A Sip Before Dying by Gemma Halliday is the first book in the NEW “Wine & Dine” cozy culinary mystery series. Publisher: Gemma Halliday Publishing, coming May 7, 2019.
The Oak Valley Vineyard has been in Emmy Oak’s family for generations. So when the small Sonoma winery is suddenly in financial trouble and in danger of being gobbled up by the corporate giants, Emmy moves home to try to save her legacy with her modern culinary know-how. First step–she throws a party showcasing her latest vintage and signature tasty treats to a group of wine country’s most elite enthusiasts. Only when one of her VIP guests sips a glass of poisoned wine and dies in her cellar, Emmy’s name is on everyone lips for all the wrong reasons.
The victim was the young, boy-toy husband of one of Silicon Valley’s most successful female CEOs. . . and his playboy ways and suspicious spending habits have almost no one mourning his death. Enter Detective Christopher Grant, recent SFPD transplant, who is assigned to the case and immediately homes in on Oak Valley. But Emmy is determined to clear her winery’s name–even if Grant’s dark eyes, sexy smile, and mysterious past threaten to distract her. After calling in the big guns to help her–a.k.a. her jewelry designer best friend and copious amounts of cookie dough ice cream–Emmy finds herself digging through a slew of suspects to uncover crimes, grudges, and secret affairs that could put a soap opera to shame. Can Emmy find out just which of the upper crust poisoned the victim’s vintage. . .or will Emmy’s next sip be her last?
When one of the guests at her soiree dies from poisoned wine, in order to save her family’s business, Emmy must don a sleuthing cap along with best bud Ava, to find out who wanted this man dead.
I’ve always enjoyed the writing style and comfortable tone of Gemma novels and this one fits in perfectly. From the first page, the author pulled me in with the introduction of the various players that we are going to meet that will shape this fresh and light-hearted mix of intrigue, mayhem and romance. From Emmy to Ava to Vivienne to Alison to Cas to Sadie to Jenny to Grant and to David, these key characters all have a part in the outcome and it’s the journey that the author will take us on to where dirty shenanigans are exposed, truths uncovered and it’s one of these factors that will leave us with the identity of the killer and their motive.
I liked how it was presented with clues, here and there, giving me enough to narrow the field of suspects and when I thought I had a handle on the killer, the author changed the direction ever so slightly and yes, good choice, which added to my reading entertainment. When all was said and done, I enjoyed this delightfully engaging tale and I can’t wait to spend more time with Emmy, Ava and their friends.
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FTC Full Disclosure – I received a digital ARC of this book from the author.
This sounds like a really good read. I have not had an opportunity to check out this author but I definitely will now. Thank you.