of writing and the way the narrative was laid out, my only complaint being that it might be a tad too long in places.
‘… there must be a reason it contains the word ‘pause’. Normal service will resume presently. I thought I could just wait it out. Wait for normal service to resume.
But no.’
If the main theme of this book speaks to you or women you may know, then I cannot but highly recommend you read it. I am so very happy to see more and more books being written about this topic in both non/fiction. It is well overdue to deliver credence for these women and debunking any myths or misconceptions about this critical time in a woman’s life.
‘Just because you’re middle-aged and menopausal, it doesn’t mean that it’s all over.
There are still things to learn. Relationships to tend.
Dances to perfect.
So that’s what we did.
We danced.
We kept on dancing.’
This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. The quoted material may have changed in the final release.
Queen Bee is a hilarious yet perceptive read as Ciara takes her readers on a wonderful menopausal journey. If that ‘m’ word resonates with you then you are sure to completely identify with the lead character, Agatha. This is the book to read, not only for the humour, but for the absolute truths provided as Ciara rips away all the myths surrounding this time of life for women.
‘I am a menopausal woman, standing here before you all in a lather of sweat, terrified that I might forget a word in the middle of a sentence with the threat of brain fog that looms over me on a daily basis … I have insomnia, none of my clothes fit me, and there’s a chance I’m more irritable than I used to be. Although my husband may have a different view on that.’
This is a story that speaks to women and it is sure to capture attention as it makes women feel no longer alone on this often silent journey. Yes, on the surface it's about a woman coming to terms with the changes taking place in her body, however, it is that and so much more. Always open to reads about menopause, this was the book I needed to read as it provided a healthy tonic to this condition many of us experience at varying levels of discomfort. It’s full of laughter and sarcasm but there are real moments that hit home and will cause readers to pause and ponder. Ultimately, the message is that you are not alone in this life changing period.
‘ME: What is happening?
AIDAN: I think you’ve touched a collective nerve?
ME: I didn’t mean to.
AIDAN: It’s a good thing.
ME: How is it a good thing?
AIDAN: From the comments, it looks like there’s a lot of
people out there who are glad you’ve come out as
menopausal.’
Agatha is a wonderful character who captures all the many and varying aspects of experiencing menopause - not only on a personal level but also to those nearest and dearest. I loved the style of writing and the way the narrative was laid out, my only complaint being that it might be a tad too long in places.
‘… there must be a reason it contains the word ‘pause’. Normal service will resume presently. I thought I could just wait it out. Wait for normal service to resume.
But no.’
If the main theme of this book speaks to you or women you may know, then I cannot but highly recommend you read it. I am so very happy to see more and more books being written about this topic in both non/fiction. It is well overdue to deliver credence for these women and debunking any myths or misconceptions about this critical time in a woman’s life.
‘Just because you’re middle-aged and menopausal, it doesn’t mean that it’s all over.
There are still things to learn. Relationships to tend.
Dances to perfect.
So that’s what we did.
We danced.
We kept on dancing.’
This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. The quoted material may have changed in the final release.
April 4, 2024
DNF @ 44%. I just don't think menopause is that funny..? I say, as someone going through one, at a much earlier than normal age. Not saying we should hide it and not speak of it, but it's just a medical condition/status. Would someone write a funny book about migraines? Athlete's foot? Fibromyalgia? No? So why are women's health issues being exploited as something inherently humorous? Oh, I know the author has good intentions and it's all about destigmatising and blah blah blah, but I just don't care for this approach. In my early 20s I somehow found myself watching Menopause the Musical at a theatre due to my mother doing her usual schtick of not researching events properly before dragging me along and I felt much the same about the subject then. I figured it was my age and not being able to relate to it, but many years and hormone replacement therapy later, I feel much the same: somewhat repulsed at this way of laughing about women's health issues. It feels like their importance is being reduced and discounted to the level of a cheap joke. Ha ha, hot flushes! So fucking hilarious!
/Sarcasm
Anyway. It's an easy read but I wasn't gelling with any of the characters, the humour wasn't exactly my style but it was "OK", but ultimately I lost interest after one too many eyerolls at the main character acting like she's the first person ever to publicly speak out about menopause. Picked it up again after a few weeks and couldn't muster up any interest in the story.
/Sarcasm
Anyway. It's an easy read but I wasn't gelling with any of the characters, the humour wasn't exactly my style but it was "OK", but ultimately I lost interest after one too many eyerolls at the main character acting like she's the first person ever to publicly speak out about menopause. Picked it up again after a few weeks and couldn't muster up any interest in the story.
February 19, 2023
My Rating ~ 4.5*
“She’s earned her stripes. But the hive’s misbehaving . . ."
Queen Bee by Ciara Geraghty was published February 2nd with Harper Collins Ireland. Cecelia Ahern described it as ‘Bridget Jones meets menopause . . . sharp, funny and real’.
For every female of every age, for any man brave enough to take a punt, Queen Bee is a universally relatable book that will 100% resonate with so many women. But it is also just as important a read for all family members, partners, work colleagues – everyone really. Queen Bee centres around Agatha Doyle, a married woman with two adult sons who have both suddenly returned to the family home. Agatha is a writer who is struggling to meet the demands of life. Her editor is expecting her next book any day now but Agatha is unable to focus or to get her thoughts straightened out. Agatha is exhausted from lack of sleep due to insomnia. She is constantly berating everyone, angry with everything and just generally not herself. Her anxiety levels are at fever pitch and she feels like no one is paying her any attention. Agatha feels invisible.
Many will immediately recognise Agatha’s stage in life. Agatha is fifty years of age and is embarking on that life-altering journey is every woman’s life, The Menopause. I have to be honest here and say I am fifty-two years old and have just started on a course of HRT, so every word in this book screamed at me. I laughed, I tutted, I got angry, I empathised and I just thoroughly enjoyed every single part of Queen Bee.
