Til Death Do Us Part by Laurie Elizabeth Flynn (2024)
In this domestic thriller, there's mystery and murder alright, but the heavy emphasis here is weighted toward domestic drama. Troubled marriages, family secrets deeply buried, infidelities and toxic sibling rivalries of children coming back to unsettle their parents.
And all of this unfolds amidst Napa Valley wineries, where the grapes ferment to fruition right along with those familial grapes of wrath of the growers.
Back East, the tragically widowed June, the owner of a Brooklyn wine bar is now, ten years later, happily planning a wedding to her fiance Kyle. But she lives with haunted memories of her brief marriage to the impetuous force-of-nature Josh who mysteriously drowned on their honeymoon, his body never recovered.
And here's where the book starts to hook you, so you'll know you won't stop til you finish it. June catches glimpses of Josh, or someone who looks exactly like him. A double? Or a resurrected Josh for real? Her ceaseless, obsessive google searches lead her to a Napa winery, whose owner looks exactly like the man she spotted on the streets.
On her own secretive mission to Napa, June stays at the winery's small hotel, hoping to meet Andrew and Sadie the married couple who own the vineyard.....especially 'Andrew', who's conveniently out of town on business.
End of me talking plot, because of course, here's where the revelations and twists begin to make themselves known. To deepen the story and characters there's parallel flashback chapters dealing with Josh's mother Bev (also a vineyard owner with husband David). These occur around the time of Josh's tumultuous adolescence, riddled with.......well, that's for readers to find out.
"Til Death Do Us Part' kept me intrigued and reading but I found some of the twists problematic and at least one major twist that's simply too far-fetched and pushes a reader's ability to swallow it. And leaving one of the mysteries unsolved and forgotten didn't help my impression either.
A great set-up that makes you determined to find out all the answers. But I'm not sure how many people will go along with those reveals when they're finally laid bare. 3 passable stars, (***)....but only if you revel more in the domestic angst rather than the actual plot twists.....some of which might prompt, "You have got to be ****in' kidding me!"
And all of this unfolds amidst Napa Valley wineries, where the grapes ferment to fruition right along with those familial grapes of wrath of the growers.
Back East, the tragically widowed June, the owner of a Brooklyn wine bar is now, ten years later, happily planning a wedding to her fiance Kyle. But she lives with haunted memories of her brief marriage to the impetuous force-of-nature Josh who mysteriously drowned on their honeymoon, his body never recovered.
And here's where the book starts to hook you, so you'll know you won't stop til you finish it. June catches glimpses of Josh, or someone who looks exactly like him. A double? Or a resurrected Josh for real? Her ceaseless, obsessive google searches lead her to a Napa winery, whose owner looks exactly like the man she spotted on the streets.
On her own secretive mission to Napa, June stays at the winery's small hotel, hoping to meet Andrew and Sadie the married couple who own the vineyard.....especially 'Andrew', who's conveniently out of town on business.
End of me talking plot, because of course, here's where the revelations and twists begin to make themselves known. To deepen the story and characters there's parallel flashback chapters dealing with Josh's mother Bev (also a vineyard owner with husband David). These occur around the time of Josh's tumultuous adolescence, riddled with.......well, that's for readers to find out.
"Til Death Do Us Part' kept me intrigued and reading but I found some of the twists problematic and at least one major twist that's simply too far-fetched and pushes a reader's ability to swallow it. And leaving one of the mysteries unsolved and forgotten didn't help my impression either.
A great set-up that makes you determined to find out all the answers. But I'm not sure how many people will go along with those reveals when they're finally laid bare. 3 passable stars, (***)....but only if you revel more in the domestic angst rather than the actual plot twists.....some of which might prompt, "You have got to be ****in' kidding me!"
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