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A deadly search for sour grapes . . .

Norrie Ellington is a successful screenwriter living in New York City. She’s also been a silent partner for her family’s winery upstate—until her sister and brother-in-law take a year-long sabbatical. With an experienced staff doing the work, Norrie figures Two Witches Winery will run itself while she enjoys the countryside and writes in peace and quiet.

Unfortunately, there’s a sour grape in the town of Penn Yan who doesn’t care for vineyards. Bed and breakfast owner Elsbeth Waters complains to everyone who’ll listen that the local wineries are bad for her business. But when Elsbeth’s body is found on Norrie’s property, the victim of foul play, the screenwriter-turned-vintner dons a sleuthing cap to uncover the identity of a killer who told the B&B proprietess to put a cork in it—permanently . . .

220 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 27, 2018

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About the author

J.C. Eaton

25 books324 followers
Ann I. Goldfarb
New York native Ann I. Goldfarb spent most of her life in education, first as a classroom teacher and later as a middle school principal and professional staff developer. Writing as J. C. Eaton, along with her husband, James Clapp, they have authored the Sophie Kimball Mysteries (Kensington), The Wine Trail Mysteries (Kensington Lyrical Underground), and coming in August 2018, The Marcie Rayner Mysteries (Camel). In addition, Ann has nine published YA time travel mysteries under her own name. Visit the websites at:
www.jceatonmysteries.com
www.facebook.com/JCEatonauthor/
www.timetravelmysteries.com

James E. Clapp
When James E. Clapp retired as the tasting room manager for a large upstate New York winery, he never imagined he’d be co-authoring cozy mysteries with his wife, Ann I. Goldfarb. Non-fiction in the form of informational brochures and workshop materials treating the winery industry were his forte along with an extensive background and experience in construction that started with his service in the U.S. Navy and included vocational school classroom teaching. Visit the website at www.jceatonauthor.com

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 88 reviews
Profile Image for Carrie.
3,329 reviews1,611 followers
March 23, 2018
A Riesling to Die by J.C. Eaton is the first book in the new cozy The Wine Trail Mysteries series. Norrie Ellington has been asked to return home to upstate New York by her sister to oversee the family business, Two Witches Winery. Norrie’s sister and her brother in law have been given a grant to study a species of insect in Costa Rica for the next year and while Norrie has made her life in New York City she would be able to continue her job as a successful screenwriter anywhere.

While she’s a silent partner in the winery Norrie has really had no interest in learning the actual business or running it but she finds she just can’t say no and hold her sister back. Upon arriving back home Norrie finds herself quickly learning the ins and outs of the business and those employees that help run the winery and keep it successful.

The one person Norrie doesn’t find welcoming upon her return is neighbor Elsbeth Waters who runs the local bed and breakfast. Norrie’s encounter with Elsbeth didn’t go well with the irate neighbor complaining of the family dog coming upon her property. Little did Norrie expect though was to find Elsbeth dead body in the vineyard and with so many disliking the B&B owner Norrie decides to help the police solve the murder.

Having read another series by J.C. Eaton and really enjoying it I had high hopes for The Wine Trail Mysteries. While I didn’t think this was a perfect start to the cozy series leaving me to rate this at 3.5 stars I did however still enjoy this beginning. What I really found myself wishing for with this one though was a bit more into building the characters and suspects. The beginning felt a little slow building the setting but the characters felt a bit buried in that too. I would still give the next book a go though knowing the authors’ other work.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

For more reviews please visit https://carriesbookreviews.com/
Profile Image for Tari.
2,684 reviews83 followers
July 10, 2018
This was the first book I've read by this author, also known as husband and wife writing team of Ann Goldfarb and Jim Clapp, but it definitely won't be my last. I'm going to start their other series very soon! I really loved this book and all the diverse and sometimes quirky characters. There were twists and turns throughout and I definitely didn't guess this killer.

Norrie Ellington was part owner of a winery in the Finger Lakes region of NY, but her day job was living in the city and writing screenplays. Her sister Francine and Francine's husband, Jason needed to go to Costa Rica for Jason's entomology research, and they needed her to oversee management of the Two Witches Winery for a year. Norrie expected to simply sit on the sidelines, run a meeting every so often and possibly help with hiring summer temp employees. What she hadn't banked on was the murder of one of the community's most disliked person, Elsbeth Waters, who owned the local B&B. Since Norrie herself was a person of interest, she was determined to find the real killer. With the help of two new friends, Theo and Don, the couple who ran a neighboring winery, she was able to eventually figure things out and bring the real killer to justice. Alvin, the dwarf goat even had a hand, or should I say hoof, in catching the killer.

I think Theo and Don had to be my favorite characters! They were just all-round, textbook good friends to have. They listened, they had Norrie over for meals and they gave her their full support, not to mention loaning some employees if needed. Cammy seemed like a nice person too since Norrie had decided she was going to the one of the few people she told about her sleuthing. I got a kick out of Lizzie, a retired CPA who worked for the winery and had a super-charged interest in sleuthing like Nancy Drew. She didn't really help or hinder, but she made for an interesting character.

The book was well-written and I was actually glad it didn't get into the wine-making processes or anything technical because while I like the whole idea of a winery (setting, cool building etc) I'm not real interested in the processes. Maybe the tasting, though, lol. ;)

I'm really anxious for the next book to come out since there was a description at the end of the book telling briefly what will happen in it.
Profile Image for Linda ~ *Chatcozy*.
1,292 reviews15 followers
February 12, 2018
If I were in upstate New York touring wineries, Two Witches Winery would be one of my stops. The cozy ambiance of the tasting room calls to visitors to sit, sip, and savor samples before making their take-home selections. Protagonist Norris Ellington is actually a successful screenwriter who’s come to oversee the winery while her sister and brother-in-law travel to Costa Rica for a year. Norrie’s inner Nancy Drew kicks in fast when the body of a querulous Bed and Breakfast owner turns up dead in the middle of some new vines the workers just planted!

