Cover Image: A Good Day for Chardonnay

A Good Day for Chardonnay

Pub Date:   |   Archive Date:

Member Reviews

There is a lot going on in this one now that I sit here writing a review and think back on things.

First there is what happened with Levi's friend getting hurt, which then spiraled out to so much more, things that touched Sunshine in her life before she moved back home. Things really started to get crazy the more that Sunshine looked into it, but in the end the best possible outcome happened, although it was iffy for a while.

Then we had Sunshine's daughter Auri, who managed to find a whole lot of trouble with friends along for the ride. What makes it more interesting is that one of those friends is a boy, a boy, who Auri is starting to see is a BOY. Cruz has his own issues, which broke my heart! I loved that Cruz found out how much he and his father were loved by the town and have no doubt that things will be ok for him going forward.

Finally Sunshine has some movement on her past, the missing time and where her daughter came from. I'm happy for this on so many fronts, first because Sunny needs to know, 2nd because it's as I had hoped. Now it doesn't mean that the trouble is over, but we are closer to Sunshine being able to live her life free and happy!

On a side note, I totally loved the incredible awkward sex scene between Sunshine and a would be match, I could not stop laughing and think the right choice was made there. I'm also really intrigued to find out more about this secret society and how it will go with the new members.

Was this review helpful?

4.5
Loved, loved, loved this book ..it may have been the book that got me out of my months and months long slump.....
I love this series .. I love the family dynamics, the mystery, the action and the romance...
I love that we get mother/ daughter POV and their relationship.
like I said I love everything about this book. Its real... it gets you laughing, gasping and sometimes heartbroken.
I give 4.5 and looking forward to the next and final book

Was this review helpful?

Tag line: Our heroine gets more than one blast from the past in this installment of SUNSHINE VICRAM.

Full review to come on FreshFiction.com

3.5 Stars

Was this review helpful?

Thanks to Netgalley, St. Martins Press and Darynda Jones for this ARC. I fell in love with the Charley Davidson character of her “grave” book series. So what’s not to like about this new series with Sunshine? Love this one too. This book had lots of plots and lots of characters, maybe to many for me., jimmy is who? 🤔 I give this a 4 star rating for 2 reasons: ..took off half a point for so many characters to remember I needed a notebook. Maybe that’s just me… . But most.y because such a great author and her wonderful series, I find no need for the pages of explicit sex in her book….. I find many authors now run out of the amount of words they need to put in the book, so resort to these sex scenes. A book that has a great storyline does not need these pages to fill in the blanks.. I’m still going to read all books by this author, but I will still skim over those porn pages…maybe it’s just me…

Was this review helpful?

Such a lively book with great characters and lots of laughs. This author always has a way of making me laugh at the misfortunes of the characters in her book. I loved how the story unraveled and the relationship between the mother and the daughter. Great story and easy ready. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

Was this review helpful?

This is the second book in the Sunshine Vicram mystery series and it was even better than the first. I love all the characters from the members of Sunshine's police force to her parents and her daughter. The mystery was well-planned and I also enjoyed the mini mystery included that hopefully will get solved in the next book. I thoroughly enjoy this series and am looking forward to reading more by this author.

Was this review helpful?

Sunshine Vicram is dealing with another day of dealing with her daughter Bug her nickname, her chief deputy who she grew up with and is sexier than sin yet she still has held him off, then there is Levi whose family is really a mess legally, and unlawfully and she has a huge crush on since forever. That is just a small part that does not take into account when there is a crime a woman comes in all the time and confesses or the man who flashes everyone, getting calls that her daughter is not in school or has gotten herself into something and of course, she is still trying to deal with and solve her own kidnapping when she was a teen. Each one of these and more is disclosed in the second book which is just as good as the first and with good character as well. Very much worth the read.

Was this review helpful?

Was afraid the second book couldn’t pull off what the first book did, but I think Jones nailed it yet again! Just like last time I loved the small town, the characters, the BANTER, the steam, the mother/daughter relationship, and the various mysteries. The reveal for each of the mystery threads were just wild enough to keep me guessing and I like how it all came together in the end. I also truly appreciated that one of the ongoing storylines was resolved by the end, felt like we got to take a deep breath now that certain things are revealed and resolved. This is a series I will definitely be sticking with, and am excited there’s already another book out!

Was this review helpful?

Give me more Sunshine and Levi!!

I really like how Sunshine and her teenage daughter are both active in the story. Many of the books I ready don't really have this kind of plot - so it's refreshing.

Mystery, Banter, Romance, steamy NSFW scenes. Yes yes!

Was this review helpful?

This is the second installment in the Sunshine Vicram series. This is a very good series. The characters are well developed, there’s mystery and romance, humor and intrigue. There are ongoing storylines that weave through each book, making it best to start at the beginning with ‘A Bad Day For Sunshine’. I’m looking forward to finding out what happens next.

Was this review helpful?

Sunshine Vicram is back in book to of a truly enjoyable trilogy. Sheriff in a small town, with a job she thought would be rather laid back, Sunshine finds herself busier than ever. While Sunshine cannot help but think of her past often when she was kidnapped, she is getting closer to find out who the kidnapper was. Meanwhile, Auri, her now fifteen-year-old daughter is running her own investigation of sorts. Auri is getting more and more like Sunshine, and has a knack for going a bit too far when looking for answers.

In the first book, Sunshine thought she might finally have gotten closer to her crush Levi, and in this second book the pair do start to explore their forever long feelings for one another. The intrigue, action, humor never let up in these delightful books by Darynda Jones. Then, when you factor in family, as well as the bonds of friendship, this next installment in this fun series was impossible to put down. The first book was a great read, but this second book was just so much better.

