The plot has a lot of potential and was intriguing. Unfortunately I didn't care for the characters and the story fell flat.
Not my cup of tea.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

“On matters of principle, stand like a rock.”

The book is quite long but isn't slow-paced.

There weren't any unnecessary scenes, all of them eventually setting the stage to the finale.

It is also very informative, well-researched and obviously written by an expert of the various themes in the novel. It gave us a good lecture on the dynamics of politics, urban design, communities' workings and more.

I did not feel for a lot of the characters in this book. They were quite detached, if that makes sense. There were a lot of people involve, perhaps too many which may have affected my getting to know the personas on a closer level.

The plot was well thought-out. Very rich, complex and insanely imaginative. The author filled the book with mystery and clues which I did not pick up on...very brilliant.

The ending was sudden and exhilarating. Unfortunately it was rather unclear for me. Rather hazy, everything happened in a sort of blur. The way the plot built up to reach this certain point was so-so. It's as if the ending was written in a rush. Fortunately the small ‘epilogue’ after the climax offered a bit of respite and expounded the events surrounding the endgame.

The Concrete Vineyard is a great masterpiece reminding us that thirst for riches is lethal. To both the thirsty and those around him.

The Concrete Vineyard takes place in Niagra-on-the-Lake which is a small historic town in Canada near Niagara Falls. Kris Gage has just flown home to help his parents pack up to move from his childhood home. Right after he arrived in town, one of the most prominent citizens is murdered. The Homicide Chief Detective, Brian Dee is a former classmate and close friend of Kris. Brian does not have much experience in investigating murders. He enlists his friend Kris to help in the investigation. Kris Is an urban planner and the deceased victim is thought to have been murdered for his property so Brian feels that Kris will be a help. This small town then experiences another prominent citizen turning up missing. This book is filled with mystery, small town politics and small town gossip. I enjoyed this book.

The Concrete Vineyard grabbed my attention by being set in Niagara-on-the-Lake. I have been there and was looking forward to reading a book set in a place I very much enjoyed. I found this book interesting and it kept me guessing all the way through. I really enjoyed it.

Thank you to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for my copy.

Here is an interesting idea for a plot ruined by not so good storytelling. Changing between first and third person POV is bad. If your main character can't tell the whole story, use third person. If you have material for a short novel, don't make a long one by adding huge amounts of dialogue and descriptions that won't help the story.