A dangerous masquerade with two powerful businessmen could cork a killer or cost Norrie’s family the winery. With a mixed bouquet of suspects, this debut story in the Wine Trail Mysteries will have readers putting their thinking caps on if they want to solve the mystery before the author reveal. I had one person tapped as suspicious, but couldn’t figure out motive. Plenty of chuckles throughout the story, and a great supporting cast of characters for Norrie. Add a cute dwarf goat and a smart dog and this cozy is great entertainment.

I reviewed a digital ARC via NetGalley and the publisher.
Profile Image for LORI CASWELL.
2,573 reviews291 followers
March 2, 2019
Dollycas’s Thoughts

We arrive at the Two Witches Winery in upstate New York with Norrie Ellington. A family-owned winery that her sister, Francine, and brother-in-law, Jason, run as she is a very silent partner. Her brother-in-law has been given a research grant that will take the couple out of the country for a year and they have asked Norrie to take over while they are gone. Norrie has a job, a full-time job, as a screenwriter and really doesn’t want to step in, but her sister assures her the staff handles most everything. She just needs Norrie to oversee things, attend a few meetings, and handle any emergencies that arise. There will be plenty of time to work on her screenplays and make her deadlines.

Before Francine and Jason even arrive at their, no cell signal, out in the sticks, Costa Rican destination one of those rare emergencies arises in the form of a dead body among the Riesling vines. A woman Norrie had the displeasure of meeting upon her arrival. Elsbeth Waters was the owner of the nearby bed & breakfast and constant complainer of almost everything that happened in the town of Penn Yan and all the surrounding wineries. Let’s just say there is no shortage of suspects. There is also a couple of businessmen trying to buy up all the Penn Yan wineries so that they can open their own mega-winery business. Not really an emergency, because there is no way they are selling, unless they have something to do with Elsbeth’s death.

Norrie feels like she is in the middle of one her drama filled movies. With the body found on her land, and the police are eyeing her as a suspect, she has a vested interest in seeing the killer brought to justice and she doesn’t have a lot of faith in the local law enforcement. She hasn’t been around in a long time so as she gets to know everyone she decides to do a little snooping too.

I am late to the party on this series and am upset with myself. I have been enjoying the author’s Sophie Kimball Mysteries while this one was screaming from my Kindle. I am determined to get Chardonnayed to Rest read too before Pinot Red or Dead? hits stores.

I liked Norrie immediately and Francine too for the short time we got to spend with her. We are also introduced to a large cast of characters that make up the staff at Two Witches Winery, the other local winery owners, the victim, and her niece, and the businessmen that could crush not only grapes but the dreams of everyone in the area. The author’s do a great job of making each character unique so it is very easy to keep everyone straight. Cammy runs the tasting room and she and Norrie become fast friends, as do the men that own the nearby winery. Theo and Don are good friends with Francine and Jason and Norrie knows she can trust them. They really have her back and help her in many ways. I truly enjoyed the way so many rallied around to help Norrie get her feet under herself with the winery and in her mission to catch a murderer.

Two characters I can’t fail to mention and they need their own paragraph is the dog and the goat on the cover. Charlie is a Brindle Plott Hound and Alvin is a Nigerian Dwarf goat. Charlie stole my heart, even if he does need a bath almost every day. Alvin and Norrie don’t get off to a good start but he played a major part when he needed to.

The mystery itself was a real treat. Plenty of suspects and some crazy theories kept me guessing the entire story. I was kinda on the right trail, but some red herrings diverted my attention more than once. Norrie took some huge risks and while scary, the authors added some comic relief at the perfect times and in the perfect amounts.

I probably will never travel to Finger Lakes Wine Country in upstate New York and their 3 Wine Trails, but I sure had fun on my first literary trip there. J.C. Eaton gave us a bird’s eye view and I am excited about my next visit. Chardonnayed to Rest is queued up as one of the next books on my Kindle, just waiting for me to get started. Stay tuned for my review.
Profile Image for Patrizia.
1,632 reviews38 followers
April 8, 2018
4 stelle e mezza
Altro buon debutto, ma non ne dubitavo visto che già apprezzavo l'altra serie di questo autore (in realtà, credo che sia il nom de plume di una coppia sposata...). L'inizio mi ha subito conquistata e le investigazioni della protagonista, a parte il folle piano che a un certo punto mette in moto, mi hanno fatto dubitare di tutti, o quasi. In realtà, ben presto avevo trovato sospetto colui che poi è risultato colpevole, ma ciò non ha inficiato il piacere della lettura. Il secondo libro è già nella lista dei prossimi acquisti...
5,311 reviews61 followers
May 18, 2018
A nice little cozy set in wine country of upstate New York.

Screen writer is forced to take over the family winery, even though she wants to stay in Manhattan, and live the Sex in The City lifestyle. She meets the quirky neighbors, and the obnoxious one is killed. Our plucky heroine tries to solve the mystery.

