Book 16, 2024

[chez_jae]

One Foot in the Grape by Carlene O'Neil

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



After finishing my regular book last night, I picked up my "spare" one and finished it, too. Woo! It was One Foot in the Grape by Carlene O'Neil, and it's the first in her "Cypress Cove" mystery series. The main character is Penelope "Penny" Lively, a photo journalist turned vintner.

After refusing to embellish a story, Penny is fired from her job as a photo journalist. However, she recently inherited a small winery from her aunt, and Penny relocates there to reset and reevaluate. When the Antonia Martinelli, owner of the neighboring winery, confides in Penny that someone is sabotaging her wines, Penny agrees to help. Things become more complicated when one of Antonia's employees is murdered, and the last person to see him alive was Penny's niece and employee, Hayley. In the course of her investigation, Penny is drawn further into the dysfunctional dynamics of the Martinelli family. The trick will be figuring out which of them is capable of murder.

Very well written and engrossing. Penny is an engaging character, and other characters are fully realized, from austere Antonia to conniving Francesca to Penny's gay friends, Ross and Thomas. The plot was sensible and fast paced.

Favorite lines:
♦ I'm not very good at picking out the good ideas from the bad. I'll pretty much try them all.
♦ Success in the kitchen escaped me. The only thing I could reliably make was salad.
♦ Lying comes naturally to me. I'm not proud of it, but there it is.
♦ "I always knew she didn't have her panties on too tight."

Enjoyable and entertaining, four stars.


1. Does the mc work at/as one of the following: baker/bakery/sweet shop/tea shop/coffee shop, library/librarian, antique/vintage shop, book store, fashion/boutique, bed & breakfast? No, she's a vintner
2. Does the mc live at her (or his) place of occupation? Yes, she lives at the winery
3. Is the love interest involved in law enforcement? (Police officer, sheriff, detective, PI, FBI) No, he works at the winery
4. Does the mc have a dog/cat as a pet? Yes, she has one of each
5. Is the mc's BFF either a gay guy or a ditzy/zany woman? No, she's a level-headed veterinarian
6. Did the mc find the body? Yes
7. Did the mc wind up in mortal danger at the end of the book? Yes
8. Is the mc's mother either: dead, absent, far removed, ditzy and dithering, or overbearing/disapproving/meddling? Yes
9. If mother is dead/absent, does the mc have another mother-figure (grandmother, aunt, mom's friend, or an older friend)? No
10. Is the mc child-free? (Either no children or else grown children--i.e. no small children to look after) Yes