Once Upon a Wine: A Black Dog Bay Novel #4

Written by Beth Kendrick

Narrated by Amy Rubinate

From the “sharp, sassy, [and] surprisingly emotional”* author of Put a Ring on It, New Uses for Old Boyfriends, and The Week Before the Wedding, a new novel set in the charming seaside town of Black Dog Bay, Delaware...

Cammie Breyer needs a big glass of cabernet—her restaurant failed and her chef boyfriend left for a hotter kitchen. Just when she thinks she’s hit rock bottom, her Aunt Ginger calls with a surprise. She’s bought a vineyard—in Delaware. At Ginger’s command, Cammie returns to Black Dog Bay, the seaside town where she spent her childhood summers with her aunt and her cousin, Kat.

The three women reunite, determined to succeed. There’s only one little problem: None of them knows the first thing about wine making. And it turns out, owning a vineyard isn’t all wine and roses. It’s dirt, sweat, and desperation. Every day brings financial pitfalls, unruly tourists, romantic dilemmas, and second thoughts. But even as they struggle, they cultivate hidden talents and new passions. While the grapes ripen under the summer sun, Cammie discovers that love, like wine, is layered, complex, delicious, and worth waiting for…

• Language: English
• Publisher: Ideal Audiobooks
• Release date: Oct 20, 2016
• ISBN: 9781942907299

Beth Kendrick

Beth Kendrick won the Romance Writers of America's Golden Heart Award for My Favorite Mistake. She has a Ph.D. in psychology and an unshakable devotion to the Chicago Cubs. After surviving too many Minnesota winters, she moved to Arizona, where she is working on her second novel (coming soon from Downtown Press). For more information you can visit the author's website at www.bethkendrick.com.

Reviews for Once Upon a Wine

[ethel55_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Usually, the women in this multi book series by Kendrick run to Black Dog Bay to escape/recover from a bad relationship. In an interesting twist, this time cousins Kat and Cammie head to this Delaware community because they believe their mom/aunt Ginger has lost her mind by purchasing a winery. Both are nursing broken hearts, one in and one out of a relationship. There was a lot of interesting tidbits about grapes and farming in general, making me wonder if the author has experience with a hobby farm. And when Kat's husband Josh turns up with a French Bulldog named Jacques, he steals the show right away as he takes to farm life like a much larger (and perhaps different breed) dog. There's old love, new love and reshaped love, all of which make for a very sweet story. I'm glad they will remain in the community for the next visit to Black Dog Bay.

[staciele · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Beth Kendrick has created a series of books all set in the same Delaware community of Black Dog Bay, where women go to recuperate after jilted relationships, broken marriages, or in this case, to buy a winery.Ginger has decided to fulfill one of her bucket list items by purchasing a winery. After surviving cancer, she realized here is no time like the present and purchased the Lost Dog Vineyard in Black Dog Bay. The only problem is she knows nothing about growing grapes or making wine. Her daughter, Kat, thinks her mom has gone over the deep end and calls her cousin Cammie to come and talk some sense into her mom. Cammie, ironically, has just lost her job waitressing at a fancy restaurant and is feeling like California isn't for her anymore. She doesn't have a place to live or a job, so she has nothing to lose. She packs up her belongings and heads to Delaware to see what her aunt has gotten herself into.Coming to Black Dog Bay brings back memories for Cammie of one summer spent with Ian, a farmer that almost made her throw caution to the wind and embark on a new life....almost. Kat, is trying to grasp a new life as well, as a retired skateboarder. A back injury has ended her career as a famous skateboarder and she is in the middle of an early mid-life crisis trying to grasp the idea of being a suburban wife instead of a sports star. Like the rest of Kendrick's books. this one stands alone while revisiting some of the previous characters and locations in Black Dog Bay. It is full of the witty banter and hilarious antics of her previous books with a cover that grabs your attention on the shelf.This light-hearted romance doesn't focus on the physical part of the relationships, leaving out the sordid details and instead focusing on the relationships between the characters. This is Kendrick's strength and why this series of books has been so successful. Readers care about the characters in the story, want them to recover, and be successful. Then each book connects back to those characters and reminds you that things can work out even after devastating failures.Tuck ONCE UPON A WINE in your beach bag or carry on and finish out your summer with the ladies of Black Dog Bay and a glass of strawberry wine!Favorite quote:" Failure had set them free to find new dreams, build new relationships, to discover who they really were." Page 283