A few months ago I was dizzy, exhausted, my brain was in a total fug and I just couldn’t see light in my day. I thought it was just me. A wonderful friend suggested I might consider HRT as I was clearly experiencing multiple symptoms of menopause. Within a short time that overwhelming feeling inexplicably lifted. I started to feel a little more of a bounce in my step. I’m still waking up in the early hours, so sleep deprivation is very much still part of my day, but I can feel myself returning to me.
In Queen Bee, Agatha Doyle unexpectedly becomes a pin up girl for menopausal women everywhere after she completely loses the plot at a book festival. A question was posed by an audience member, clearly bypassing her, the only female on the panel. Agatha had enough. Her reaction and words went viral and soon Agatha’s presence was in demand on all media platforms. Women were writing to her in their droves telling her about their own personal experiences and Agatha soon realised that she had opened a box that could not, and should not, ever be shut.
But while Agatha was busy representing menopausal women everywhere, her personal life was fracturing. The distance between Luke, her husband, and herself was getting wider by the day. Her father was fast moving on in a new relationship following the fairly recent passing of Agatha’s mother. Her best friend was living in LA and caught up in love. Both her sons were seemingly in some kind of limbo in their lives and Agatha was in a dither as to how fix everything. The media events offered a wonderful distraction but eventually Agatha had to face a few truths and figure out how to get her house in order.
Queen Bee is a wonderfully warm-hearted and funny read but also a very important and considered read. Ciara Geraghty has explored that taboo of subjects, The Menopause, and injected humour into the experiences of one fabulous lady, Agatha Doyle. Written in diary format, we journey alongside Agatha as she navigates this new world she finds herself in. From her early morning ramblings to her daily updates on her life, reading Queen Bee is like reading the diary of a real person.
Queen Bee provides a candid and very perceptive insight into the life of a menopausal woman. Agatha Doyle could be any woman. She is every woman. Agatha Doyle is me. With a lightness of tone, Ciara Geraghty has written a highly entertaining and perceptive read that hits the nail on the head in so many ways. The witty dialogue lightens the subject matter brilliantly, while still conveying the importance of its message. Highly recommend to all.
“She’s earned her stripes. But the hive’s misbehaving . . ."
Queen Bee by Ciara Geraghty was published February 2nd with Harper Collins Ireland. Cecelia Ahern described it as ‘Bridget Jones meets menopause . . . sharp, funny and real’.
For every female of every age, for any man brave enough to take a punt, Queen Bee is a universally relatable book that will 100% resonate with so many women. But it is also just as important a read for all family members, partners, work colleagues – everyone really. Queen Bee centres around Agatha Doyle, a married woman with two adult sons who have both suddenly returned to the family home. Agatha is a writer who is struggling to meet the demands of life. Her editor is expecting her next book any day now but Agatha is unable to focus or to get her thoughts straightened out. Agatha is exhausted from lack of sleep due to insomnia. She is constantly berating everyone, angry with everything and just generally not herself. Her anxiety levels are at fever pitch and she feels like no one is paying her any attention. Agatha feels invisible.
Many will immediately recognise Agatha’s stage in life. Agatha is fifty years of age and is embarking on that life-altering journey is every woman’s life, The Menopause. I have to be honest here and say I am fifty-two years old and have just started on a course of HRT, so every word in this book screamed at me. I laughed, I tutted, I got angry, I empathised and I just thoroughly enjoyed every single part of Queen Bee.
A few months ago I was dizzy, exhausted, my brain was in a total fug and I just couldn’t see light in my day. I thought it was just me. A wonderful friend suggested I might consider HRT as I was clearly experiencing multiple symptoms of menopause. Within a short time that overwhelming feeling inexplicably lifted. I started to feel a little more of a bounce in my step. I’m still waking up in the early hours, so sleep deprivation is very much still part of my day, but I can feel myself returning to me.
In Queen Bee, Agatha Doyle unexpectedly becomes a pin up girl for menopausal women everywhere after she completely loses the plot at a book festival. A question was posed by an audience member, clearly bypassing her, the only female on the panel. Agatha had enough. Her reaction and words went viral and soon Agatha’s presence was in demand on all media platforms. Women were writing to her in their droves telling her about their own personal experiences and Agatha soon realised that she had opened a box that could not, and should not, ever be shut.
But while Agatha was busy representing menopausal women everywhere, her personal life was fracturing. The distance between Luke, her husband, and herself was getting wider by the day. Her father was fast moving on in a new relationship following the fairly recent passing of Agatha’s mother. Her best friend was living in LA and caught up in love. Both her sons were seemingly in some kind of limbo in their lives and Agatha was in a dither as to how fix everything. The media events offered a wonderful distraction but eventually Agatha had to face a few truths and figure out how to get her house in order.
Queen Bee is a wonderfully warm-hearted and funny read but also a very important and considered read. Ciara Geraghty has explored that taboo of subjects, The Menopause, and injected humour into the experiences of one fabulous lady, Agatha Doyle. Written in diary format, we journey alongside Agatha as she navigates this new world she finds herself in. From her early morning ramblings to her daily updates on her life, reading Queen Bee is like reading the diary of a real person.
Queen Bee provides a candid and very perceptive insight into the life of a menopausal woman. Agatha Doyle could be any woman. She is every woman. Agatha Doyle is me. With a lightness of tone, Ciara Geraghty has written a highly entertaining and perceptive read that hits the nail on the head in so many ways. The witty dialogue lightens the subject matter brilliantly, while still conveying the importance of its message. Highly recommend to all.
May 31, 2023
⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
Queen Bee
by Ciara Geraghty
What a complete hoot this turned out to be!
Agatha Doyle is a Dublin author who is about to turn 50. She really needs to get into the chair and start churning out words for her next novel, but she just can't.