Nothing special, but not a bad way to spend an afternoon.
Profile Image for Peggy.
1,012 reviews66 followers
February 15, 2018
This is the first in a new series for author team J.C. Eaton. I have not previously read anything by these authors and the synopsis on this books sounded interesting so I decided to give it a try. I liked Norrie for the most part. She is a bit overwhelmed with trying to oversee her family's vineyard and continue her own job as a screenplay writer. She has a good personality and at first was hesitant to investigate the murder the occurred in her vineyards on her own. She quickly gets into sleuthing with the help of some of her employees and neighbors. I enjoyed her attempts to uncover the killer's identity until about 3/4 of the way into the book. They she decided on what I thought was a harebrained idea that could have serious repercussion for her family. For me that aspect didn't fit with the rest of the book.

I thought the mystery was well done and I was surprised by the identity of the killer. Norrie was all over the place with suspects so it was easy to get distracted.

I voluntarily read an advanced reader copy provided to me by the publisher through Netgalley. This book is scheduled to be released on March 27, 2018
Profile Image for JoAn.
2,202 reviews1 follower
February 6, 2018
A Riesling to Die by J.C. Eaton was a easy cozy mystery that captured my attention from the first.

Norrie Ellington is a successful screenwriter and a silent partner in her family's winery. Normally the winery is run by her sister and husband but they are off to Costa Rica for a year and Norrie is guilted into overseeing the winery while they are gone. I liked Norrie although she often struck me as being easily overwhelmed and jumps to conclusions while sleuthing. J. C. Eaton does a fabulous job of describing the Finger Lakes district of New York; and the character development is well done as introductions into this first of a new cozy series. I liked many of the secondary characters and look forward to seeing them again as this series continues. A fast paced plot that flowed smoothly as the twists and turns take the reader to a reveal that I did not see coming.

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book from Lyrical Underground via NetGalley. All of the above opinions are my own.
Profile Image for Meg.
602 reviews
January 29, 2019
A good start to this new-to-me series. Maybe not perfect but filled with personable characters and neighborly wine growers. The lead character as screenwriter [for Hallmark] was different and refreshing. Have placed the next book on the WL
Profile Image for Lisa~Ilovemypug~ Currier.
1,880 reviews70 followers
March 5, 2018
This review fluctuates between 3.50 & 3.75.
I really wanted to like it a lot more than I did.
The main character had too much happening to really get to know her.
It seemed like things went to smoothly, there weren't as many twists and turns that I'd hoped for.

I would consider reading another book to give myself a second chance to get more familiar with the author's style.

I voluntarily read an ARC of this book provided by the publisher and NetGalley.
Profile Image for Fred.
1,004 reviews64 followers
March 14, 2018
A Riesling To Die is the first book in The Wine Trail Mysteries series.

Norrie Ellington, a successful screenwriter, has reluctantly agreed to manage the families winery, when her sister, Francine, tells her that she and her husband Josh are going to research a rare bug in the wilds of Costa Rica. Norrie has been a “silent” partner and is somewhat familiar with the day to day operation and has started visiting the workers, many of she knows and is busy meeting the new ones. As she is talking with the tasting room manager, Cammy, Norrie is approached by a lady wanting to speak with Francine. After explaining to the lady that Francine is out the country, the lady tells her that she has filed a complaint with the county about their winery setting off cannon fire in the mornings. Cammy soon explains that the lady, Elsbeth Waters owns the B&B next to the winery and complains about everyone and everything in the Fingers Lake region. A day or two later as dawn was about to break, Norrie is raised out of her sleep, with pounding on her front door. She arrived at the door to find two of the field workers telling her there was an emergency in the vineyard. The workers led her to where a dead body lays and it turns out to be Elsbeth Waters.

Several of the local wineries meet on a regular basis to discuss was is going on in the area and try to help each other with similar problems. It is at one of these meetings that Norrie finds out that a land developer has been trying to buy up many of the local wineries to form a mega-winery and make it a tourist attraction.

With a great deal of help from Theo and Don, owners of The Grey Egret Winery, she sets out to clear the name of her Two Witches Winery in the death of Waters and hopefully learn who the killer is before any other deaths occur and in addition to put a stop to the land developers from acquiring any vineyards and turning the beautiful Finger Lakes into an amusement park atmosphere.

I found this story to be very entertaining and very well written with just the right amount of discussion about wineries, winemaking, and wines to be informative and not to overshadow the mystery itself. The story has a very good cast of believable and likable character and will be looking forward to learning more about them in future books.

I will be watching for the next in series to what Norrie will get up to next.
Profile Image for Betty.
2,006 reviews57 followers
February 26, 2018
The cover will draw you into the book of a new series. Both animals in the cover, Charlie, a mix breed dog and Alvin, a goat are secondary characters in the book. The characters are well developed and the descriptions of the area will place you there.
Norie Ellington, a screenwriter has agreed to take over the family vineyard in Penn San, New York for a year. Upon arrival, Norie meets Elsbeth Waters an owner of a local B&B who complains repeatedly about the vineyards noise. Later Elsbeth's body is found on the family's property and Norie decided to investigate in order that mystery is solved. After many twists and turns, Norie finds the answer but not before foolishly putting herself in danger. I recommend this book.

Disclosure: Many thanks to Kensington Book s for my copy for review. The opinions expressed are my own.
Profile Image for RO G'ma.
1,028 reviews38 followers
March 21, 2018
A Riesling to Die is the debut book in J.C. Eaton’s (the husband and wife writing team of Ann I. Goldfarb and James E. Clapp) The Wine Trail Mysteries series. The story flowed smoothly with a steadily paced plot, twists and turns, and a well-developed cast of characters. A few of the eccentric characters, a Nigerian Dwarf goat named Alvin and a Brindle Plott Hound named Charlie add humorous moments to this whodunit.

