In a rare defamation case over a novel, the Georgia Court of Appeals has cleared the way for a suit by an Atlanta woman who claims an alcoholic, promiscuous character in the book “The Red Hat Club” too closely resembles her.
Vickie Stewart has sued local author Haywood Smith and St. Martin’s Press over Smith’s 2003 book about five red hat-wearing, middle-aged Buckhead ladies plotting revenge against the philandering husband of one of the group’s members. The book hit No. 15 on the New York Times best-seller list.