Many thanks St. Martin's Press to and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

Was this review helpful?

Sunshine's story continues, bringing out more excitement and solving a major mystery brought in from our first introduction to her background (in _A Bad Day for Sunshine_). Jones once again brings us through a delightful series filled with fun characters.

Was this review helpful?

I was hooked from the first book, and the second book really carried the series. Sunshine is laugh-out-loud hilarious with a strong backbone. Levi is every-bit as delicious and mysterious (but also very well in his own way) as this romance-loving reader could hope for. Aurora also continues to prove to be an interesting story, something I frequently find lacking in stories who try to weave teen's stories into adult romances. God, I can't wait for the third book. Is it out yet? Is it?

Was this review helpful?

First time reading this author or series but won't be the last! Once I got started reading & accustomed to the writing and the snarky sheriff and her daughter I couldn't out it down. Laugh out loud hilarious in many places and ten you might just have a little cry. Along with this you get a little mystery going on with the adults and the teens. However, those teens were about an aggravation at times. Overall a great fun book. Oh, be warned, some fairly graphic sex in tis one.
I was provided an advanced reader copy and was under no obligation to review the book. The opinions expressed are !y own. Than you to the authors ,publishers and others for allowing me to read this book.

Was this review helpful?

Sunshine is a police chief in a small town. She had a bad time in her life back when she was young. That's why she has a daughter now. But she doesn't remember what happened.
St. Martins Press and Edelweiss allowed me to read this book for review (thank you). It will be published July 27th.

Sunny's daughter is just like her. While Mom is trying to take care of a bar fight gone bad, her daughter is searching for a serial killer. She decides it's an old lady and takes her boyfriend and best friend with her when she's ready to break in and look for proof.

The first time is not a problem but the second time she gets in the middle of a fight and ends up with a head wound. Her boyfriend has been knifed so neither is in good shape.

Then Sunny remembers her attack. There were several men involved, including one she loves.

There are all kinds of tricks and lies to keep her away from the truth but she keeps pushing and eventually gets to the truth.

There is a lot happening and Mom and daughter both have things to adjust, too. It was an interesting read.

Was this review helpful?

While I was very much a fan of the first novel in the Sunshine Vicram series, <i>A Good Day for Chardonnay</i>, did not leave me excited for the third book. Filled with too many extraneous subplots, it was difficult to care about the characters. So many things happened that had predictable consequences as well.

Was this review helpful?

Book #2 in Sunshine Vicstrum's series does not disappoint.  You've got blood, stabbings, murder, mystery AND mayhem!  Oh, and we can't forget the hunky "book boyfriends" that are all running rampant through the book.  Oh, yeah - those guys that are watching out and protecting and looking gorgeous while doing it.

I loved this book. It was a bit slow at first which had me down, but the ending was fantastic. The writing style is similar to Charley Davidson, but the premise is not. No supernatural or paranormal. Just plain police work and romance mixed in. Don't miss it.

Like I said, the first half of the book was a bit slow - not bad, just a bit. 

So, Sun is still trying to remember and solve her kidnapping case and subsequently gets Wynn Ravinder to talk about it, since Kubrick Ravinder is the one who kidnapped her. She finds out some more information AFTER she remembers more bits and pieces.  Man, that was a ride!

Sun is also handling a case of a stabbing in her town where Levi happens to get hit (run over) with a car. Levi is mad at what happened to his friend and will BY GOLLY find out what's going on.  Levi should be an investigator too, since not much gets past him.  They finally figure out the whole mess, but it incorporates a different kidnapping that happened years ago, where Sun was the head on the case.

On the back burner, Sun has to figure out the Dangerous Daughters before she's fired for not being an effective Sheriff.  Whoever heard of a bunch of people who run a city so it's not taken over by corruption?  I guess Del Sol has!

Auri is conducting her own investigation regarding the Del Sol serial killer. This is one of the most dangerous investigations she's ever conducted.  She is a trouper and keeps plugging away until she figures it all out.  The problem is that she isn't a seasoned investigator and trouble keeps popping up.


It's a great book.  Give it a read after you've read book #1.  This is a good series, so far, and I hope Sun has many cases yet to come.

Was this review helpful?

This is not your average thriller but that's definitely a check in the plus column for A GOOD DAY FOR CHARDONNAY. Where a lot of thrillers are dark and gritty, this one is light ,witty, and full of sarcasm. It's a total breath of fresh air in the genre and has a lead character that I just absolutely LOVE! When do we get the TV/movie adaptation!?

Was this review helpful?

I started reading this book and found that it was not for me. I didn't think it was fair to review a book I didn't finish.

Was this review helpful?

I loved reading this book! I've always really enjoyed Darynda Jones's writing, and the first book, so I was anticipating reading this book, and boy was it a joy to read! Sunshine is such a fantastic narrator, I loved her voice, and watching her deal with these various investigations!

The overarching plot in this series is what happened to her-and how Levi was connected. And we learned a lot about it, and now it's a matter of the family politics, and how they're going to deal with the rotten members of the bunch!

And then there's the case going on in this book, with the case that Auri is investigating, suspect and all! And I really enjoyed watching her do so, and get those updates in her life, and her worries. Like the secret that her boyfriend is keeping. That broke my heart!

Absolutely loved how everything wrapped up, it was just so darned clever and amazing! And then there that sweet, sweet cliffhanger, like, how could it end on such a good-but unfinished-note! That last sentence has me so worked up! I'm so desperate for the the 3rd book now!

This was a fantastic read, and I can't wait for book 3!

Was this review helpful?