Late Harvest Havoc

Rating: 4* of five

The Publisher Says: Disaster strikes the vineyards in Alsace. Vintners are tense and old grudges surface. The Winemaker Detective's reputation is on the line as he must find the cause before the late harvest starts.

Winter is in the air in Alsace and local customs are sowing trouble, piquing the curiosity of the famous winemaker from Bordeaux, Benjamin Cooker. While the wine expert and his assistant Virgile settle into their hotel in the old city of Colmar, distinguished vineyards are attacked. Is it revenge?

The plot thickens when estates with no apparent connection to one another suffer the same sabotage just days prior to the late harvest. All of Alsace is in turmoil, plunged in the grip of suspicion that traces its show more roots back to the darkest hours of the German occupation. As he crosses back and forth into Germany from the Alsace he thought he knew so well, Cooker discovers a land of superstition, rivalry, and jealousy. Between tastings of the celebrated wines, he is drawn into the lives and intrigues of the inhabitants.

I RECEIVED A DRC FROM THE PUBLISHER VIA EDELWEISS+. THANK YOU.

My Review: Benjamin is getting older. As is so often the case, it's something outside himself that sours his usually fairly confident-in-goodness manner. It makes some sense, even, as it comes from nothing so petty as murdering someone you hate for one or another reason.

Someone is attacking the vines of Alsace. Someone is systematically and violently attacking the means of making wine in this ancient part-French, part-German province that Benjamin has known (he thought) most of his career. Some darker mutterings even accuse Benjamin, an outsider from the south, of being connected to the chainsaw attacks on the vines.

We'd get soured by that kind of gross insult to our specialist knowledge and passion, too. Virgile is the one who really shines, and that is always nice to see. He's still a skirt-chasin' houndawg, but he has skills he's honed under Benjamin's tutelage. He uses them to good advantage as he pokes into another viper's nest of Occupation resentments, as we saw in book #4. it felt a little bit weird for the men to wander from Lorraine into Germany and back seemingly at a whim, but it certainly drove home the point that the cultures on either side of the border are subtly different, they're not *dramatically* so; it makes sense to do that in the context of the story's resolution.

I was a bit confronted by the bolder-than-usual sex scene.

I'll say that Alsace, Strasbourg and its cathedral, and gewürztraminer all mean more to me than they ever have. I'm still eager to try, one day, mirabelle plums from nearby Lorraine; since they can't be exported, though, that is a very very unlikely eventuality.

I keep reading these stories, lists and all, because they are short enough to read in a sitting, dense of story enough to satisfy me as I read; and there are enough of them that I can get a solid foothold in their storyverse.

Don't start here, but don't stop before you get here, either. show less

Late Harvest Havoc is book 10 in the Winemaker Detective Mysteries. Benjamin Cooker and his assistant Virgile are in Alsace tasting vines. But, they notice when they settle in the little peaceful town of Colmar that not everything is fine with the vineyards. There is someone out there attacking the vineyards. Who is behind it, could it be more than one person, and have it something to do with WW2?

This book felt a bit less charming than the books usually do, the tone is a bit darker. Benjamin Cooker seems to be in an especially foul mood throughout the book. Not at all caring about staying in the little town helping the police. Although when you think about the way he was treated there isn’t it hardly surprising that he want to do his show more business there and move on. Luckily for the police is Virgile all the more interested in helping them. I found it nice to have Virgile flesh out a bit, not just being Benjamin's assistant. Sometimes I feel that Benjamin is a bit hard on him. For instance, in this book he accused Virgile of being the reason his car’s tires being slashed. He jumped to that conclusion a bit too fast thinking it was because Virgile made some guy jealous because of how Virgile is with the ladies. Actually, in this book Virgile was not flirting with the women that much. He seemed more eager to help the police than seduce some young women.

