Writing is formulaic. Pro: One gets a good idea of life in a small French town. Descriptions of meals, countryside, relationships.Con: Brono, the protagonist and police chief of the town (and only policeman) can do no wrong. He reminds me of the protagonist in Dick Francis' novels. Also, since he knows everyone in town they are all introduced by name, whether they are significant to the story or not. Hard to keep up with them all. I definitely did not realize this was the second book in a series when I started this. I don't think I missed out too much from not having read the first book, but I guess I was a little disappointed to learn that. While I was initially interested in the plot (wine country, different wine makers), the point of the book wasn't quite as the summary described. I also thought the writing was a little amature-ish. I did like the main characters, but to the characters, some of the twists didn't seem overly shocking or important. I ended up just wanting to get it finished so I could move on to something else.
What do You think about The Dark Vinyard (2009)?
I'm really starting to like Bruno and I'm happy to have the next one to listen to right now.
—maddie203
Another good story with Bruno and the characters of St Denis.
—trish
