A robust if sometimes blunt thriller set in the world of wine.
In Laine’s thriller, a wine expert helps an ex-girlfriend embroiled in corporate intrigue.
Napa Valley restauranter and Master Sommelier Dante Lombardi has the best wine palate on the West Coast. Even old flames trust his tongue, which is why he’s been invited to a tasting at the offices of Scarcity Incorporated, where his ex-girlfriend Dr. Claire Durant serves as chief scientist. Claire almost married Dante years ago—now a widow, she harbors secret feelings for him still. She wants Dante to grant his imprimatur to Replivino, a line of synthetic wines that mimic the finest varietals in the world. Though Dante is fooled during the test, he refuses to endorse the product on principle. Wine, he protests, isn’t “something you can recreate in a test tube.” After the tasting, Dante’s best friend and chef, Angelo (who also happens to be Claire’s brother) takes his own life, and the restaurant loses a Michelin star. Then Claire goes missing with Scarcity’s Vino Code—the formula behind Replivino—just two weeks before the company’s IPO. No one knows if she’s been kidnapped, blackmailed, or plans to sell the formula—or if her disappearance has anything to do with Angelo’s death. Scarcity hires Dante to track down Claire and the Code, a journey that takes him across Europe. Can “the Sherlock Holmes of wine” find his ex, or will the Master Sommelier find himself tricked once again? Laine knows his angle, and he cleverly layers wine culture into nearly every interaction in the book. Here Dante gets romantic with Scarcity lab technician Vivian Wong: “His mind swirled. Time had no meaning. ‘And how do I taste?’ Vivian asked. She pulled away, breathless, face flushed, eyes wide. ‘Strawberries…’ Dante said. She kissed him again. ‘Red cherries…’ ….and again. ‘Candied fruit and bubblegum, like a Beaujolais Nouveau.’” Both the characters and the plot are thinner than they should be, but wine lovers will likely enjoy this page-turning ode to their favorite beverage.
A robust if sometimes blunt thriller set in the world of wine.Pub Date: May 1, 2024
ISBN: 9781663260352
Page Count: 388
Publisher: iUniverse
Review Posted Online: July 10, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
A standout in the series.
The sixth adventure of Harvard symbology professor Robert Langdon explores the mysteries of human consciousness, the demonic projects of the CIA, and the city of Prague.
“Ladies and gentlemen...we are about to experience a sea change in our understanding of how the brain works, the nature of consciousness, and in fact…the very nature of reality itself.” But first—Langdon’s in love! Brown’s devoted readers first met brilliant noetic scientist Katherine Solomon in The Lost Symbol (2009); she’s back as a serious girlfriend, engaging the committed bachelor in a way not seen before. The book opens with the pair in a luxurious suite at the Four Seasons in Prague. It’s the night after Katherine has delivered the lecture quoted above, setting the theme for the novel, which features a plethora of real-life cases and anomalies that seem to support the notion that human consciousness is not localized inside the human skull. Brown’s talent for assembling research is also evident in this novel’s alter ego as a guidebook to Prague, whose history and attractions are described in great and glowing detail. Whether you appreciate or skim past the innumerable info dumps on these and other topics (Jewish folklore fans—the Golem is in the house!), it goes without saying that concision is not a goal in the Dan Brown editing process. Speaking of editing, the nearly 700-page book is dedicated to Brown’s editor, who seems to appear as a character—to put it in the italicized form used for Brownian insight, Jason Kaufman must be Jonas Faukman! A major subplot involves the theft of Katherine’s manuscript from the secure servers of Penguin Random House; the delightful Faukman continues to spout witty wisecracks even when blindfolded and hogtied. There’s no shortage of action, derring-do, explosions, high-tech torture machines, attempted and successful murders, and opportunities for split-second, last-minute escapes; good thing Langdon, this aging symbology wonk, never misses swimming his morning laps. Readers who are not already dyed-in-the-wool Langdonites may find themselves echoing the prof’s own conclusion regarding the credibility of all this paranormal hoo-ha: At some point, skepticism itself becomes irrational.
A standout in the series.Pub Date: Sept. 9, 2025
ISBN: 9780385546898
Page Count: 688
Publisher: Doubleday
Review Posted Online: Sept. 9, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2025
SEEN & HEARD
Maybe not the most thrilling thriller, but the role of AI in coping with grief gives this novel pathos and interest.
A widowed and disgraced plastic surgeon is drawn into a Russian oligarch’s evil schemes.
Witherspoon’s adult fiction debut, co-authored with thrillermeister Coben, opens as heart surgery performed by Dr. Marc Adams in a North African refugee camp is interrupted by the explosive invasion of armed militants. It's the last we will see of Marc in this dimension. The next chapter jumps ahead one year to a ceremony at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore where his widow, Maggie McCabe, is supposed to be presenting an award in honor of her mother. Miserable and anxious about appearing in public after having lost her medical license, she consults with her late husband on her phone—not via supernatural means, but using a "griefbot," an amazingly lifelike and functional AI app created by her genius sister, Sharon. Once the griefbot coaxes her to brave the sneering masses, she learns she’s been replaced on the podium anyway. But she runs into a former professor, a celebrity plastic surgeon, who requests a meeting with her at his office in New York and won’t take no for an answer. Next thing she knows, there’s $10 million in her bank account and she’s on a private plane heading to a palace outside Moscow where she’s been engaged to perform off-the-record surgery on billionaire Oleg Ragoravich (new face) and his girlfriend, Nadia (new boobs). And…we’re off. A whirl of surgeries, chases, and escapes ensues as Maggie gradually comes to understand who these people are and what they have in mind for her, and how it connects to Marc and their missing friend and business partner, Trace Packer. She is aided by her delightful father-in-law, Porkchop, owner of a biker bar in New York City and a very handy guy to have on your team if you've run afoul of an international criminal organization. From the palace in Rublevka the action moves to Dubai and then Bordeaux, climaxing in a high-stakes illegal heart transplant. But wait—is Marc really dead? What happened to Trace? Who is Nadia really? Though these smoldering questions don’t quite catch fire, it's a good first try for Witherspoon.
Maybe not the most thrilling thriller, but the role of AI in coping with grief gives this novel pathos and interest.Pub Date: Oct. 14, 2025
ISBN: 9781538774700
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Review Posted Online: Oct. 15, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2025
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
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