Agatha is distracted, nauseous, irritated, bloated, hot, irritated, fed up with her new doctor, annoyed with her gormless husband who might be sniffing around the gorgeous new SouthAmerican hire, not impressed with her two grown sons and aged father returning home to her previously empty nest and losing patience with the neighbours. Did I say irritated?
When a mansplaining, patronising, middle aged CIS white man speaks over her at an author event, she erupts into a rant about the patriarchy's response to menopause, which is captured on video and goes viral across multiple platforms, catapulting her unwittingly into the position of menopause guru.
I cannot describe how funny this is, how relatable and how true. Through Agatha's losing of her last marble I spotted so many things that I myself have suppressed or negated or sacrificed to keep the show on the road or to minimise the drama.
Narrated by the fabulous Angeline Ball, she perfectly captures the put-upon but fiesty, taking-no-more-of-your-shit Dubliner that I recognise so well (it's me 😂).
It's a long time since I started an audiobook and dropped everything else because the voice was so compelling. This is VERY under the radar and might be difficult to source in the US, but every woman should listen to this, regardless of age, but especially if the M word is on the horizon.
Yes. Menopause.
#bookreview #irishbookstagram #irishliterature #menopause #menopauseliterature #humour #irishhumour #queenbee #ciarageraghty
Queen Bee
by Ciara Geraghty
What a complete hoot this turned out to be!
Agatha Doyle is a Dublin author who is about to turn 50. She really needs to get into the chair and start churning out words for her next novel, but she just can't.
Agatha is distracted, nauseous, irritated, bloated, hot, irritated, fed up with her new doctor, annoyed with her gormless husband who might be sniffing around the gorgeous new SouthAmerican hire, not impressed with her two grown sons and aged father returning home to her previously empty nest and losing patience with the neighbours. Did I say irritated?
When a mansplaining, patronising, middle aged CIS white man speaks over her at an author event, she erupts into a rant about the patriarchy's response to menopause, which is captured on video and goes viral across multiple platforms, catapulting her unwittingly into the position of menopause guru.
I cannot describe how funny this is, how relatable and how true. Through Agatha's losing of her last marble I spotted so many things that I myself have suppressed or negated or sacrificed to keep the show on the road or to minimise the drama.
Narrated by the fabulous Angeline Ball, she perfectly captures the put-upon but fiesty, taking-no-more-of-your-shit Dubliner that I recognise so well (it's me 😂).
It's a long time since I started an audiobook and dropped everything else because the voice was so compelling. This is VERY under the radar and might be difficult to source in the US, but every woman should listen to this, regardless of age, but especially if the M word is on the horizon.
Yes. Menopause.
#bookreview #irishbookstagram #irishliterature #menopause #menopauseliterature #humour #irishhumour #queenbee #ciarageraghty
April 17, 2023
Author Agatha Doyle is about to turn 50 and has started to keep a diary about her menopause symptoms, as per her doctor’s request. Things like brain fog are not helping her writing, Agatha has big time writer’s block. An suddenly outburst at a writing event has Agatha going viral. All of a sudden she’s found herself to be a spokeswoman for menopause! Can she help all these other women or will things closer to home break Agatha?
It’s refreshing to have a book with an older female protagonist, speaking about something as normal but still seen as a taboo as menopause. I mostly listened to this, Angeline Ball does a great job at the narration and bringing Agatha to life. Agatha as a character is endearing, flawed at times but very human. It highlights not only how difficult it is to experience menopause but also a mother trying to juggle things like working, a husband, children and an older parent
While the book touches on some serious issues, everything is done with a light touch, the book was very witty, something that is definitely boosted with Angeline Ball’s narration
It’s refreshing to have a book with an older female protagonist, speaking about something as normal but still seen as a taboo as menopause. I mostly listened to this, Angeline Ball does a great job at the narration and bringing Agatha to life. Agatha as a character is endearing, flawed at times but very human. It highlights not only how difficult it is to experience menopause but also a mother trying to juggle things like working, a husband, children and an older parent
While the book touches on some serious issues, everything is done with a light touch, the book was very witty, something that is definitely boosted with Angeline Ball’s narration
March 6, 2024
4 funny and real Stars
Queen Bee by Ciara Geraghty is about a menopausal Irish writer, Agatha Doyle, who's about to turn fifty. She goes into the pressures on Woman of a certain age. I laughed so much throughout this book and although I'm not a menopausal woman I could relate to some of it.
I listened to the audio through Borrowbox with my local library. I loved it and have recommend it to all the girls in the work. Geraghty has a great way of telling a story and having you laughing throughout.
Highly recommend.
Queen Bee by Ciara Geraghty is about a menopausal Irish writer, Agatha Doyle, who's about to turn fifty. She goes into the pressures on Woman of a certain age. I laughed so much throughout this book and although I'm not a menopausal woman I could relate to some of it.
I listened to the audio through Borrowbox with my local library. I loved it and have recommend it to all the girls in the work. Geraghty has a great way of telling a story and having you laughing throughout.
Highly recommend.
November 2, 2023
This book started with promise. I did enjoy the first 100ish pages but then it just got very repetitive. I got to the point where I just skipped to the end to see what happened.
Just skip this book. It needed to be tighter, edited.
Just skip this book. It needed to be tighter, edited.
abandoned
October 9, 2023Abandoned 14% in. Daily diary prompts are not my thing.
July 24, 2023
Well, this was quite a read and I’ve got some thoughts. 😊
I really liked the idea that formed this story. Goodness knows that it’s all too ‘easy’ these days to achieve online fame and/or notoriety, so Agatha going viral after a rant for middle-aged women and against the patriarchy is more than realistic. What’s more, the underlying idea that menopause is something that is either denied or ignored isn’t too far from the everyday truth either. It’s a bit like other issues that exclusively affect women. Menstruation, pregnancy, and menopause are ‘inconveniences’ that the world (read: mostly men) has decided we should just put with while shutting up about them. Men-flu on the other hand… Don’t get me started.
