A Cece Barton Mystery: Book 1
Publication Date: October 24, 2023
Raise a glass to Cece Barton, a widowed single mom and recent L.A.-to-California-wine-country transplant who suddenly finds herself at the center of a murder investigation in this sparkling new mystery series from Agatha Award-winning author Maddie Day.
As the manager of Vino y Vida Wine Bar in Colinas, Cecelia “Cece” Barton’s first Alexander Valley harvest is a whirlwind of activity. Her twin sister, Allie Halstead, who owns a nearby Victorian bed & breakfast, is accustomed to the hustle and bustle of peak tourist season. But Cece barely has a moment to enjoy her new home in between worrying about her estranged college-age daughter, juggling her responsibilities at the bar, and navigating the sticky politics of the local wine association. Just when it seems things can’t grow any more intense, Colinas is rocked by a murder within the wine community . . . and Cece is identified as a possible suspect!
With her reputation and her livelihood on the line—and the Sonoma County deputy sheriff breathing down her neck—Cece has no choice but to open up her own murder investigation. Tensions are already high in the valley, as a massive wildfire creeps toward Colinas, threatening homes, vineyards, and the vital tourist trade. And now, with a murderer on the loose, and Cece’s sleuthing exposing the valley’s bitterest old rivalries and secret new alliances, Colinas feels ready to pop! But with Allie’s help, Cece is determined to catch the killer and clear her name before everything she’s worked so hard for goes up in flames . . .
Fall has arrived in Colinas, and business is booming at Vino y Vida. Cece Barton is finally falling into a well-worn rhythm in her new home. But when a prickly acquaintance of Cece’s is murdered, she must return to her sleuthing ways in Murder Uncorked by Maddie Day.
Cece Barton has moved to Colinas, looking for a fresh start. With the support of her sister, the owner of a local B&B, Cece has taken over Vino y Vida, a beautiful wine bar in the historic district. Vincent Sardo pays her bar a visit along with a very handsome stranger, Benjamin Cohen. The two do not seem on good terms as their conversation ends in frustration and anger from both sides. But when Vincent is found dead the next day, Cece feels that she must jump in and find out who killed Vincent before becoming the next victim.
Murder Uncorked is a classic, cozy mystery. Day is a solid writer, and the bones of the story were great. The characters were very fleshed out and just felt so real. She built a solid mystery that was fun and unique. The depth in which she created the small town is wonderful, and it is something you can find yourself getting lost in.
However, I found a couple of things that started to bother me. First, this book is the first in the series, and yet there are multiple references to a previous case Cece handled upon first arriving in town. It felt like an entire book was missing. If I needed to read a novella to know these other characters, then this shouldn’t be the first book in the series.
Second, there were a few writing choices that I believe the editor should have removed. It is essential to trust your audience’s imagination to fill in details for themselves. To describe clothing and food in intense detail is unnecessary. I don’t need to know what color shirt and pants a person is wearing and what kind of makeup they have done. Trust that your readers can picture these characters for themselves, in fact, that’s half the fun!
Finally, my biggest complaint were the moments of almost preachy progressive ideals, and this is coming from a fellow progressive! Having some details in the story is fine. I don’t mind making Cece a pescatarian, for instance. That is something that is built into the character’s personality and is acceptable. But when Cece is a pescatarian and also mentions to her young nephew about free-range chicken and recycling when trying to solve a murder, then preaches about guns, lectures about fires, or electric vehicles, it becomes annoying. I am trying to escape reality with novels. I don’t need that in my cozy mysteries.
Murder Uncorked is a great start to Maddie Day’s new series. With a colorful cast of characters and a perfect small-town setting, get ready to get lost in Colinas all on your own.
Maddie Day is the Agatha Award-winning author of the Cozy Capers Book Club Mysteries, the Country Store Mysteries, the CeCe Barton Mysteries, and the Local Foods Mysteries, as well as other series and short crime fiction written under the name Edith Maxwell. A member of Mystery Writers of America and a proud lifetime member of Sisters in Crime, she is a regular contributor at Mystery Lovers’ Kitchen and belongs to the Wicked Authors, a group of bestselling authors who blog at WickedAuthors.com. Day lives with her beau and their cat Martin north of Boston, although she knows Indiana, California, and Cape Cod intimately. She is a wine enthusiast, talented amateur chef, and former farmer.
