A Good Year

London-based Max is overworked and unhappy when he gets the news that he has inherited his uncle's house and vineyard in Provence where he spent happy time as a boy. While he initially plans to sell it, his friend convinces him to go and check it out and he soon finds himself falling back in love with the country and people of Provence and getting involved in a low-stakes wine-based mystery.

I had seen the movie of this book and enjoyed it, and the book is in a similar vein. I am also a huge fan of Mayle's A Year in Provence and sequels, but have found Mayle's fiction efforts to be less successful. I think this book pretty much follows that trend. His plots and characters are nothing special, but his writing and clear enthusiasm for show more Provence and the culture elevate what would otherwise be pretty standard trope-y stuff. 4 stars for enjoyment, but I would sooner watch the movie again than reread the book. show less

This was a lovely read; with interesting people, a charming locale and plenty of food and wine talk. I enjoyed the fun poking at wine descriptions.
Honestly? This was one step up from a Hallmark movie. Guy from the city is down on his luck. Inherits a vineyard with an old and elegant farmhouse in the south of France. Must acclimate himself to the local population. Meets a girl (several, actually) and complications ensue, but you know there will be a happy ending.

What sets this apart from Hallmark stories is the writing of Peter Mayle.

I really like Peter Mayle's writing style. It's light hearted, easy to read, warm and friendly and usually quite humourous.

A Good Year was A Good Read! I had previously seen the film, starring Russell Crowe, so I knew a bit about the book beforehand, but it was quite different to the film. The character of Max is a lot more gentle in the book, in fact all the characters are - also the story is quite different from the film version. That said, I enjoyed them both.

The book is about Max, who works in London in the Square Mile. His boss 'steals' a deal from him that he's been working on and so Max quits. Luckily for him (or unluckily for his uncle) his Uncle, who had a mini-chateau in France has just died and he inherits the chateau and show more surrounding vineyards. There are quite a few different character, Christie, who turns out to be the Uncle's daughter comes to find her father, only to find he has died and that she might inherit the chateau, just as Max is deciding to settle in... There's also the mystery of the 'garage wine' that's been sold for $100,000 per case that becomes part of the story.

Excellent reading! show less

Ho acquistato il libro incuriosita dal film, un po' a scoppio ritardato, lo ammetto. Il film mi è sembrato un po' troppo facilone, speravo che il libro si riscattasse. Innanzitutto, il film è liberamente ispirato al romanzo: personaggi simili, trama parecchio diversa nei dettagli - e qui chiudo la parentesi cinematografica.

***Mini-Spoiler***

Il romanzo è ancora più facilone e scontato del libro: Max viene licenziato; tre ore dopo, toh! una lettera dalla Provenza gli comunica che ha appena ereditato dallo zio un podere, non una casa. Max è senza soldi, il suo conto è drammaticamente in rosso: e chi trova? Charlie, il suo miglior amico che ha appena ricevuto una promozione e che ha soldi da buttare. Max parte per la Provenza: il show more notaio è ovviamente una strafiga supersexy. In 48 ore fa la conoscenza di Fanny, bellezza più esotica ma altrettanto sensuale, e di Christie, che pare essere la figlia illegittima dello zio Henry. Oh, che peccato, è già l'ora di fare le valigie? No, perché come ogni diciottenne americana è ricca ed è arrivata in Francia solo per fuggire l'ex. Dato che non ha intenzioni di fermarsi, che Max si tenga casa e vigna. Il vino prodotto pare sia il peggiore della Francia, ma per coincidenza Christie è pure un'intenditrice di vino e scopre che un certo appezzamento non è quello che il fattore vuol far credere.
I personaggi sono marionette nelle mani dello scrittore: la lettura è piacevole ed è un peccato che l'intreccio sia così scontato. show less

I saw the movie version of this book when it was in the theater (back in 2006), and that definitely colored my perceptions of the book. I had read online that Ridley Scott (the director of the movie) had come up with the original idea for the book (and is given that credit in the book), and then decided to make the movie when the book ended up being different than the original story he had envisioned.

I tend to try and read books before their movie versions, as I almost inevitably spend half the book wondering what exactly is going on because some major plot point was done quite differently in the movie. In this case, the plot points were very similar – overworked London guy (Max) inherits his uncle’s house in Provence, goes to show more Provence, realizes he likes the pace of life, meets a girl, and decides to stay. There’s also a subplot involving a young American woman who may or may not be his cousin, the illegitimate daughter of his uncle, who nonetheless may have more right to the property than Max under French law.

The book is a much more laid back version of the movie. I can almost see it as a gradual love story between Max and Provence. On the other hand, the movie is a straight love story. In the book, Fanny (the girl Max falls for) is a barely developed character, but she has a lot of back-story in the movie, and a lot more of a part of the action of the story itself.

Max is also less sympathetic in the movie. As played by Russell Crowe, he’s much more of a hot-shot stock trader, who fully intends to sell his Uncle’s house and return to his life in London. The movie’s Max has a more abrupt realization that his does love this house, and he comes very close to losing it. In the book, this sense of impending loss is never seen.

Unusually for me, I think I might actually like the movie version of this story more than the book. The movie followed a more dramatic story arc than the book, and actually had better characterizations for several secondary characters that still played important roles in the story. I was happy to read the book, for the contrast, and for a few slightly more interesting back plot points (the secret wine production on the estate), but if I had to chose one to see/read again, I’d go for the movie. show less

A charming, escapist novel about an over-worked English man who finds himself forced out of a job on the very day he receives notice that he's inherited a vineyard in France. With nothing holding him in England, Charlie decides to throw caution to the wind and jet off to France to inspect his properties.

Charlie is surprised to find himself at home in the vineyard, in the village, in the French language. Enchanted by his new acquaintances and the glorious weather, he decides to remain in France and make a go of viticulture.

I enjoyed this novel - a tale of an Englishman who leaves the London financial world behind to move to France. I found the combination of mystery and romance intriguing. The French characters were fun, especially the housekeeper (Madame Passepartout). The novel was at its past in capturing the disorientation of an English speaker moving to France. I look forward to seeing the movie adaptation as well.