Did you see what happened there? I was only trying to review a book and within one paragraph I find myself ‘pulling an Agatha’, be it less publicly.
But, back to my thoughts on the book. So, the instant fame premise works very well. The same can be said for Agatha’s anger and exasperation about…well, basically the world at large. Except that, I’m not sure anybody, no matter how hormonal, is angry and snarky all the time. And with Agatha, it does appear to be a continuous anger rather than an ebb and flow of mood swings; coming and going just as the hot flushes and night sweats do. Of course, we only know about Agatha’s moods because she writes about them, and like most people who keep a journal, she writes about the emotional high and low lights and not about the mundane ‘meh’ moments in between. Which is fair enough, and there are one or two moments when we get glimpses of a more mellow Agatha, but I would like to have seen a few more of those. And I would have liked it if she hadn’t grumbled about every nice thought she had or any good deed she did. Not only because that would have made Agatha more sympathetic but also because it would create a (bigger) contrast with all her anger and frustration.
But enough about that. That long paragraph makes Agatha’s anger sound like a huge issue, which it wasn’t. It’s just something I noticed along the way.
This story is firmly and very well set in the world we live in right now. Grown-up children returning to live at home and not having any real prospects of setting up a life for themselves independently; it’s sadly all to recognisable. I’m guessing that anybody who’s been in a relationship for a long(er) period of time is aware of how easily things can slip into a rut. And goodness knows that Agatha isn’t the only one struggling to juggle work, home, love, friendships, children, parents, and whatever else the world decides to throw our way.
I may have given you the impression that Queen Bee is a heavy, somewhat dark story. And that couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, Queen Bee is a smoothly written, light-hearted, and effortless read. At times Agatha’s thoughts are laugh-out-loud funny and I found myself chuckling more than once. There isn’t a boring moment in this story as the plot pushes you along until it reaches its climax.
As for that climax…Let’s just say it used two plot devices I’m not fond of and leave it at that.
Overall, I really liked Queen Bee. Just like in her earlier books, Ciara Geraghty created a fascinating main character that pulled me into her story and didn’t let go until I’d reached the final page. The side characters were well-presented and interesting. The way this rather light-hearted read managed to raise real and complicated issues is impressive. And I think it’s wonderful such a strong and feisty voice was given to menopause. I can only hope it will resonate.
In other words: Queen Bee is a good story well told.
I really liked the idea that formed this story. Goodness knows that it’s all too ‘easy’ these days to achieve online fame and/or notoriety, so Agatha going viral after a rant for middle-aged women and against the patriarchy is more than realistic. What’s more, the underlying idea that menopause is something that is either denied or ignored isn’t too far from the everyday truth either. It’s a bit like other issues that exclusively affect women. Menstruation, pregnancy, and menopause are ‘inconveniences’ that the world (read: mostly men) has decided we should just put with while shutting up about them. Men-flu on the other hand… Don’t get me started.
Did you see what happened there? I was only trying to review a book and within one paragraph I find myself ‘pulling an Agatha’, be it less publicly.
But, back to my thoughts on the book. So, the instant fame premise works very well. The same can be said for Agatha’s anger and exasperation about…well, basically the world at large. Except that, I’m not sure anybody, no matter how hormonal, is angry and snarky all the time. And with Agatha, it does appear to be a continuous anger rather than an ebb and flow of mood swings; coming and going just as the hot flushes and night sweats do. Of course, we only know about Agatha’s moods because she writes about them, and like most people who keep a journal, she writes about the emotional high and low lights and not about the mundane ‘meh’ moments in between. Which is fair enough, and there are one or two moments when we get glimpses of a more mellow Agatha, but I would like to have seen a few more of those. And I would have liked it if she hadn’t grumbled about every nice thought she had or any good deed she did. Not only because that would have made Agatha more sympathetic but also because it would create a (bigger) contrast with all her anger and frustration.
But enough about that. That long paragraph makes Agatha’s anger sound like a huge issue, which it wasn’t. It’s just something I noticed along the way.
This story is firmly and very well set in the world we live in right now. Grown-up children returning to live at home and not having any real prospects of setting up a life for themselves independently; it’s sadly all to recognisable. I’m guessing that anybody who’s been in a relationship for a long(er) period of time is aware of how easily things can slip into a rut. And goodness knows that Agatha isn’t the only one struggling to juggle work, home, love, friendships, children, parents, and whatever else the world decides to throw our way.
I may have given you the impression that Queen Bee is a heavy, somewhat dark story. And that couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, Queen Bee is a smoothly written, light-hearted, and effortless read. At times Agatha’s thoughts are laugh-out-loud funny and I found myself chuckling more than once. There isn’t a boring moment in this story as the plot pushes you along until it reaches its climax.
As for that climax…Let’s just say it used two plot devices I’m not fond of and leave it at that.
Overall, I really liked Queen Bee. Just like in her earlier books, Ciara Geraghty created a fascinating main character that pulled me into her story and didn’t let go until I’d reached the final page. The side characters were well-presented and interesting. The way this rather light-hearted read managed to raise real and complicated issues is impressive. And I think it’s wonderful such a strong and feisty voice was given to menopause. I can only hope it will resonate.
In other words: Queen Bee is a good story well told.
November 25, 2023
Queen Bee is the ninth novel by best-selling Irish author, Ciara Geraghty. The audio version is narrated by Angeline Ball. At nearly fifty, and with both her twenty-fifth wedding anniversary and the deadline for the first draft of her sixteenth novel fast approaching, Agatha Doyle wonders if she wouldn’t rather an empty nest than the one she’s got: her elder son, Colm is trying to heal his broken heart by hiding under the duvet; his younger brother, Aidan has dropped out of Uni to keep bees and grow organic vegetables in Agatha’s backyard (a chicken coop also threatens); her husband, Luke is stressing over his failing café with its leaky roof and his twin brother’s demand for his half share.
