Much of the details of the story Saving Grapes by J.T. Lundy are below, just like a film review, in their press release. If you like to know a lot about a book before reading it check it out. If you want to know a little, here is my review:
Our hero Jason and his sidekick Stumpy start out as endearing as Jack and Miles from Sideways. You don’t really like them much as they’re kind of scummy characters with little to say about them on the positive side. They aren’t sexy, smart or endearing. However, J.T. Lundy is successful in turning that around.
Between misfortune, bad decisions and a general woe-is-me I-hate-my-life attitude, Jason rises to the challenges handed to him. This buddy/journey book is very fast-paced as the reader is led through various how-did-he-do-that scenarios, plot twists and unlikely-turned-likely romances.
Half way through the book you can’t help in cheering Jason on through twists and turns. You will want him to redeem himself, inherit a Bordeaux vineyard, get along with some important nuns, avoid jail, avoid his ex-wife and find true love. Of course, full disclosure, I read this while traveling in France, partly in Bordeaux. Well done Lundy. I want a vineyard now too…where I can read Part II?
Press Release: Saving Grapes By J.T. Lundy
A Wacky Tale of Wine, Women, Nuns and Villains!
PERPETUAL LOSER CONCOCTS MADCAP SCHEMES TO SAVE HIMSELF IN NEW ROMANTIC COMEDY
“A memorable, unexpectedly heartwarming romp.” —Kirkus Reviews
“Saving Grapes comes from a rare vintage — inspired comic novels that are also full of heart…” —Robin Lippincott, author of In the Meantime, Our Acadia, and Mr. Dalloway
In award-winning author J.T. Lundy’s new book, Saving Grapes, calamity strikes 32-year-old Jason Barnes, who has already lost his job and his heart. On top of that, his meddling ex-wife and a crazed golf cart fiasco land him in a new quandary: he must come up with $60,000 in thirty days to pay a fine or go to jail.
Jason’s bad luck continues when Aunt Clara, his only hope for help, dies unexpectedly. She wills her liquid assets to charity but does leave Jason a picturesque French vineyard, worth millions, with one catch: if Jason goes to jail, the vineyard will transfer to his unscrupulous step-brother.
Desperate to raise the cash he needs, Jason travels to France with his nutty best friend to unload the vineyard — only to find that it’s being farmed by formidable nuns who must bestow their blessing before he can sell. To persuade them to cooperate he attempts a madcap series of dubious schemes, but hits an unforeseen complication when he meets and falls for what appears to be the perfect French woman.
As Jason bungles his way through wine, women, nuns and villains, he must unearth his true values in order to save more than just his soul.
Saving Grapes features:
- A main character who walks a fine line between being likable and unlikable
- A coming-of-age story that is also a story of redemption
- The power of friendship and loyalty
- A romantic comedy uniquely from a male’s point of view
- An inside look at a French vineyard
“Although the main character is thirty-two years old, he really is still a child,” says Lundy. “He walks a morally fine line throughout the book, eventually redeeming himself in the end. But is his redemption authentic? Readers have come in on both sides of the argument.”
The book is infused with Lundy’s wonderfully skewed sense of humor and a collection of flawed but irresistible characters to provide a fun, good-hearted Wodehousian read.
J.T. Lundy gave up a successful career trading futures and options to write novels and screenplays. His first novel, Happy Utopia Day, Joe McCarthy, was a semifinalist for the 2014 Thurber Prize for American Humor, a Reader’s Favorite Silver Finalist for Humor, an IndieFab Bronze award winner for Thriller & Suspense, and a ForeWord Book of the Year Finalist for Action & Adventure. He holds a BA degree from Indiana University, MFA from Spalding University and MBA from the University of Chicago.
Website: http://www.JTLundy.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/HappyUtopiaDay
Twitter: @JTLundy
Saving Grapes isavailable at Amazon.com and Barnesandnoble.com.
Eve Bushman has been reading, writing, taking coursework and tasting wine for over 20 years. She has obtained a Level Two Intermediate Certification from the Wine and Spirits Education Trust, has been the subject of a 60-minute Wine Immersion video, authored “Wine Etiquette for Everyone” and recently served as a guest judge for the L.A. International Wine Competition. You can email Eve@EveWine101.com to ask a question about wine or spirits that may be answered in a future column. You can also seek her marketing advice via Eve@EveBushmanConsulting.com
