Review copy was received from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
A Good Day for Chardonnay by Darynda Jones Series: Sunshine Vicram #2
Published by St. Martin's Press on July 27, 2021
Genres: Romantic Suspense
Pages: 416
Format: eARC
Source: NetGalley
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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.
There were some open threads I was wanting to know after A Bad Day for Sunshine, which started this new Sunshine Vicram series from Darynda Jones. Sunshine is the new sheriff. Her parents live here. We have learned a little of her history, but there is some of her past she doesn’t remember. Her daughter, Auri, still continues to involve herself in trying to solve mystery with a bit of TSTL with a side of putting others in danger.
The mysteries and cases kept things moving at a fast pace. There is a lot we learn and everything is tied up with various events from the past, not the same event, different events. There’s a series of missing people from the past. There’s the Dangerous Daughters which the mayor wants Sunshine to investigate. A man gets nearly killed in a stabbing and is only saved by Levi, who then gets hit by a car. There are plenty of Ravinders who don’t seem to be toeing the line legally.
The “guys are hot” was toned down a bit from the first book. I didn’t enjoy the racoon story line. I worried about Auri because she didn’t think critically and endangered herself and others. She has some good leads on criminals but should not pursue them herself. She needs to work with law enforcement; Auri certainly has plenty of those to trust. Sunshine did have good instincts on following leads and information. Her skills are excellent and she is building a great team. I look forward to the new officer.
A Good Day for Chardonnay gave me the mysteries and solved some things for the past I wanted to know. The humor was still fun. Personally, Sunshine comes to terms with things in her personal life. She admits to herself what she wants and how she feels. Her daughter is growing up and greatly attracted to a young man. The ending leaves a few things up in the air for another adventure, as well as more personal growth and relationships. I’ll be reading.
About Darynda Jones
NYTimes and USA Today Bestselling Author Darynda Jones has won numerous awards for her work, including a prestigious Golden Heart®, a Rebecca, two Hold Medallions, a RITA ®, and a Daphne du Maurier, and she has received stellar reviews from dozens of publications including starred reviews from Publisher’s Weekly, Booklist, and the Library Journal. As a born storyteller, Darynda grew up spinning tales of dashing damsels and heroes in distress for any unfortunate soul who happened by, annoying man and beast alike, and she is ever so grateful for the opportunity to carry on that tradition. She currently has two series with St. Martin’s Press: The Charley Davidson Series and the Darklight Trilogy. She lives in the Land of Enchantment, also known as New Mexico, with her husband of almost 30 years and two beautiful sons, the Mighty, Mighty Jones Boys.
I read all types of books but my favorites are urban fantasy and romantic suspense.I like some romance and some action / adventure / mystery in everything.I like sex in my books but please, only between TWO people.Intimate conversation is equally important to the sex in a book.It lets me see the characters.The other thing I enjoy is humor.
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Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
- C21-Summer
The title alone would make me pick up this book, along with a bottle of wine. I like that it takes place in New Mexico, a new to me setting. Lovely review.
It’s a great story. Being urban fantasy, I would read them in order; this is book 2. I enjoy the mysteries, the humor and the characters.
Sounds like fun, I love humor if it’s well done and this series sounds like it works in that respect ?
Darynda Jones has a great hand with humor.
I’ve got this one in the queue. Can’t wait!
I liked it even more than the first one.
Glad you enjoyed this one, Anne. You really can’t go wrong with Jones.
I really enjoy her books and their humor. The quirky goes beyond the believable for me sometimes though.
I never did finish her Charlie series because, to be honest, I was tired of her TSTL moments. I know that’s not a popular opinion, but there it is. This sounds like a fun series, and I did always love Darynda’s humor so maybe I should give this new series a go. Fab review, Anne! 🙂
Thank you Rachel. I liked this one better than the first one.
I remerber something bothering me in thus first one but I still want to read this one as well so I hope I’ll enjoy as much as you did!
I liked this one more than the first one so hopefully you will also.
Mystery with a side of humor sounds like a lot of fun. Glad you enjoyed this one. 🙂
I did really enjoy it. She sometimes get so quirky as to be unbelievable (In general, not specific to this book) but this one was good.
Just finished this one and I will agree about your line Auri has a little bit of the TSTL with a side of put everyone into danger. She definitely is a danger magnet.
I enjoyed it. There were just a few little things like that which didn’t quite work for me. I mean she has law enforcement she can trust. It is TSTL to want to keep it to herself, figure it out herself when it is so dangerous.
I completely agree with you about Auri – I was so frustrated at one point… she just kept doing stupid things and I felt it was a bit too much. But I still loved the book and I found the racoon part funny.
I’m glad someone enjoyed the raccoon. I know it’s levity in a situation where there are many bad, scary things happening. But I just wanted to get to work on the cases / problems.