Norrie Ellington is a successful screenwriter living in Manhattan, New York and a silent partner in Two Witches Winery, her family’s winery in Penn Yan. Her older sister and brother-in-law, Francine and Jason Keane, are spending a year in Costa Rica while Jason researches a bug and Francine asks Norrie to temporarily move to the winery and oversee operations. Norrie is hesitant and reluctantly agrees since the staff is experienced to do the work and she hopes she’ll be able to enjoy the peaceful countryside and work on her writing. Elsbeth Waters, the owner of Peaceful Pines B&B, is upset about the cannons the local wineries utilize to keep the birds, deer, rabbits, and foxes away from the grapes among many other things were bad for her business. Francine tells Norrie there’s a development company, Vanna Enterprises, owned by Lucas Stilton and his partner, Declan Roth, that wants to buy out the small wineries and build a mega-winery and that they believe the company might be trying to sabotage them. Francine explains that she and Jason will be off the grid, but that Theo Buchman and his life partner, Don, who own the Grey Egret, and Henry Speltmore, the president of the wine association and will help her if she encounters any problems with the developer. The morning after Francine and Jason leave, two vineyard workers wake Norrie up with the news that they found a body while working on the irrigation system in a new vineyard. Norrie identifies the deceased as Elsbeth Waters. When the death is ruled as suspicious, Norrie doesn’t want to wait while Yates County Deputy Sheriff Gary Hickman slowly investigates. Determined to uncover the identity of the killer so the vineyard can resume normal operations, Norrie slips on her sleuthing cap and seeks guidance and help from some of the vineyard’s employees and neighbors. Deputy Sheriff Gary Hickman advises her to mind her own business, but she believes the murder is her business and rushes forward, jumping to conclusions, and placing herself in harm’s way.

I received an Advance Reader Copy of this book from NetGalley and voluntarily reviewed it.
Profile Image for Kristen.
2,087 reviews148 followers
February 19, 2018
In J.C. Eaton's A Riesling to Die For, the first installment in the Wine Trail Mysteries Culinary cozy series, this debut new cozy series will knock you socks off and leave you begging for more. For Norrie Ellington, she's a screenplay writer for the Hallmark Channel. When her sister wants her to oversee the Two Witches Winery for her, while she's away in Costa Rica for a year with her husband Jason, Norrie wasn't sure and then decided to give her a helping hand. As she learned the lay of the vineyard and the winery business, she became entangled into her own mystery of her own. When the dead body of Elspeth Waters was found on the irrigation ditches, she decided to dig deep and learn more about Elspeth. With the help of her newest employees, she had her eye on a couple of culprits that ranged from business developers to fellow winery owners and even to her niece. But while she kept unearthing for clues, she almost placed herself in a delicate situation by falsing accusing others in the process. In the end, the truth was right under her nose, when she never expected someone who would want to do her in too.
Profile Image for Kristina.
3,637 reviews66 followers
April 17, 2018
A Riesling to Die is the first novel in The Wine Trail Mysteries. Norrie Ellington, a screenwriter, has reluctantly agreed to oversee the Two Witches Vineyard, in which she is a co-owner, for a year while her sister and her husband go off to Costa Rica on a research trip. Norrie believes that with the experienced winery staff, her role will be minimal which will leave her plenty of quiet time to write. The day after Francine and Jason leave the local crank is found dead in the new Riesling vines. Norrie decides to investigate the matter because the winery cannot afford to lose money or have bad publicity. She starts asking questions and believes she has discovered the guilty party. Norrie hatches with a plan to get the individual to confess. Unfortunately, things do not go quite as expected. Join Norrie at the Two Witches Vineyard in her search for a killer in A Riesling to Die.

A Riesling to Die is a light cozy mystery. Norrie is one of those main characters that babbles when nervous and turns into a blithering idiot in front of a handsome man. There was a lack of development in Norrie’s character. The author fails to provide her background which would establish the character (any of the characters). There are some unique people working in the tasting room of the winery. Glenda, Roger, Lizzie and Cammy provide comic relief along with Cammy’s cousin, Marc and Enzo (they cracked me up). There is also a dog that manages to get into smelly messes every day (it makes me wonder if these people have not heard of a leash or a fenced in area for dogs) and Alvin, the spitting dwarf goat that is an attraction for children (just what every vineyard needs when you have guests wandering about). The mystery was straightforward, and the identity of the guilty party came as no surprise. Norrie’s investigation was proceeding nicely until she came up a harebrained scheme to reel in who she believes is the killer (she jumped to conclusions instead of following the evidence and thinking things through). The grand plan jeopardizes the winery and reminds me of Lucy Ricardo’s schemes. Norrie’s spends a significant amount of time speculating on who could have committed the crime. You can really see her overactive imagination at work. All the loose ends are wrapped up at the end of the story. A Riesling to Die had a good start, but then it stalled out for a while and then it became foolish. There is some interesting information about growing grapes, taking care of the vines, running a vineyard and producing wines. I am curious how many dead people will turn up in the area during Norrie’s year at Two Witches Winery (maybe the author will throw in a burglary). A Riesling to Die is a quick read that will appeal to readers who prefer lighter cozy mysteries filled with quirky characters. The next book in The Wine Trail Mysteries is Chardonnayed to Rest.
Profile Image for Brenda.
536 reviews27 followers
February 6, 2018
A Riesling to Die is the debut of The Wine Trail Mysteries series set in the upstate New York town of Penn Yan and featuring screenwriter Norrie Ellington. When her older sister, Francine, lays down a guilt trip and asks Norrie to come oversee the family winery, Two Witches so that she can accompany her husband, Jason, to Costa Rica on a scientific research grant, Norrie reluctantly caves in. With a full staff working at the winery Norrie won't really have to do anything but watch the grapes grow and work on her latest screenplay, right?

