Synopsis

A young winery owner won’t let one sour grape ruin the bunch in the first installment of this exciting cozy mystery series.

Parker Valentine has always dreamed of opening her own winery in her hometown of Boulder, Colorado. But she gets more than she bargained for when a food and wine critic unexpectedly shows up at Vino Valentine on opening day. A negative review could be fatal for her business, and not only does he seem to hate her chardonnay, he also collapses and dies shortly after drinking it.

Although Parker hoped that the attendees would put a cork in it, soon her winery is at the center of a social media firestorm. With #killerchardonnay trending online, Parker’s business is in danger of closing, and she has no choice but to investigate the murder herself.

To restore her reputation, catch a killer, and keep her struggling business open, Parker needs only one thing: some good proof.

The book is scheduled to be released May 26th, 2020, Pre-order now!

Review

What a delightful new series set in Boulder Colorado centered around a new winery with interesting names for the wines and many food descriptions.  It is like the best of all worlds for me.

Parker is quite an independent woman that thinks she does not have the support of her parents when she decides to open a winery.  It is her passion and she has put everything into seeing this business succeed.  However, she doesn’t expect someone to be murdered on opening day and for this to create bad press for her winery.  Despite the police involvement in trying to solve this case, Parker decides they aren’t moving fast enough and decides to do some sleuthing on her own.  As with most cozies, this almost lands her in some very hot water and possibly becoming a victim herself.

I was engrossed in this book from start to finish.  I tried to figure out who the killer was and while I had my suspicions about this character by the end, I had not figured out the why.  There are several red herrings, intriguing characters, and a potential love triangle.  This book really starts the series off with a bang and the author has a lot to live up to with the next book.

There were a few quotes that I really liked and I wanted to share them with you:

“Like a good red wine, sometimes you need to let a problem breathe – decant – to better understand its flavors.”

“…two undeniably attractive men waiting on my doorstep like Amazon packages.”

We give this book 5 paws up and we want to try some of the dishes and the wines!

About the Author

Kate lives in Denver, Colorado with her husband, two-year-old daughter, and a chair-napping tabby cat named Maple. Her love for mysteries began when she devoured From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler as a young girl and has grown from there.

An award-winning short story author, her work has appeared in the Brave New Girls Anthology and the Crossing Colfax Anthology. She’s a member of Sisters in Crime and Mystery Writers of America and is represented by Pamela Harty of The Knight Agency.

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