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| The Merlot Murders (Wine Country Mysteries) | 
 enlarge | Author: Ellen Crosby
Creator: P. J. Davis-oran
Publisher: Sound Library
Category: Book
Buy New: $79.95
New (1) Used (1) from $74.95
Avg. Customer Rating:  10 reviews
Sales Rank: 2258043
Media: Audio CD
Number Of Items: 8
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.8
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 6.3 x 1.6
ISBN: 0792745256
EAN: 9780792745259
ASIN: 0792745256
Publication Date: September 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
A phone call at two thirty in the morning is never good news. Lucie Montgomery's semiestranged brother, Eli, calls her in France to tell her their father, Leland, has been killed in a hunting accident on the family's five-hundred-acre Virginia vineyard just as the fall harvest is about to begin. By the time he calls, Eli has already made funeral arrangements with what Lucie argues is indecent haste.It is an emotional trip home -- the first since an automobile accident two years ago, which left Lucie disabled and dependent on a cane. Her family's once elegant home and winery are now shabby and run-down, thanks to her father's penchant for fringy business deals. Eli, also cash-strapped and desperate to support his new wife's extravagant lifestyle, has already convinced their rebellious younger sister, Mia, to sell the debt-ridden estate and reap the profits from the valuable land it sits on, overruling Lucie's protests. On the eve of the funeral Lucie's godfather, Fitz, a partner in the family business, tells her Leland's death was no accident. Whoever killed him was motivated by the potential sale of the vineyard. It is the last conversation she will have with Fitz. Now the lone holdout preventing the vineyard sale, Lucie realizes she's next in line for another "accident." With her greedy brother, hell-raising sister, and a seemingly cut-rate vintner hired by Leland just before he died, all the suspects are disturbingly close to home. Unsure whom she can trust, Lucie must uncover the truth about the deaths of her father and godfather -- and oversee a successful harvest to save the vineyard she loves. Set in the historic heart of Virginia's horse and hunt country, The Merlot Murders is filled with fascinating detail about the science and alchemy of wine making.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 5 more reviews...
 A LITTLE WINE IS GOOD FOR YOU....ISN'T IT???? October 28, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
A murder mystery deftly intertwined with instruction in the basics of wine making as well as a little Virginia winemaking history is the imaginative cocktail offered up by author Ellen Crosby in The Merlot Murders.
Lucie Montgomery is an improbably heroine with an equally unlikely occupation. She is a woman who overcomes obstacles, both physical and emotional as she delves into two mysterious deaths while fending off a former lover, an abrasive vintner with a questionable past, assorted inquisitive friends and neighbors as well as a couple of greedy siblings.
Ms. Crosby has presented us with a myriad questions to be answered before this mystery can be solved. Was Lucies father's accident really murder? Who killed her godfather, Fitz? Where is her mother's priceless diamond necklace? Who is secretly trying to buy the family winery? What secrets are her brother and sister-in-law concealing? Who is responsible for the near-deadly "accidents" that have befallen Lucie? There are an abundance of suspects, all possessing means and motive for murder.
Ms. Crosby's tale is a charming and unusual variation of the run of the mill murder mystery. Whoever would have thought of utilize fermenting wine bubbles as a murder weapon? Who knew that wine fermentation could produce a lethal dose of carbon dioxide? Obviously Ms. Crosby does
Diana Mott Davidson and Ellen Crosby appear to be kindred spirits. While one tempted us with Killer Pancakes, the other has produced an uncommon story that packs a one-two punch by combining interesting historical information with a captivating read that keeps you entertained from page one .
 First offering from a new series August 27, 2008
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
As this first novel in a new series opens we are introduced to Lucie Montgomery, a 26 year old woman whose life of privilege as a member of a well to do Virginia family came to an end with a tragic car accident that left her permanently disabled. She had fled to her late mother's family home in the south of France to recuperate for a couple of months and ended up staying for two years. Her father's sudden death brought her back to the family home, a vineyard near the Blue Ridge Mountains. Once she arrived she was met with one shock after another, her brother had turned from a comfortable but charming slob into a status conscious snob married to a brainless bimbo that Lucie detested, and who Lucie found, was soon to make her an aunt. The next nasty surprise came when Lucie saw that her father had neglected the family home and business, that they were in desperate financial straights and that her brother and sister had already made plans to sell everything, whether Lucie agreed or not. One of the final surprises came when Lucie's godfather told her that her father's death had been no accident.
This series has all the ear marks of a charming cozy, the large cast of supporting characters, an interesting setting, an engaging main character with a few special qualities or quirks. What sets this apart from the usual cozy is that the humor here is rather dry and subtle, usually coming from Lucie's own wry observations of the people and situations around her. This series is much more a 'straight' mystery rather than the seriocomic that is more usual for the genre.
The mystery is sufficiently complex enough to keep the reader guessing at least over some of the details. Crosby has left plenty of loose ends to establish an ongoing story arc for subsequent books. The biggest flaw with this one is that the author spends so much time establishing backstories and on going conflict that the mysteries are often sidelined for prolonged periods but that is often a problem with first books in a planned series.
Anyone who enjoys series mysteries, particularly those with romantic overtones will want to read this and the subsequent novels in the series.
It's Going to be a Bumpy Ride February 19, 2008
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
I started this out on audio, didn't much care for it, then switched to the book and enjoyed it much better.
Lucie Montgomery returns home to Virginia after living for two years in France recovering from a bad car accident that has left her leg twisted and practically useless. But this doesn't get Lucie down; it's just one more thing to deal with. She is returning home because her father, the head of the family vineyard has died from an apparent hunting accident.
Being away so long has left Lucie out of the loop and she returns to find that the vineyard, is crumbling under debt, her brother Eli is determined to sell off the whole shebang so he can build a new more fabulous home and her little sister Mia is now dating the guy that caused the accident that damaged Lucie's leg.
Not that this isn't complicated already, but when Lucie's godfather is found murdered and the rest of the twisty plot of who done its and who will be murdered next, and who has a secret past and who will save the day. Not to mention a hidden necklace that belonged to Marie Antoinette and Lucie's mother's diaries. Yes, parts do get a little confusing with multiple plot lines and some apparent useless information, but hopefully the second in the series will straighten this out.
Merlot Murders January 12, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
This is a great book especially if you live in or around VA. The characters are really interesting and you learn a lot about wine making. The book is the first in a series of four books and the second one is even better (The Chardonnay Charade). Recommended to anyone who likes murder mysteries.
 Wine country Mystery October 20, 2007
1 out of 5 found this review helpful
This book is deep with history and wine. The action is a bit meladramatic and predictable. The main character seems like a bit of a push over and her brother is a jerk.
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