Just one week into her new position, Norrie is jolted out of bed by a knock at the door. A dead body has been discovered in a section of the vineyard. Francine had warned her that someone has been sabotaging Two Witches and the neighboring vineyards surrounding Lake Seneca, but wasn't sure if it was a group of developers looking to get their hands on the properties or if it was the meddlesome owner of the adjacent B&B who resented the influx of tourists into the region.

Determined to find the killer and save the winery, Norrie sets out with the help of her staff and the neighbors to solve the mystery. Partnered with her gassy sidekick, Charlie, an adorable Plott Hound, Norrie quickly finds herself in the midst of a screenplay that only she could have written.

A fast moving plot with lovable, yet somewhat eccentric, characters and a delightful Nigerian Dwarf goat will keep readers turning the pages. A twist at the end reveals many more adventures are in store for Norrie and her friends.

I received an advanced copy of A Riesling to Die from NetGalley via Lyrical Press, a division of Kensington Publishing. While not required to write a review I am more than happy to offer my honest opinion.
Profile Image for Jeanie.
1,257 reviews1 follower
April 26, 2018
This was an interesting first-in-series that taught me something new - I had no idea that there were vineyards and wineries in New York! While the characters were not my all-time favorites, they were each uniquely able to add something to the mix. The multi-tiered mystery is well written and one that I couldn't quite solve no matter how I tried.

I think my disappointment was with the protagonist, who made choices in an attempt to solve a mystery that were not quite what I might have chosen that could have had serious repercussions to the family. Norrie is a screenwriter who left the vineyard and winery behind when she left for college, then moved to Manhattan with a position as a screenwriter. She was still a silent partner in the business while her sister managed every aspect of the winery. Her husband had an opportunity to go to Costa Rica for a year to study a rare bug on a grant, so Norrie went back to New York to oversee the excellent managers her sister had in place - and write her screenplays in the meantime.

A woman who was troublesome to all of the vineyard owners around was found dead in the vineyard the morning after Norrie's sister and brother-in-law left. She didn't think the deputy was doing a good job investigating, so she decided to do some sleuthing herself. Her attempts to find the killer brought the questions right back around on herself, and it took some embarrassed honesty to get off the hook. She continued to search, however, to get the cloud of suspicion off of the family winery again.

I would definitely read another in the series, as the mystery is very well-written in spite of the protagonist. While she made some bad decisions, her heart was in the right place, and this has definitely been a learning experience for her. And thankfully, with the lack of communication available to her sister in Costa Rica, Norrie's sister was spared the details until the killer/s was caught. I do still recommend this mystery for the overall suspense and intrigue, and look forward to the next one.
Profile Image for Stormi (StormReads).
1,869 reviews175 followers
November 11, 2019
I love J.C. Eaton's first series so I was really curious what I would think of the other series about wine. Well, this first book was okay but not sure I am caring as much for the characters in this one as I have the first series.

Norrie can't believe she let her sister talk her into taking over the winery for a whole year while her and her husband go chase some bugs in Costa Rica. Norrie is a screenplay writer not a wine connoisseur, but she is a silent partner in the winery where they grew up called Two Witches Winery.

Norrie hopes that she can just let those that work there do their thing while she can work on her screenplay because she has a deadline, but things don't go as planned. Right after her sister and brother-in-law leave she is woke up in the early morning by a couple of young vineyard workers who found a dead body on the new Riesling section of the vineyard.

Now she is afraid that this is going to kill the winery because who wants wine from a place that a dead body was found, that and any of her people could be a potential suspect.  She doesn't have a lot of faith in the police to do their job and so she thinks since she has written some crime scenes in her scripts that she can figure things out.

So about the characters, I am not a real big fan of Norrie the MC. I think at times she is a complete idiot when it comes to trying to solve the crime. I didn't like the way she handled things with the corporation that she just new had to have something to do with the murder. She doesn't think a lot of things through and it just made me sort of roll my eyes a bit. I do like some of her employees like Cammy who runs the wine tasting. I also liked Theo and Don her neighbors who come to her aid a lot, they were pretty cool.

I thought the mystery aspect of it was pretty well done. It did take me a little bit to figure it out and the author does a good job of making us think it was someone else.

Overall, I think it was a decent start to the series and I just hope that I will start to warm up more to the MC in the story as the series progresses.
October 1, 2020
Good wine

Wine making may be hard work but what's worse is when someone turns up dead and your a suspect. Norrie is a fun character but not a good spy. LOL I enjoyed all the quirky characters but fun and also very neighborly too. I wonder what else will happen during her year of helping while her sister is away in South America. I guess I'll have to read on to find out. LOL
Profile Image for Cris (The Biblio Blonde).
231 reviews44 followers
August 21, 2018
First in a new series set in the Finger Lakes wine region in New York. Interesting story and evocative setting. If you're a wine lover, you'll enjoy this!
Profile Image for Book.
444 reviews
February 23, 2018
Interesting debut for the Wine Trail Mystery series…

The story starts with screen writer Norrie Ellington agreeing to take over management of the family business, Two Witches Winery, while her sister and brother-in-law move to Costa Rica for a year. The set-up is good, the threads of the mystery become visible at a reasonable pace. Characters are introduced, relationships established. The owner of a B & B is found murdered on the vineyard’s grounds and Norrie’s sleuthing begins, abetted by Don and Theo, owners of an adjoining winery.

The imagination of the screen writer takes over and comes up with a harebrained and potentially dangerous idea to trap the individual Norrie believes is the killer. This plot device is startling and breaks the flow of the story. The extreme nature of her plan feels a little out of character and really makes the reader wonder what the heck is she thinking.