Meanwhile, Agatha’s widowed-ten-months Dad is in the spare room while his house is being renovated; and his new girlfriend Leonora’s dog, LuLaBelle is in a fancy kennel in the backyard while her mistress is in the hospital getting a new pair of hips: a temporary dog-sitting that may extend when the couple goes salsa dancing in Cuba. Agatha lacks anyone to moan to as her best friend since school has moved to LA to work.
And maybe Agatha can use those distractions as excuses for the fact that she hasn’t written a word of her historical novel featuring a pair of witches (the advance for which would really help with that leaky roof), but the truth is that, unbeknown to her agent and editor, she has writers’ block, and the constellation of menopausal symptoms she’s been trying to ignore aren’t helping. She’s not telling anyone about the menopause, sure “I’ll be treated differently. I’ll be othered. I’ll be diminished. Over the hill. That’s what people will say. Over the hill and far, far away.”
Is it any wonder she has a meltdown at a writers’ festival? Her diatribe about being menopausal is posted on TikTok under “Menopause: the movie”. Agatha becomes an instant internet sensation: “Invitations to speak on panels, radio and TV interviews, articles you’ve been asked to write. Everybody wants a piece of pin-up girl for menopausal women everywhere.” The fact that they’re paying gigs (not many of those around for a menopausal writer with writer’s block) can’t hurt, and the presenter on her first interview remarks about the listeners’ responses “You seem to have touched a national nerve there, Agatha”
An unexpected side effect of this fame is the half-her-age radio producer who “found me attractive and interesting and funny in no particular order.” Does that help with the feeling that Luke is neglecting her in favour of his new, young, attractive waitress, Fernanda from Brazil?
Her agent wants her to come up with “a pithy soundbite solution for menopause and we’re golden. Simples! Oh, and if you could put a bit more of yourself in your content: a map of your emotional landscape”, all a bit too personal for Agatha, but messages from other menopausal women assure her that she is not alone. It’s heartening to hear “Agatha’s taken the sting of stigma out of the equation. We should have done that a long time ago. In fact, it never should have been stigmatised in the first place.”
Geraghty tells Agatha’s tale as a series of entries in a menopause diary (as recommended by Dr Lennon-call-me-‘Susie’), and the dialogue, which includes exchanges with her dead Mam, is presented in the format of a movie script. While her protagonist does jump to a somewhat predictable conclusion, we might attribute that to her hormonal state. As well as being topical and thought-provoking, Geraghty’s latest is very entertaining.
Meanwhile, Agatha’s widowed-ten-months Dad is in the spare room while his house is being renovated; and his new girlfriend Leonora’s dog, LuLaBelle is in a fancy kennel in the backyard while her mistress is in the hospital getting a new pair of hips: a temporary dog-sitting that may extend when the couple goes salsa dancing in Cuba. Agatha lacks anyone to moan to as her best friend since school has moved to LA to work.
And maybe Agatha can use those distractions as excuses for the fact that she hasn’t written a word of her historical novel featuring a pair of witches (the advance for which would really help with that leaky roof), but the truth is that, unbeknown to her agent and editor, she has writers’ block, and the constellation of menopausal symptoms she’s been trying to ignore aren’t helping. She’s not telling anyone about the menopause, sure “I’ll be treated differently. I’ll be othered. I’ll be diminished. Over the hill. That’s what people will say. Over the hill and far, far away.”
Is it any wonder she has a meltdown at a writers’ festival? Her diatribe about being menopausal is posted on TikTok under “Menopause: the movie”. Agatha becomes an instant internet sensation: “Invitations to speak on panels, radio and TV interviews, articles you’ve been asked to write. Everybody wants a piece of pin-up girl for menopausal women everywhere.” The fact that they’re paying gigs (not many of those around for a menopausal writer with writer’s block) can’t hurt, and the presenter on her first interview remarks about the listeners’ responses “You seem to have touched a national nerve there, Agatha”
An unexpected side effect of this fame is the half-her-age radio producer who “found me attractive and interesting and funny in no particular order.” Does that help with the feeling that Luke is neglecting her in favour of his new, young, attractive waitress, Fernanda from Brazil?
Her agent wants her to come up with “a pithy soundbite solution for menopause and we’re golden. Simples! Oh, and if you could put a bit more of yourself in your content: a map of your emotional landscape”, all a bit too personal for Agatha, but messages from other menopausal women assure her that she is not alone. It’s heartening to hear “Agatha’s taken the sting of stigma out of the equation. We should have done that a long time ago. In fact, it never should have been stigmatised in the first place.”
Geraghty tells Agatha’s tale as a series of entries in a menopause diary (as recommended by Dr Lennon-call-me-‘Susie’), and the dialogue, which includes exchanges with her dead Mam, is presented in the format of a movie script. While her protagonist does jump to a somewhat predictable conclusion, we might attribute that to her hormonal state. As well as being topical and thought-provoking, Geraghty’s latest is very entertaining.
March 4, 2023
I have a friend who is going through (early) menopause and I can only imagine with it is like. Also, why is the word ‘menopause’ often whispered, like ‘menstruation’ or ‘sanitary pads’? Why are we, as women, ashamed to talk about normal, natural body functions? It can be how we were brought up; I realise that. That is possibly also why I don’t personally know much about menopause. Yes, I’ve heard about the unbearable hot flushes and insomnia, and the ‘dangers’ of using HRTs, but apart from that, not much. And it is something this is definitely going to happen to me (soon!) as well.
So, let’s talk about “Queen Bee”. Agatha Doyle has got the same questions. Why don’t we talk about menopause? Is it because it is a condition that only affects women? Why aren't more money spent on clinical research, on information campaigns? Which are great questions!
