Reviews

A Good Year by Peter Mayle

ilovestory's review against another edition

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3.0

Cute summer read ... definitely makes me want to have a rich uncle leave me a large home on land planted with vineyards in his will. Of course, guess I didn't need to read this book to want that!

staceylynn42's review

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3.0

Max inherits his late uncle's vineyard. But there are 3 problems:
1. the wine is terrible
2. there is skullduggery afoot
3. there is a question about his inheritance.
This is a typical Mayle mystery/romance set in Provence of course, with lots of delicious food and great descriptions of the background.
The characters are okay, likeable rogues & decent people. There is nothing particularly WOW about this story but it's a decent tale told decently.

mariellejtb's review

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3.0

It was a nice read. Nothing spectacular, a bit predictable, but it was OK

stacey42's review

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3.0

Max inherits his late uncle's vineyard. But there are 3 problems:
1. the wine is terrible
2. there is skullduggery afoot
3. there is a question about his inheritance.
This is a typical Mayle mystery/romance set in Provence of course, with lots of delicious food and great descriptions of the background.
The characters are okay, likeable rogues & decent people. There is nothing particularly WOW about this story but it's a decent tale told decently.

florapants84's review against another edition

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4.0

Mayle's fiction is just as great as his non-fiction travel essays and memoirs. Ben Chaplin did a great job at narrating this audio version of the book. I really think he would have been a better canidate for the role of Max instead of Russell Crowe in the movie adaptation.

sietz's review against another edition

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2.0

Always chasing the ‘One Year In Provence’ dragon :) this one started off ok but reallly lost puff towards the end. A very unbalanced novel. Still, not totally awful as (with all Peter Mayle books) there’s lots of good talk of French food and wine.

cheesykaty's review

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3.0

Pleasant, albeit a little shallow. 3 stars because it's never not fun to read about wine and French food.

writerlibrarian's review

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2.0

I read this because I found out there was a Russell Crowe/Ridley Scott movie based on it coming this fall. I had not read any Peter Mayle before and I don't think I'll read him again. He's fine and somewhat entertaining but not my cup of tea. The translation was good, the characters interesting in a fluffy kinda way. I have no idea how Crowe will play Max. Book!Max is nice even if he had a shark's job and is somewhat laid back. Not a book I would read again or an author I would read again but I can see the appeal.

candyflynn's review against another edition

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lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

1.0

margardenlady's review

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4.0

Fun romp in Provence with a British expat. The Francophile in me had fun imagining the setting and characters.