[kris_anderson-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Once Upon a Wine by Beth Kendrick is a sweet, romance novel. Cammie October Breyer is living in Los Angeles when she receives a call from her cousin, Kat. Kat needs Cammie to return home to Black Dog Bay, Delaware to help with her Aunt Ginger (Kat’s mother but she also raised Cammie after her mother passed away). Ginger has just bought a Lost Dog Vineyard in Delaware, and Kat wants help reasoning with her (she thinks it is a bad idea). Ginger has cashed out her pension plan, her retirement account and sold her house as well as most of the furniture inside it to buy the vineyard. Cammie has nothing left for her in LA. Her restaurant failed once her boyfriend (the chef) left for another restaurant (Cammie was good with the hospitality part of the business, but she is no chef). Ginger wants the three of them to spend the summer together, and then they can reevaluate the vineyard. But if they want to get a good price for the place, they need to keep the grape vines alive and fix up the property. Only problem is that they do not know anything about vineyards or wine making. The three of them work together to cultivate their hidden talents and try to make a success of the vineyard. It is natural for Cammie to run into Ian McKinlay (who owns a farm nearby). The two of them had a summer romance when Cammie was twenty-two and had just finished college. Their romance is rekindled over strawberries and wine. Kat is having some troubles and is glad to have Cammie to talk to. Kat has just retired from her career as a professional skateboarder (I think that is the right term). She does not know what to do with herself (she suffered a bad injury). Kat is married to Josh, a philosophy professor (a great guy). Kat needs to figure out what to do now that she can no longer ride a skateboard. She is spending the summer away from husband and keeps pushing him away (not good for their marriage). It is going to be an interesting summer in Black Dog Bay. A summer of discovery and second chances. Once Upon a Wine is a pleasing romance novel that is easy to read. It is a book is about choices, second chances, romance, and developing hidden talents. It shows how failure can lead to the fulfillment of a dream (if you want it to). I liked the nice change of pace that this book provided. I give Once Upon a Wine 3.5 out of 5 stars. I have to admit that Kat got on my nerves a little bit, and Cammie talked about her failed restaurant too much (she should never have opened a restaurant in the first place). I liked the addition of the cute French Bulldog, Jacques. He was adorable. Overall, Once Upon a Wine is an easy breezy book that is a good summer read. I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest and fair review.

[cherylk_44 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I read Put a Ring on It and enjoyed the book a lot. Now after reading this book I am a true fan of Beth Kendrick. I totally fell in love with Cammie aka COB, Kat, and Ginger. Each women brought something different to the story with their personalities. They sure kept things entertaining. What I really loved the most about this book was the comedy. It was well done and actually funny. I was laughing the whole time. For example where else would you read the words "Is that the John Deere version of jeggings?" Just remembering this sentence now gives me a vivid image that goes to the melody of Kenny Chesney's song, She Thinks My Tractor's Sexy. Of course I would be remiss if I did not give props to Ian and Jacques (French Bulldog). Ian turned out to be a great love interest for Cammie. Jacques was there to help add more fun to the story. Once Upon a Wine is a wonderful name for a wine. It was as if I was there with these ladies every step of the way from growing the grapes to savoring the wine with Cammie's descriptive way of describing the flavors of the wine. I can't wait to read the next book by this author.

[nbmars · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I thought a light romance might be perfect for the summer, but it was a bit *too* light for me. The plot and the quality of writing just never got above the mediocre range. Cammie, 30, came back to Delaware from California after an SOS call from her cousin Kat. Kat needed her to come at once since her mom (and Cammie’s surrogate mom) Ginger had just bought the “Lost Dog Vineyards” in spite of knowing absolutely nothing about the business. Ginger was following her dreams after a close call with cancer. But she didn’t seem to realize that buying a vineyard wouldn’t translate into knowing how to run it. Most improbably, but felicitously for Kat and Ginger, Cammie had just lost her job, her apartment, and her boyfriend, so she was able to get on the next plane to help.On the way home from the airport, Kat and Cammie run into Ian. Cammie and Ian had a brief summer fling eight years ago. Ian asked Cammie to stay, and Cammie wouldn’t compromise. Now, without even a whiff of conversation about it or baggage resulting from it, they start up again.Kat has some relationship problems of her own, and even Ginger is looking for a man. Cammie is looking for a new job. All of these problems, including that of figuring out how to run the vineyard, get solved in a happy way for all.Evaluation: There are a few interesting factoids about growing grapes in this book, but not much else to recommend it. It isn’t awful, but the plot is too unrealistic and predictable. In addition, the dialogue seems rather contrived, like everyone is speaking for a sitcom audience.