The Chardonnay Charade: A Wine Country Mystery (Wine Country Mysteries)

Struggling to safeguard her vineyard from an unusual late-season freeze, Lucie Montgomery discovers the body of a controversial local politician near her fields, a case during which a friend is wrongfully accused and Lucie confronts her feelings for a fractious winemaker. By the author of The Merlot Murders. 20,000 first printing. Facing a freak spring frost that threatens to kill the grapes in her vineyard, Lucie Montgomery hires a chopper to fly over the vines in order to blow warm air on them. But her thoughts soon turn from grapes to murder when she discovers the body of Georgia Greenwood, a controversial political candidate, lying near the fields. Georgia's husband, Ross, Lucie's friend and doctor, immediately falls under suspicion. To make matters worse, Ross, a renowned collector of Civil War documents, has just discovered a letter that seems to prove that Confederate president Jefferson Davis had prior knowledge of the plot to assassinate Abraham Lincoln. In the small town of Atoka, Virginia -- proud home to the "Gray Ghost," the Confederacy's legendary guerrilla commander -- the letter is a bombshell. Three years ago Ross saved Lucie's life after she was involved in a near-fatal car crash. Now she intends to return the favor and prove Ross's innocence. As the search for Georgia's killer escalates, Lucie crosses swords with her attractive but cantankerous winemaker, Quinn Santori, and confronts her own unwelcome feelings of jealousy over his new romance and job prospects. Her worries about her kid sister's out-of-control drinking and a second vineyard-related death further ratchet up the tension. Even though Lucie believes that in vino veritas -- in wine there is truth -- she finds that the path to uncovering a murderer involves making a heartbreaking decision that will alter the lives of those she loves In Ellen Crosby's second mystery as Virginia vineyard owner Lucie Montgomery discovers that uncovering a killer can bring a harvest of dilemma and danger. Lucie Montgomery thinks she has troubles enough with a freak spring frost that is threatening to kill her tender young Chardonnay grapes, but when the body of Georgia Greenwood, a controversial political candidate, is found lying in her vineyard, the situation becomes complex indeed. Suspicion immediately falls on Georgia's husband, Ross Greenwood, who is not just Lucie's doctor but also a close friend. Determined to prove Ross's innocence, Lucie crosses swords with her attractive but cantankerous winemaker, Quinn Santori. Then a second vineyard-related death drives the tension even higher. Lucie still believes that in vino veritas -- in wine there is truth -- but she's starting to wonder if her own risk level is moving into the danger zone along with this year's Chardonnay. Abizarre May frost threatens Lucie Montgomery's Virginia winery operation. After spending the night keeping her vines from freezing, the easily peeved Lucie is less than thrilled to find the pesticide-contaminated body of Georgia Greenwood, a local politician, at the edge of her fields. Lucie leaves the investigating to the police, but is dismayed when her close friend Ross, Georgia's husband, becomes a suspect. What's more, the EPA disapproves of her cavalier handling of pesticides, and her younger sister is on the brink of alcoholism Combines wine making details with an intriguing mix of characters