Another great mystery . I'm rather fond of Cooker and Virgil .

This book kept me captured from page one. Amazing writer and look forward to reading more from this author.

Treachery in Bordeaux is the first in the Winemaker Detective series, featuring Benjamin Cooker and his new assistant, Virgile Lanssien. Benjamin Cooker is the owner of Cooker & Co and author of a famous guide on wines. Asked, with his enormous knowledge of winemaking, to troubleshoot problems, he is called by his old friend Denis Massepain to the Chateau Haut-Brion and the only vineyard still found within great Bordeaux. There is an infection in the winery, which both Benjamin and Virgile believe has been contaminated on purpose. There is also a side story, which ties in, concerning a decorative panel brought by Cooker.

This is very much a mystery in the gentle vein of the ‘cozy,’ in that there is no violence and a wonderful setting in the beautiful French countryside. I have to say that I found this a charming read and I enjoyed the company of the characters of this novel, as well as the gentle musings on food, wine, art and antiques. Cooker is both a man with great reputation and status, yet has an endearing trait of being unsure about this writing. Virgile has just started working for Cooker, so is not yet completely formed as a character, but I am sure he will grow in confidence as the series progresses. There are others featured – friends, family and colleagues, that can flesh the books out and bring depth to the main characters. I look forward to reading on in the series – the second book is ‘Grand Cru Heist.” Lastly, I received a copy of this book from the publishers, via NetGalley, for review.

This is the second book of the series that I have read this week and I am enchanted. Actually, this is the first book written; I read them out of order. As much as I enjoyed the previous book, The Grand Cru Murders, this one tickled my fancy equally.
Benjamin Cooper is a delightful character, sophisticated, urbane, and so knowledgable about wine. I confess that there were times when I skimmed some of the details in order to get to the story. Other characters are equally compelling particularly the crusty alcoholic cat hoarder professor whom Benjamin seeks in answer to questions regarding a picture that he owns.
The picture which is three pictures in fact leads him to the answers for the mystery of the story and the treachery. It seems Bordeaux, not unlike so many beautiful places in the world, has lost many of its ancient treasures in the interests of "progress". It would be impossible not to feel sadness and outrage while reading of the price we pay when we do not honour heritage.
Benjamin discovers the perpetrators of industrial(if in fact you can call winemaking that) sabotage and all is well by the end of the story. With the end of the story, it makes me want to do two things: First, pour a glass of wine and second, put the next book by these authors on my to be read list. I am a fan of both.

This is a very enjoyable book even if you are not into wine. It is unfortunately short so does not have time to develop the characters or plot. No doubt, the characters will develop over the series of books so I am looking forward to reading more in the series.

You don't read that book, you enjoy and sip it while lounging in vineyards or admiring architecture and painting. This is clearly not a detective story like any other: it doesn't happen much... not even a murder! This can be annoying for who thinks it's a classic novel detective. It's true that at one point I said to myself "but when will the action happens?"

Maybe because this is the first volume, the authors spend time describing Cooker's living environment, people around him, the decor, his tastes (for painting and wine), we participate in the writing of his book (to the point of reading some passages) and learns more about the history of the region (or country I meant!) It may seem long to some, especially as the book is short. This clearly leaves little time for the plot, but that's part of the charm of this particular novel.

There's comfort food... and there's comfort books and Treachery in Bordeaux is one of them. No horrible murder, rampage, disillusioned cop, but a mystery that is solved, a cozy atmosphere and an apology for the art of living, of enjoying life, of good food and good wine. The atmosphere is very French, which can charm or not the non-French.

In a nutshell

A very nice little book with a cozy atmosphere, a simple and well done mystery. For those who love to enjoy the pleasures of life. This is a 3.5 / 5 for me.

Wining and dining...

When some barrels of wine in the Moniales Haut-Brion vineyard are contaminated, the owner turns for advice to his friend Benjamin Cooker, a highly talented winemaker and renowned writer of wine guides. Cooker and his new assistant Virgil work to save the wine but soon become convinced that the contamination was deliberate. With the reputation of the vineyard at stake, they must try to find out who would do this and why, while making sure the whole matter stays confidential. Meantime, Cooker finds out that a painting he owns and which he thought was unique may in fact be part of a set. As he tries to track down the other paintings he finds they may be hiding a mystery...

This is the first in a series of stories featuring Cooker and Virgil, set in the winemaking industry in France. Not much longer than novella length, these fall more or less into the 'cosy' category of crime fiction - amateur detectives, attractive setting and a mystery to solve. Being the first, quite a lot of space is taken up with introducing the main characters and the setting, and this means the actual investigation is somewhat relegated to the background. There's also a bit too much technical information about the chemistry involved in wine-making for my liking - I prefer to think of peasants singing in the sunshine as they tramp the grapes (with very clean feet of course). But the book is set very much in the real world of wine-making as a modern industry, subject to all the pressures of profit and loss, and open to industrial sabotage and general skulduggery.

Cooker is an interesting character. He takes his role as a wine expert very seriously but also has time for the good things in life - antiques, fine dining, good cigars and, of course, the best of French wines. It's this aspect that makes the books enjoyable, though probably best not to read while hungry! Happily married and pleasantly angst-free, he has taken on a young assistant to give him more time to do the things he enjoys. Virgil is straight out of college, eager to learn. He's also attractive and likeable and I'm sure will have some romance in his life as the series develops.

I actually read the second in the series, [[ASIN:B00I3KE99M Grand Cru Heist]], before this one, and I'm rather glad I did. While this one is a good introduction, the actual mystery part is a bit weak and if I'd read it first I may not have been enthusiastic enough to read the others. However, knowing that in the second one, with the introductory spadework out of the way, there is more room for a fuller investigation element means that I'll look forward to taking the occasional short break in France with Cooker in the future. Recommended as a light and pleasurable read for those days when you just want to chill out for a few hours with a glass of wine and some good company.

NB This book was provided for review by the publisher, Le French Book.