“I am a menopausal woman, standing here before you all in a lather of sweat, terrified that I might forget a word in the middle of a sentence with the threat of brain fog that looms over me on a daily basis … I have insomnia, none of my clothes fit me, and there’s a chance I’m more irritable than I used to be. Although my husband may have a different view on that.”
And that made her an unlikely and unexpected social media superstar, a heroine for menopausal women everywhere. Needless to say, Agatha is feeling very dazed and overwhelmed by it all. Add family difficulties, writer’s block, personal insecurities and financial worries into the mix, it is no wonder that she feels she’s losing her grip on reality.
The chapters in the book read like journal entries, and I enjoyed that style of writing immensely. It supplies intimate personal insight, and I often giggled at the dialogue happening in either Agatha’s mind, or her relating real life situations.
I do think however, that “Queen Bee” is very much aimed at a more “mature” age group, who will emphasise and sympathise with what Agatha is living through. It was quite informative to me as well, as I was (blissfully) unaware of the mental health implications, like rage, resentment, etc. that may come with menopause. At least, now I am prepared!
This is such a witty, smart and funny story, and I literally laughed out loud at times. I throughly enjoyed (and identified with) Agatha’s character. She is sarcastic, has got a wicked sense of humour, and a cynical way of assessing her world. It is also highly insightful, candid and a true menopausal myth buster.
“Just because you’re middle-aged and menopausal, it doesn’t mean that it’s all over. There are still things to learn. Relationships to tend. Dances to perfect. So that’s what we did. We danced. We kept on dancing.”
With thanks to Jonathan Ball Publishers for this ARC copy. “Queen Bee” will be published locally (South Africa) in March 2023.
So, let’s talk about “Queen Bee”. Agatha Doyle has got the same questions. Why don’t we talk about menopause? Is it because it is a condition that only affects women? Why aren't more money spent on clinical research, on information campaigns? Which are great questions!
“I am a menopausal woman, standing here before you all in a lather of sweat, terrified that I might forget a word in the middle of a sentence with the threat of brain fog that looms over me on a daily basis … I have insomnia, none of my clothes fit me, and there’s a chance I’m more irritable than I used to be. Although my husband may have a different view on that.”
And that made her an unlikely and unexpected social media superstar, a heroine for menopausal women everywhere. Needless to say, Agatha is feeling very dazed and overwhelmed by it all. Add family difficulties, writer’s block, personal insecurities and financial worries into the mix, it is no wonder that she feels she’s losing her grip on reality.
The chapters in the book read like journal entries, and I enjoyed that style of writing immensely. It supplies intimate personal insight, and I often giggled at the dialogue happening in either Agatha’s mind, or her relating real life situations.
I do think however, that “Queen Bee” is very much aimed at a more “mature” age group, who will emphasise and sympathise with what Agatha is living through. It was quite informative to me as well, as I was (blissfully) unaware of the mental health implications, like rage, resentment, etc. that may come with menopause. At least, now I am prepared!
This is such a witty, smart and funny story, and I literally laughed out loud at times. I throughly enjoyed (and identified with) Agatha’s character. She is sarcastic, has got a wicked sense of humour, and a cynical way of assessing her world. It is also highly insightful, candid and a true menopausal myth buster.
“Just because you’re middle-aged and menopausal, it doesn’t mean that it’s all over. There are still things to learn. Relationships to tend. Dances to perfect. So that’s what we did. We danced. We kept on dancing.”
With thanks to Jonathan Ball Publishers for this ARC copy. “Queen Bee” will be published locally (South Africa) in March 2023.
March 12, 2023
Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review. My first time reading this author and this book was my everything from start to finish. Being Perimenopausal myself, it was all very relatable and had me laughing along and nodding in agreement throughout it. I enjoyed that it was written in diary update format, I found it caught my attention from the start and has me chuckling to myself even when I wasn't reading it. Take this example:
“I am a menopausal woman, standing here before you all in a lather of sweat, terrified that I might forget a word in the middle of a sentence with the threat of brain fog that looms over me on a daily basis as I sit at my desk and attempt to write to a deadline. I have insomnia, none of my clothes fit me, and there’s a chance I’m more irritable than I used to be.”.......as I sit here writing this review on a coolish day with a personal fan hung around my neck trying to cool down from another hot flush...I couldn't of found a more relatable read right now.
Accepting an invitation to join a panel at the Flights of Fancy Writers Festival feels like a gamble for Agatha Doyle who is supposed to be writing her next bestseller, but is instead documenting her menopause symptoms in a diary which her GP insists will be helpful in reducing her stress. Agatha has her doubts. Still, despite brain fog, hot flushes, resentment, and blistered, bloodied stumps, Agatha is holding it all together until a Beardy Man from the author asks the wrong question and Agatha’s ensuing rant goes viral, making her an icon for menopausal women everywhere.
The more I read, the more Agatha became my hero too! I enjoyed her sense of humour, which is quite heavy on the sarcasm, and her blunt assessments of everything. Agatha’s ‘conversations’ with her late mother add a layer of poignancy to the story, and her struggle to maintain her equilibrium attracts sympathy. A witty, engaging read. #netgalley #tea_sipping_bookworm #goodreads #litsy #thestorygraph #amazonaustralia #kindle #bookqueen #bookstagram #chicklit
“I am a menopausal woman, standing here before you all in a lather of sweat, terrified that I might forget a word in the middle of a sentence with the threat of brain fog that looms over me on a daily basis as I sit at my desk and attempt to write to a deadline. I have insomnia, none of my clothes fit me, and there’s a chance I’m more irritable than I used to be.”.......as I sit here writing this review on a coolish day with a personal fan hung around my neck trying to cool down from another hot flush...I couldn't of found a more relatable read right now.