I must admit that I treated every death as suspicious in this book. I was surprised at the beginning, I thought the death that happened in the cathedral was more sinister than it was. But perhaps it was just a reminder to Benjamin how precious and fleeting life really is. As usual, there aren’t that many suspects in the story and it was not too hard to figure it all out. and, to be honest, it was not that most interested case I’ve read in this series. But I liked how it all came together in the end. When everything was explained. This book had a very good, although tragic ending. show less

A lover of good food and sweet wine, I was more than happy to get a chance to read and review Late Harvest Havoc, the tenth (10th) book in The Winemaker Detective series by Jean-Pierre Alaux and Noel Balen. Set in Alsace, the northeastern French region of the Rhine River, wine experts and amateur detectives Benjamin Cooker and his assistant Virgile find themselves embroiled in solving another murder and dealing with suspicious wine growers all while traveling back and forth between Germany and France. Filled with the history of the region, colorful descriptions of the region’s food and local people, Late Harvest Havoc is a fine addition to an already established series.

Deciding to introduce his assistant/apprentice to the Northeast show more countryside of France and its regional wines, Benjamin Cooker and Virgile Lanssien head to the Alsace region in Benjamin’s vintage Mercedes with plans to eat, drink and conduct more research for the “Cooker” guidebook. They didn’t plan one of the local guides dropping dead during a historical chapel tour or on becoming suspects in a local police investigation of “vine vandalism”. A suspicion Benjamin doesn’t take well, especially since his beloved car is also vandalized.

Already a fan of this series, I could not wait to see what Mr. Alaux and Mr. Balen had in store for Benjamin and Virgile in this installment and I was not disappointed. As this series continues to progress, Benjamin and Virgile become more like a father and son; they understand each other’s mood swings and truly care for one another. Their dialogue is witty, occasionally sarcastic and they have a lot of fun traveling the countryside tasting wine. Especially since it is often accompanied by great food. While they can’t seem to help getting involved in solving murders, murder literally seems to follow them around, they enjoy the challenge solving a crime gives them and Benjamin is becoming quite proud of how much better they are at it than some of the local police.

The authors do a wonderful job educating the reader about the Alsace region while solving a mystery. A region steeped in both French and German history, Alsace is clearly filled with natural beauty, great wines and good food. I personally have always wanted to visit this region of France because of how it has gone back and forth between France and Germany since the end of the Roman Empire. The two mysteries (the murder and the vandalism) are well written and there are plenty of twists and turns to keep the reader entertained and guessing. I especially enjoyed reading the back and forth between Benjamin and Virgile when they were both tired and a little stressed out.

Will Benjamin and Virgile discover who is behind the “vine vandalism” in the region? Will Benjamin’s beloved car suffer as a result of Benjamin’s investigation? And will they discover who killed the chapel tour guide and why she had to die? You’ll have to read Late Harvest Havoc to find out. I enjoyed it and look forward to reading more books in this series. show less

As you know I have been enjoying this series more and more with each book that is added to it. I have to say them one may have been my favorite or at least it is right up there at the top. As always we learn about wines as we read as well as we get to learn about a new part of the world in this book. I love the descriptions of the setting as it makes me feel as if I am right there along with the characters in the story. This book in particular I think was full of even more adventure and drama. I love how Benjamin and Virgile play off of each other in these books. It helps make for a good story line by having the characters so well developed. I can't wait to see what these authors have to offer us in the next book.

If you like wine or just want to learn more whilst enjoy a cosy mystery set in France, then these books are for you. They are easy to read, there is no overt violence, the descriptions of the scenery make the story come to life; and there is a great personal interaction between Benjamin and his protegee, Virgile. The stories are not overly long, and the pace is constant, all being riveting to the end.

Another delicious Winemaker Detective Mystery. Well up to standard!
Great storylines set in the world of winemaking.
Not a lover of wines from Alsace, but the description of the area more than made up for it.
This is another well written story and should be read whilst partaking in a glass or two of something tasty!
Can't wait to read more from this excellent series.
I was given a digital copy of this novel by the publisher via Netgalley in return for an honest unbiased review, which I am very happy to do.

Late Harvest Havoc by Jean-Pierre Alaux and Noel Balen is another gem with the Winemaker Detectives. Benjamin Cooker and his irrepressible assistant Virgile are traveling on wine business and in Alsace. The reader tours the region with them in France and find that grudges have long lives in the region.. There's even someone so angry that they are destroying vines in famous vineyards. It takes the cleverness of Benjamin and Cooker to cut through the suspects and arrive at the truth. The whole story is very thought provoking and making you think, I need to go to France! All in all, it's a great addition to the series and puts you in a mind to find the next one to read. This identical review is on www.netgalley.com