Twists, turns and red herrings abound. The resolution is not unexpected but has its own unique twist. Maybe the second adventure…

Profile Image for Paula.
27 reviews4 followers
July 6, 2018
I LOVED this book. (I rate books within categories so this was a 4 out of 5 mystery and almost nothing gets a 5.) It was sweet and friendly. I liked the characters and the town's personality. I didn't guess whodunit till pretty close to the end (and I'm really good at guessing whodunit).

I'm waiting for the next one, a chardonnay this time, but in the meantime I'm checking out one of her other series.

P.S. This isn't my best review but I read a while ago and just realized that it's proper etiquette to review books that you win in giveaways. I really did enjoy it though.
P.P.S. If you read ebooks, it's pretty easy to win GoodRead giveaways so do it!
Profile Image for OpenBookSociety.com .
3,915 reviews121 followers
May 8, 2018
http://openbooksociety.com/article/a-...

A Riesling to Die
The Wine Trail Mysteries #1
By J. C. Eaton
ISBN 978516107988
jceatonauthor.com
Brought to you by OBS Reviewer Jeanie

Synopsis:

Norrie Ellington is a successful screenwriter living in New York City. She’s also been a silent partner for her family’s winery upstate—until her sister and brother-in-law take a year-long sabbatical. With an experienced staff doing the work, Norrie figures Two Witches Winery will run itself while she enjoys the countryside and writes in peace and quiet.

Unfortunately, there’s a sour grape in the town of Penn Yan who doesn’t care for vineyards. Bed and breakfast owner Elsbeth Waters complains to everyone who’ll listen that the local wineries are bad for her business. But when Elsbeth’s body is found on Norrie’s property, the victim of foul play, the screenwriter-turned-vintner dons a sleuthing cap to uncover the identity of a killer who told the B&B proprietress to put a cork in it—permanently . . .(from Goodreads)

Review:

Francine Ellington Keane, the older of two sisters, has managed day-to-day operations of the family’s Two Witches Winery for several years. Norrie is the silent partner, trusting her sister’s decisions while she is a screenwriter in Manhattan, living in the apartment inherited from their great-aunt Tessie. She is content with her work as a writer.

When Cornell University’s Experiment Station, where Francine’s husband Jason works, lands a coveted grant to study a special bug in Costa Rica, everything changes. So that Francine could go with Jason for a year, Norrie is convinced to pack up her laptop – because after all, she could write anywhere – and move to the winery that she hasn’t seen since a teenager. With her apartment sublet for a year, she’s kind of stuck now, no matter what happens. And things definitely start to happen within hours after Francine and Jason leave.

Two Witches Winery, so named by the original owner, is on the Seneca Lake Wine Trail in New York, an area rich with vineyards and wineries. One thing Francine advises Norrie about before leaving is how a developer has been trying to purchase their vineyard and winery, and others nearby, to make a mega-winery and vacation spot that would attract tourists from around the world. She tells Norrie also that she can trust the partners of Grey Egret Winery just down the hill, Theo and Don, if she has any questions. Norrie had a crash course in the vineyard and winery before her sister and brother-in-law left. Norrie, however, just wants the year to fly by so she can return to Manhattan.

A peaceful year is not to be. There are two pets that the vineyard guys take care of. Well, one, now. Children love to see the Nigerian Dwarf Goat, Alvin, who seems to like everyone else…saving special treats for Norrie. Charlie is a Plott Hound who appeared at the winery in the past year. Charlie takes a tremendous liking to Norrie, in spite of the special baths she has to give him. He chooses to be her companion, as long as she keeps him out of the tasting room.

The morning after taking her sister and brother-in-law to the airport, two of the men working at vineyard woke her up far too early with an emergency. They found a body in the new area of the vineyard. She called 911 and met the unimpressive Deputy Hickman. When they turned the body, Norrie, a relative newcomer, could make the identity. It was Elsbeth Waters, who owned the nearby Peaceful Pines B & B. She had met Elsbeth twice, a woman who complained about everything occurring at the neighboring wineries and was disliked by most. While there are many good suspects, the sheriff’s office doesn’t want Norrie’s input and doesn’t seem to be making any progress.

Now there are so many people wanting to tour the vineyard that Norrie has to bring in the part-time summer students to lead the curiosity-seekers through. They might be selling more wine than ever, but who wants to be known for this? Norrie continues to “investigate” on her own, making some interesting decisions to try to pin down the real bad guy/ gal.

At first I really liked Norrie. I had empathy for her move from Manhattan to the vineyard, even though I liked the vineyard and most of the employees. Norrie took risks that were above and beyond what I would think wise. Maybe when I get to know her better as the series continues, I’ll like her better. I like Cammy, the tasting room manager who has a good grasp of the business. Lizzie, the cashier and Nancy Drew fan, has expectations that would be hard for any amateur sleuth to live up to while overseeing the operations and meeting a screenplay schedule.

This is a complex mystery that satisfies the armchair sleuth in many ways. I learned a little about vineyards and the dedication taken with the fruit and vines, picturing the distinct beauty of that part of New York. I also see great potential for this series in the way that the authors led us through finding the real killer. The plot twists made the mystery unique in the way the solution lies in a direction not readily thought about, then bringing a satisfying surprise at the end. Overall, in spite of shaking my head more than once at Norrie’s actions, I recommend this cozy mystery to those who enjoy the combination of farming and brewing the fruit of the vine.

