Sunday, September 2, 2012

Champagne, The Farewell by Janet Hubbard


Champagne, The Farewell by Janet Hubbard

I liked this book and read it in one day. It drew me into the story and I didn’t want to put it down. That to me is the benchmark of a good read.

This is a Who Done It? set in the Valley of the Marne in Champagne, an hour and a half east of Paris. Only grapes grown in this region of France can officially be named champagne. Anything else is a sparkling wine. The land is precious; the soil unique. The people are from old families.

Ms. Hubbard has crafted a fine tale of love, jealousy, betrayal, family angst, money, revenge, friendship, loyalty, and political intrigue in easy to read prose. I did not guess the evil doer until nearly the end. There are sufficient twists and turns to keep one fascinated. The setting is appealing. I felt drawn into the Marceau environment. The writing reminds somewhat of Noel Barber, a novelist I much loved who wrote of intriguing places with sweeping stories. While this novel covered only a few days, it felt much grander.


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