The Vintage Caper

by Peter Mayle

Book Overview

A globetrotting detective story, filled with the culinary delights and entertaining characters from the national bestselling author of A Year in Provence and our most treasured chronicler of French life.

"Wine and food aficionados will find much to savor.... Light, funny, and packed with a menu's worth of scrumptious descriptions of exceptional dinners and drinks." --USA Today

The Vintage Caper begins high...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0307389197
• ISBN13: 9780307389190
• Release Date: July 2010
• Publisher: Vintage
• Length: 240 Pages
• Weight: 0.55 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.2" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

Fun, easy read

A very fun and easy read. A "who dunnit" that revolves around wine, California and France, and a very charming protagonist. The characters are interesting with a touch of exotic. If you like Peter Mayle's writing, then you'll love this. If you've never read him, then this is a great place to start.

Would love to try some of the food and wine in this book

As a chef and sommelier I was looking forward to reading this book. I have loved all of Peter Mayle's prior books so I went in with high expectations. He does not disappoint. This is a delicious read. The characters develop quickly and I had a hard time putting the book down. However, what I take most from the book are the exquisite notes on the food and wine. I felt as though I was wining and dining as I read the book. Do not read this on an empty stomach. I have traveled to the south of France and the author deftly describes not only the people of the region, but the scenery, the other drinks, including not so famous wines, and the local cuisine. I will recommend this to all of my foodie friends.

A Breezy And Delightful Read

This was my first Peter Mayle book and I will definitely be going back for more. The plot is believable, the characters are perfect given the parts that they play, and Mayle's dialogue does not get bogged down in extraneous detail. Mystery aficionados or wine lovers may find that the book comes up short. However, if you are looking for a light-hearted mystery novel with almost a touch of Nick and Nora Charles in it then this is the book for you.

amusing crime caper

Hollywood entertainment lawyer Danny Roth cherishes his wine collection, insured for three million dollars. He is so full of pride over his vintage collection he boasts excessively about his vino darlings during a Los Angeles Times interview. However, Danny feels violated when someone who obviously read the article absconded with his wine collection. Insurance agent Elena Morales hires her former boyfriend Sam Levitt, a wine connoisseur, to investigate the theft. He follows the trail to France where he teams up with insurance agent Sophie Costes, a wine and food gourmand. They soon track the purloined wine to Marseilles with billionaire wine collector Francis Reboul as the prime suspect behind the theft. This is an amusing crime caper that will have readers toasting Peter Mayle with A Good Year French champagne. The story line is fast-paced and straightforward as the shortest distance between California and French Lessons is between Sam and the other players. With a solid cast, Vintage Caper is lighthearted fun as each key participant makes their play for the valuable vino with not one of them fully trusting any of the others. Harriet Klausner

Best Mayle Novel Yet

I have collected all of Peter Mayle's books after becoming a "Year in Provence" fan. While enjoying his novels some are better than others. Took this one out at library and found it best one yet. Very entertaining and for those who are Peter Mayle fans can highly recommend it. Liked it so much that I went ahead and bought copies for Christmas presents and for my Mayle collection. Whether he is considering this as a one off for his character or developing the principal character for future books I found this one an enjoyable read.