Profile Image for JoAnne McMaster (Any Good Book).
1,296 reviews23 followers
September 7, 2018
When Norrie Ellington is begged by her sister Francine to come and take care of their family's winery while she spends a year in Costa Rica with her husband, who has a research grant, Norrie reluctantly agrees. While she's apprehensive about running the winery she couldn't wait to escape from in the first place, she's soon reassured that the staff is well-versed in the day-to-day operations and all she has to do is oversee things and write the monthly checks.

But unfortunately things don't happen that way. After her sister and brother-in-law are barely out of the country, she's awakened by two employees who inform her there's a body in the vineyard. And when she goes to investigate, she discovers that it's the woman she had an unpleasant encounter with the day before at the winery's tasting room. But who would want to leave Elsbeth's body in their vineyard? And while she finds out that the woman wasn't well-liked, who hated her enough to kill her?

Norrie has an idea that it might be the developers who are trying to buy up everyone's winery to build a mega-one; but proving it might be another matter altogether. If she's not careful, she could wind up losing everything, including her life...

This is the first book in the series, and since I enjoy the others by this author, I thought I would give it a chance. It has potential, but I found that there were some things that didn't make any sense (although I will admit I know very little about wineries, only having visited a few in my lifetime. First off though, was a pretty big thing:

Why did Elsbeth buy a B&B in wine country - paying cash, no less - if she hated the wineries? Surely she knew that her business would be centered around them, and without them, she might not have enough customers to keep her afloat. This, unfortunately, was the biggest question, because it didn't make any sense at all. She had to know this, so I didn't understand why she was complaining about them. You'd think it would be more to her advantage to make friends and try to work out deals with the wineries, such as trading coupons with them or something of that sort, instead of trying to put them out of business. I'm also not sure she wasn't the one leaving "problems" at the wineries instead of the developers.

Then it would have been nice to know something about Penn Yan; there were very little descriptions and not enough to make anyone want to visit, which is a big thing in books. You want your readers to feel as if they're transported to the place they're reading about, but I just couldn't get a feel for any of this, so the book wasn't that interesting. There were also too many characters to get involved with. I understand that wineries have many employees, but it would have been nice to center on just a few instead of so many, then the author could have given us descriptions instead of bare bones, as it were. I never felt we got to know any of them.

Another thing is that Cammy said they didn't want anything in the tasting room to interfere with the wine - meaning Glenda's smudging - but they have a restaurant there? Wouldn't the smells from the food interfere? Also, why are employee records kept in the tasting room instead of up at the house? Wouldn't the owner of the winery want important papers to be kept close instead of where anyone could access them if they had a key to the tasting room? Also, when the coyotes were out everyone was concerned about Charlie being in the house but not one person cared about Alvin being outside? Coyotes will go after goats, too. Just curious about these.

So with those out of the way, this was a pretty decent start, with Norrie returning home to the winery, which she hates, hoping to hunker down and get her latest screenplay written when Elsbeth is found. I understand that she wants to find the killer as it's disrupting the winery, but it's a stretch when she goes off half-cocked because she believes she knows who the killer is, and her new friends are basically helping her instead of telling her to let the police handle it.

She goes around questioning the other winery owners - who apparently have no clue what she's doing - and the Elsbeth's niece - who apparently does and tells the police, even though she didn't say anything to her that seemed even remotely like she was investigating, in my opinion. Then she comes up with the above-mentioned idea that could ruin everything for her family, which tells me she doesn't think things through, but flies on the seat of her pants, which isn't always a good thing unless you have nothing to lose - which she does.

Anyway, when the ending came and the killer was discovered, it came as a complete surprise but seemed rather rushed. It was almost as if the author was tired of the book and wanted to end it as soon as possible; and I never felt that Norrie was ever in any kind of danger, no matter what happened so there were no hairy moments in the book. However, since this is the first in the series, I will read the second and perhaps we'll get more info on the countryside around Penn Yan and see how Norrie is fitting in with her new life merging with her old. A decent cozy that can be read in one evening.
Profile Image for Dez Nemec.
815 reviews28 followers
February 6, 2018
This is the first of the Wine Trail Mysteries. Having read Eaton's 2 Sophie Kimbell mysteries, I was anxious to read this one.

Norrie has reluctantly agreed to oversee the family winery while her sister and brother-in-law take a year to go to Costa Rica to study bugs. Almost upon her arrival, Norrie meets the extremely unpleasant Elsbeth Waters. She's the owner of a B&B down the road, and a royal pain in the butt to business owners all over the area. Less than 24 hours after Norrie is left alone to run the winery, Elsbeth is found dead on the winery property. Having an interest in getting the murder solved, Norrie takes it upon herself to do a little investigative work. There are suspects abound: the niece who was treated like a servant; the unscrupulous yet handsome land developers hoping to turn the lake into a wine-tasting Disneyland; and lots of winery owners who were regularly accosted by Elsbeth and her obnoxious demands.

The cast is rather unique. It seems that nearly everyone working in the tasting room were characters. Glenda is obsessed with doing a cleansing and having a seance for Elsbeth's spirit. Roger has a love and depth of knowledge about the French and Indian war that he seems compelled to weave into every conversation. Lizzie has read every Nancy Drew novel and is therefore an expert in investigations (in her mind). Cammy is the only seemingly normal one, but makes up for it by sending her frat boy cousins Marc and Enzo as back-up for Norrie when she goes to meet with one of the land developers. Marc and Enzo cracked me up - could we see more of them in the next novel?!

The murderer was not a complete surprise to me. Something was obviously going on there, but I couldn't decide what the issue was. However the identity of the killer was not obvious by any means.

