Wine Tastings Are Murder
When Poppy and Aunt Ginny agreed to host a Wine and Cheese Happy Hour for a tour group at their Butterfly House Bed and Breakfast on the Jersey Shore, they never anticipated such a sour bunch. Grumpy guest Vince Baker should be in a better mood; he’s filthy rich and on his honeymoon with his much younger wife Sunny, who seems to dote on him almost as much as her high-spirited teacup Pomeranian, Tammy Faye Baker.
But the honeymoon is over when Vince drops dead the next day touring the Laughing Gull Winery. It turns out he’s been poisoned, and it seems like everybody on the tour is hiding something. Now Poppy has to put her gluten-free baking on the back burner and bottle up her feelings for the two men in her life while she charges after a bitter killer with a lethal case of sour grapes.
Series: A Poppy McAllister Mystery – Book #5
Author: Libby Klein
Genre/Category: Cozy – B&B/Hobby
Publisher: Kensington Books
Page Count: 400
Rating: 
Wine tasting rarely involves death, even if the wine is killer good but in the newest addition to the “A Poppy McAllister Mystery” series; Wine Tastings Are Murder, B&B owner Poppy finds herself once again involved in a murder mystery. This time she isn’t a suspect, but one of the people staying at her B&B or even a friend might be a killer.
Suspects are plentiful, and every one of them a believable candidate. None are overly likable, but at least one seems to be exactly what Poppy thinks she is. But that’s not saying much because Poppy isn’t a great judge of people, especially killers. The real killer isn’t hard to spot, and the motive is straightforward and easy to figure out. But many writers will enjoy the story from start to finish. Readers will love the B&B and the wine tasting aspect.
Unfortunately, many readers, myself included, are fed up with the love triangle. It is not necessary to the series, and it has become a sticking point. Even when you think it is finally resolved, at the end of Wine Tastings Are Murder, the reader is thrown into an entirely new situation, a very unwelcome one. This alone made my enjoyment of the book dwindle. Having the main character undecided for five books was terrible enough, but throwing the twist in at the end of this book made me unlikely to recommend this book or read the next one.
I love B&B-based cozies, they are always fun, and the wine tasting aspect of this one was intriguing, but overall, I didn’t enjoy the story. Aunt Ginny was a delight as always, and other returning characters were original and entertaining. I would have enjoyed the book far more if the author hadn’t thrown in an unnecessary new twist in the love triangle at the very end.
Similar B&B cozies without wine tasting that readers will enjoy include Victoria Gilbert’s new series “Book Lover’s B&B Mystery” or Caroline Fardig’s delightful southern charmer “A Southern B&B Mystery”.
About the Author:
Libby Klein graduated Lower Cape May Regional High School sometime in the ’80s. Her classes revolved mostly around the culinary sciences and theater, with the occasional nap in Chemistry. She loves to drink coffee, bake gluten-free goodies, and befriend random fluffy cats. She writes from her Northern Virginia office while trying to keep her cat Figaro off her keyboard. Most of her hobbies revolve around eating, travel, and eating while traveling.
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