Author: Darynda Jones
Series: Sunshine Vicram (Book 2)
Publication: St. Martin's Press (July 27, 2021)
Description: From the New York Times bestselling author Darynda Jones comes the second novel in her laugh-out-loud Sunshine Vicram mystery series, A Good Day for Chardonnay.
Running a small-town police force in the mountains of New Mexico should be a smooth, carefree kind of job. Sadly, full-time Sheriff―and even fuller-time coffee guzzler―Sunshine Vicram, didn’t get that memo.
All Sunshine really wants is one easy-going day. You know, the kind that starts with coffee and a donut (or three) and ends with take-out pizza and a glass of chardonnay (or seven). Turns out, that’s about as easy as switching to decaf. (What kind of people do that? And who hurt them?)
Before she can say iced mocha latte, Sunny’s got a bar fight gone bad, a teenage daughter hunting a serial killer and, oh yes, the still unresolved mystery of her own abduction years prior. All evidence points to a local distiller, a dangerous bad boy named Levi Ravinder, but Sun knows he’s not the villain of her story. Still, perhaps beneath it all, he possesses the keys to her disappearance. At the very least, beneath it all, he possesses a serious set of abs. She’s seen it. Once. Accidentally.
Between policing a town her hunky chief deputy calls four cents short of a nickel, that pesky crush she has on Levi which seems to grow exponentially every day, and an irascible raccoon that just doesn’t know when to quit, Sunny’s life is about to rocket to a whole new level of crazy.
Yep, definitely a good day for chardonnay.
My Thoughts: This book was an emotional roller coaster. I went from laughing out loud (several times) to sobbing equally loudly. It would be hard to summarize this plot because there were so many threads and so much happened in this story. The book blurb gives some hint of the variety of things that happen in the book but leaves out a lot too.
I loved the way the characters - especially Sunshine and her daughter Auri - interact. The characters from the old woman who confesses to every crime and the flasher who haunts the park and the guy in pest control Sunshine's parents set her up with for a blind day and who now won't stop texting her all add interest, humor, and mystery to the story. The chapter headings which are adds for various local business also provide a lot of humor.
I like the romance plots too. Auri's young first love sort of romance with Cruz was touching. And Sunshine's growing romance with Levi Ravinder was also really entertaining. I liked the friendships in the story too. Sunshine's best friend is her Chief Deputy and he is quite a character. In fact, all the deputies are unique characters.
I really, really enjoyed this story and hope that there is more to come in this series. There were plot threads left hanging. I want to know what happens next for these characters.
Favorite Quote:
She was so close she could taste victory. Or wishful thinking. Emotional figures of speech tasted startlingly similar.I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.
The title itself is intriguing.
ReplyDeleteI'll keep this one in mind for my next trip out west.
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