Harvest of Secrets

The Wine Country Mysteries, Book 9

By: Ellen Crosby

Narrated by: Christine Marshall

The search for the killer of an aristocratic French winemaker who was Lucie Montgomery's first crush and the discovery of dark family secrets put Lucie on a collision course with a murderer.

It's harvest season at Montgomery Estate Vineyard - the busiest time of year for winemakers in Atoka, Virginia. A skull is unearthed near Lucie Montgomery's family cemetery, and the discovery of the bones coincides with the arrival of handsome, wealthy aristocrat Jean-Claude de Merignac. He's come to be the head winemaker at neighboring La Vigne Cellars, but he's no stranger to Lucie - he was her first crush 20 years ago when she spent a summer in France.

Not long after his arrival, Jean-Claude is found dead, and while there is no shortage of suspects who are angry or jealous of his ego and overbearing ways, suspicion falls on Miguel Otero, an immigrant worker at La Vigne, who recently quarreled with Jean-Claude. When Miguel disappears, Lucie receives an ultimatum from her own employees: Prove Miguel's innocence or none of the immigrant community will work for her during the harvest.

As Lucie hunts for Jean-Claude's killer and continues to search for the identity of the skeleton abandoned in the cemetery, she is blindsided by a decades-old secret that shatters everything she thought she knew about her family. Now facing a wrenching emotional choice, Lucie must decide whether it's finally time to tell the truth and hurt those she loves the most, or keep silent and let past secrets remain dead and buried.

©2018 Ellen Crosby (P)2018 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

enjoyably different

kept me guessing all the way through because I didn't know what was going to happen next and who done what to who? really enjoyable!

Enjoyable.

Nice pleasant mystery. Dramatic and even educational. I like the characters. They are realistic. Nifty.

murder and history

Definitely going to have a brush up on Virginia history before the end of the series. I've never been there but descriptions allow my imagination to blossom. Wine country, museums, grand houses and a good mystery to top it all.

Wine and Murder-The Perfect Blend

This series combines 2 of my favorite things. Is anything better than a good glass of wine paired with delicious murder mystery. The characters are interesting and relatable though sometimes predictable. But aren't we all. I love the clean writing and descriptive countryside.

Another good book

I really enjoyed this book. The mystery is light and entertaining. The plot includes historical references as well as current events without being heavy and judgmental. Like the previous books in this series, I really enjoyed it. I also look forward to the next one in this series.

Very Enjoyable

I really enjoyed the series. I am always interested in anything that has anything to do with the Vineyard and even though they don’t go into wine production it is interesting. Also, there’s always a great mystery and this one I was quite sure who done it until the very end. It was fun.

The best one so far

I love this series but I think this one is my favorite. The mystery gets a little complicated but the end is worth it. Also. I'm glad that Lucie and Quin are finally a couple instead of the on again, off again thing they had going. It was getting old

And a storm on the way,too!”

What a long winded book!
But it has the kind of Wind that kept my attention. Lots of detail and complications without describing the tea cups and armchairs. A stunning example of small town gossip, family intrigue, along with interesting historical and some technical information. An improbable collection of people! Cheers to the reader for handling a fun mix of language and accents.

Great story but didn’t wrap up all the loose endings

I love Ellen‘s writing style. Her books get better and better. She definitely knows the Virginia wine industry and has a great way of weaving a plot and making you feel at home and comfortable with her. Love this book but really wanted her to spend at least one or two more paragraphs wrapping up what happened with the killer as well as Miguel‘s citizenship.

One of my favorite series

I always enjoy listening to Wine Country Mysteries. I love the characters, the stories, the setting, the historical context, and all the aspects of working a vineyard and making estate wine. This installment did not disappoint.