I saw this was a series, and my initial thought was: how? Norrie is a city girl, perfectly happy living in NYC (although being near Little Italy, who could blame her?), and repeatedly mentions how she just didn't like the idyllic lake region. Except for a comment about how she enjoyed working at her sister's table with only the birds and occasional motorboat and none of the horn honking and rumbles of traffic of NYC, I felt sure she was planning on leaving 365 days from when her sister left her in charge. However there is a suggestion near the end on how the series could continue, so that question, while not answered, was sated for the moment at least. (No spoilers.)

It was a fun, quick read. Recommended.
September 6, 2019
Cozy Murder Mystery

Norrie Ellington, screenwriter for Canadian romance movies, is also a silent partner in her family’s winery with her sister and brother in law, The Two Witches Winery. Her brother in law, an entomologist, received the opportunity he has been waiting for, his grant finally came through for his research study in Costa Rica. Norrie needs to come home to run the winery for a year while they are off the grid looking for bugs. On her first day, the body of neighboring B&B proprietress Elsbeth is discovered in the Riesling section of their vineyard, and it is apparent it was not from natural causes. As everyone on the wine trail despised the horrible woman who went about her day ruining other’s, everyone’s a suspect. Norrie doesn’t feel like the police are doing a good enough job, and decides she could do better.
“The second he left the room, I leaned my elbows across the table to where Cammy was seated and whispered, “This winery can’t afford to wait while that sheriff’s department diddles around with its investigation.” “What are you saying?” “I think I’m going to do some sleuthing on my own.””
As she investigates all the other winery owners on the trail, a large corporation looking to buy everyone out, and the victim’s own niece, she listens for clues and narrows down her suspect list. With her primary suspect in her sites, Norrie goes all in on a crazy, hairbrained plan to get a confession, but will she end up as the next body found?

Cute, easy, fast read. Appropriate for younger readers as well, no bad language or sexual references. Norrie is a character that will drive you crazy at times. Her sleuthing is definitely lacking in skills, at times you want to yell “No! Don’t do that! Bad idea! You’re missing it!” But what do you expect from her first murder investigation. There were definitely very entertaining parts that made me laugh out loud.
“”The TV commentators said it was blunt force trauma to the head and yesterday’s paper called it a murder. Did the deputies share any titillating tidbits with you?” Titillating tidbits? Dear Lord. “Uh, no. I’m getting the mushroom treatment.” “The what?” “They keep me in the dark and feed me B.S.””
I am intrigued with what the next book in the series will bring. What will Norrie and Charlie (her lovable hound) get themselves into next?
August 2, 2018
This was my first book by J. C. Eaton and now I am hooked. I had no expectations going into this book as I received it from NetGalley in return for an honest review. I was beyond pleasantly surprised. Eaton combines the picturesque vineyard scene with humor, wit, and of course, murder. The characters were likeable and relatable. Don and Theo were by far my favorites, I want to hang out with them.

Norrie Ellington is a screenwriter living in NYC as well as a silent partner in her family's upstate winery. When her sister and brother-in-law decide take a year long trip to further his research, Norrie is expected to step up and run the winery. While over seeing the winery, she should still have time to work on her writing... right??? Well her plans take a quick turn when the area's battleax is found dead in the vineyard. With multiple enemies as well as a Mega Corporation trying to strong arm the locals to sell their properties, the suspect list is endless. Norrie, worried this will have a negative affect on the winery, decides to take the investigating and the Coporation on herself. Has she bitten off more that can she can chew? Is the murderer someone that she knows? Will she be the next victim? Read the book and find out.

The second in the series, Chardonnayed to Rest, will be available in late September.
Profile Image for Tam Sesto.
486 reviews8 followers
August 29, 2021
Norrie’s sister and brother-in-law own and operate a winery in the town of Penn Yan. They are going on a year long sabbatical, and Norrie, reluctantly agrees to run the winery while they are gone. After a woman is found murdered in their wine fields, Norrie decides to investigate the murder herself when she believes the local sheriff department is too slow in solving the murder. This is A Riesling to Die (The Wine Trail Mysteries #1) by J.C. Eaton.

A competent story for the first book in a new series. It took me a while to warm up to Norrie, the main character; but eventually I did. I loved the characters of Don and Theo and they were a perfect foil to Norrie. There were some quirkiness to the other characters such as Glenda’s fascination with spirits and cleansing of the spirits, and Lizzie who was fascinated by Nancy Drew and kept telling Norrie that unlike her, Nancy Drew would do this in her investigation. The story dragged a bit here and there, but for the most part, was enjoyable. There was an assortment of characters, and at times, it was hard keeping track of everyone. The plot initially seemed a bit over the top, and then once you find out who the killer was, you realize the authors did a good job keeping you off balance. All in all, not a bad start to a new series.

My review is voluntary and all comments and opinions expressed are my own.
Profile Image for Mary.
590 reviews18 followers
March 19, 2018
The first in the Wine Trail mysteries. Norrie Ellington is a silent partner in a family winery (Two Witches Winery) in upstate New York. By profession, she is a screenwriter but has reluctantly agreed into running the winery for the next year. Her sister and brother-in-law take are headed to Costa Rica for a fully funded research grant. The winery has a fully operating staff and she is not expected to be that involved. So how hard can it be right? When the dead body of a local B&B is found at the winery, Norrie feels she must investigate to save the winery. Francine her sister, had mentioned some sabotage (suspected to be real estate developers) prior to going but she never expected murder. This was a great introduction for this series. I am not familiar with the Finger Lakes area of New York but have now put this area on my list to visit. I enjoyed the mystery and the introduction to all the secondary characters. That is always a tricky thing for the first in the series to get a solid mystery that keeps the book moving and introducing the series and setting it up for the next installment. I think the author did a good job of balancing that. Will definitely look for the next installment in this series.
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