Accepting an invitation to join a panel at the Flights of Fancy Writers Festival feels like a gamble for Agatha Doyle who is supposed to be writing her next bestseller, but is instead documenting her menopause symptoms in a diary which her GP insists will be helpful in reducing her stress. Agatha has her doubts. Still, despite brain fog, hot flushes, resentment, and blistered, bloodied stumps, Agatha is holding it all together until a Beardy Man from the author asks the wrong question and Agatha’s ensuing rant goes viral, making her an icon for menopausal women everywhere.
The more I read, the more Agatha became my hero too! I enjoyed her sense of humour, which is quite heavy on the sarcasm, and her blunt assessments of everything. Agatha’s ‘conversations’ with her late mother add a layer of poignancy to the story, and her struggle to maintain her equilibrium attracts sympathy. A witty, engaging read. #netgalley #tea_sipping_bookworm #goodreads #litsy #thestorygraph #amazonaustralia #kindle #bookqueen #bookstagram #chicklit
July 30, 2024
I don't know where I got this book recommendation from (TikTok? Instagram?) but I am glad that I got it! It came to me at just the right time. While menopause is NOT fun this book definitely was! There was one particular scene where I was laughing so hard that I could barely breathe!
The story is told through journal entries. We get Agatha's thoughts about her physical and psychological menopausal symptoms along with her thoughts about her family, her marriage, her widowed father, the loss of her mother, her career, friends, and quirky neighbors.
I loved the character of Agatha! I love a midlife protagonist who is in middle marriage with adult children. Refreshing! I also loved the witty dialogue. The book takes place in Ireland which is always enjoyable and Agatha is an author which was fun too. I feel like this book has been flying under the radar but I really liked it. It was a quick, fun, summer read!
My Rating: Good.
The story is told through journal entries. We get Agatha's thoughts about her physical and psychological menopausal symptoms along with her thoughts about her family, her marriage, her widowed father, the loss of her mother, her career, friends, and quirky neighbors.
I loved the character of Agatha! I love a midlife protagonist who is in middle marriage with adult children. Refreshing! I also loved the witty dialogue. The book takes place in Ireland which is always enjoyable and Agatha is an author which was fun too. I feel like this book has been flying under the radar but I really liked it. It was a quick, fun, summer read!
My Rating: Good.
August 11, 2023
I've f****** loved this novel! Brilliant, honest, bitter - sweat and hilarious - I truly didn't expect it, so even better for me!
Actually, it felt like reading Alexandra Potter's "Confessions..." - written in a form of a diary where our main character Agatha Doyle is writing down her menopause symptoms. Now I know what to expect when this time comes. And even though I may not identify with Agatha yet (YET), I simply felt her and adored her baseball bat attitude.
I loved how well this novel mixed so many issues: menopause with its hot flushes, insomnia, moodiness and other symptoms, you name them, with healthy sarcasm, not taking yourself too seriously, grief, friendship, family. It was filled with colourful and eclectic characters.
Sure, it was also filled with stereotypes, but, you know - sarcasm. Don't take things SO seriously.
Agatha Doyle, I stand with you.
Actually, it felt like reading Alexandra Potter's "Confessions..." - written in a form of a diary where our main character Agatha Doyle is writing down her menopause symptoms. Now I know what to expect when this time comes. And even though I may not identify with Agatha yet (YET), I simply felt her and adored her baseball bat attitude.
I loved how well this novel mixed so many issues: menopause with its hot flushes, insomnia, moodiness and other symptoms, you name them, with healthy sarcasm, not taking yourself too seriously, grief, friendship, family. It was filled with colourful and eclectic characters.
Sure, it was also filled with stereotypes, but, you know - sarcasm. Don't take things SO seriously.
Agatha Doyle, I stand with you.
February 23, 2023
I loved the diary format of this book, it really was like looking over the shoulder of Agatha and peering into her thoughts.
And, oh my.... so many thoughts and so funny, sometimes so achingly sad and yes, too often, so relatable. Agatha is truly an everywoman and more importantly she is an every woman of a certain age. THAT age - you know, when we're meant to be invisible, Agatha is taking on the world (even if she didn't quite set out to!)
Ciara Geraghty writes with a funny voice, a perceptive ear and an eye that misses nothing. She has the menopausal woman (or is it just me?) down to a T and she's not taking any prisoners!
Bravo, go team Agatha!
Agatha Doyle is the poster girl for a new generation - I LOVED every single page!
And, oh my.... so many thoughts and so funny, sometimes so achingly sad and yes, too often, so relatable. Agatha is truly an everywoman and more importantly she is an every woman of a certain age. THAT age - you know, when we're meant to be invisible, Agatha is taking on the world (even if she didn't quite set out to!)
Ciara Geraghty writes with a funny voice, a perceptive ear and an eye that misses nothing. She has the menopausal woman (or is it just me?) down to a T and she's not taking any prisoners!
Bravo, go team Agatha!
Agatha Doyle is the poster girl for a new generation - I LOVED every single page!
July 25, 2023
Agatha is an author, she is also menopausal, she is trying to ignore it, but at a panel one day she rants about how she is feeling, how she is treated etc and she goes Viral.
Struggling with writers block and now an online sensation, she gets asked on to talk shows all whilst her marriage is hitting a tough spot.
This is a diary of her life after that point, it's funny in places, poignant in others. I would expect most women would be able to relate in some way to Agatha as a character.
It is great that menopause is appearing more in contemporary literature and being talked about more, I am all for it. This book doesn't offer any advice, but does make you feel that you aren't alone in the experience.
Struggling with writers block and now an online sensation, she gets asked on to talk shows all whilst her marriage is hitting a tough spot.
This is a diary of her life after that point, it's funny in places, poignant in others. I would expect most women would be able to relate in some way to Agatha as a character.
It is great that menopause is appearing more in contemporary literature and being talked about more, I am all for it. This book doesn't offer any advice, but does make you feel that you aren't alone in the experience.
January 13, 2024
Laugh out loud funny!!
I could totally relate to all the emotions and feelings that Agatha was experiencing throughout the book. The Irish turn of phrase is right up my alley.
Menopause is a difficult subject to write about, talk about and definitely a difficult one to go through! I think the author hit exactly the right balance of angst and humour in this book.
The style of writing the novel through diary entries was well done. I loved how Agatha would start each entry with her symptoms she was experiencing. This did change through the book to encompass her feelings as well. This really set the tone for that particular diary entry.
If you are a woman of a particular age (see Menopausal) then this book is a must.
I could totally relate to all the emotions and feelings that Agatha was experiencing throughout the book. The Irish turn of phrase is right up my alley.
Menopause is a difficult subject to write about, talk about and definitely a difficult one to go through! I think the author hit exactly the right balance of angst and humour in this book.
The style of writing the novel through diary entries was well done. I loved how Agatha would start each entry with her symptoms she was experiencing. This did change through the book to encompass her feelings as well. This really set the tone for that particular diary entry.
If you are a woman of a particular age (see Menopausal) then this book is a must.
January 17, 2023
Was lucky enough to get an arc from netgalley. The book was short and whitty humour and well written. Low stars because i struggled to get into it with the journal style of writing. If are a fan of fun easy to read books that you can pick up and put down then this one is for you.
She navigates the single life of a woman hitting menopause and trying to analyse her life to find out how she can handle these changes as well as publish her new book on the advise of her doctor she starts a journal to document her mood and symptoms as well as her daily thoughts and interactions with her friends and family.
She navigates the single life of a woman hitting menopause and trying to analyse her life to find out how she can handle these changes as well as publish her new book on the advise of her doctor she starts a journal to document her mood and symptoms as well as her daily thoughts and interactions with her friends and family.
May 14, 2023
I thoroughly enjoyed reading Queen Bee, it's laugh out loud funny in parts and Agatha was a brilliant character. Having the story told in diary format was wonderful and there were so many great aspects to it. I loved how it brought menopause to the forefront. It's hard to review without giving away any spoilers and I hate rehashing the blurb in a review. What I will say, if you are looking for an escape, a good few laughs, and a relatable female character then you won't be disappointed. The writing is flawless and Agatha says it like it is, no holding back. She's witty and real and I related to so many aspects of her character.
June 27, 2023
It took me a while to get into it, but there are some really funny moments. I can't say my menopause was as extreme as Agatha's, but that feeling of overheating in the most awkward moments, and the night sweats definitely rang a bell. Air conditioning was my best friend for quite a few years... I did have one delightful male colleague who referred to it as "your personal summer", but then he turned up the air con, and got me a glass of iced water, so not all bad!
Will be looking for more of Ms Geraghty's books now that I have read this one. Great entertainment and a creative approach.
Will be looking for more of Ms Geraghty's books now that I have read this one. Great entertainment and a creative approach.
September 4, 2023
Two days ago, I thought the only context I'd find cause to use the word 'hoot' would simply be with regards to an owl. Now, on finishing this book, 'A pure hoot!' feels like the most perfect way to describe Agatha Doyle and the journey she takes you on through sharing her menopausal record (that is "definitely not a diary").
I can only hope that menopause proves to be as funny and as empowering as Ciara Geraghty has paved the way for it to be for us all! Thank you, Ciara, for Agatha - for her hilarious humour, clever quirks and witty wisdom! 'Queen Bee' is a positively inspired-full-belly-laugh-out-loud-pure-hoot! *****
I can only hope that menopause proves to be as funny and as empowering as Ciara Geraghty has paved the way for it to be for us all! Thank you, Ciara, for Agatha - for her hilarious humour, clever quirks and witty wisdom! 'Queen Bee' is a positively inspired-full-belly-laugh-out-loud-pure-hoot! *****
April 20, 2023
As this is written in journal form, the tag-line 'Bridget Jones meets the menopause' is quite a fitting one - she even smokes, which seems weird in a modern book. Sometimes this tries a bit too hard to be outrageous, but it is funny - I particularly love the mother's voice in Agatha's head. Very enjoyable and makes solid points about the difficulties of the menopause, and the reality of being a middle-aged woman with work, grown up children who she still worries about, an aging parent, grief over a dead parent, and a marriage to hold together.
October 26, 2023
Partly reminded me of Liane Moriarty (which is a big praise) but a bit rougher. Many f* bombs and jesus h what ever...
But too much about menopause itself. I know it's a book about menopause but it could have been done more subtle.
Also, sounded like an advert for HRT, which is very much promoted everywhere at the moment.
I actually didn't care very much about Agatha and hey family. I would rather have heard Melissa's story with poor Derwin.
And a little thing that annoyed me: cherry blossoms in July??
But too much about menopause itself. I know it's a book about menopause but it could have been done more subtle.
Also, sounded like an advert for HRT, which is very much promoted everywhere at the moment.
I actually didn't care very much about Agatha and hey family. I would rather have heard Melissa's story with poor Derwin.
And a little thing that annoyed me: cherry blossoms in July??
February 21, 2023
An essential read for the menopausal woman keen on not taking it all too seriously and not planning on killing anyone in the process. Menopause is a serious subject ignored for too long. Ciara Geraghty takes it, shakes it, moves it all around as she introduces us to Agatha who's navigating the mire with tremendous difficulty. We sympathise, we shake our heads, we wonder, but with all of this we laugh, out loud sometimes. A witty yet poignant read.
May 16, 2025
At my age 78 I thought I don’t need to read about Menopause. But I persevered and thought I’d give it a go. Found it delightful. The annoying useless frustrating effects of menopause. Agatha Doyle is an author and when talked over at a panel event by a man she finally says enough is enough of being misunderstood and ignored and blurts out how menopause is unfair. This goes viral and unintentionally becomes a poster girl for midlife women.
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