The Winemaker's Wife

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The Winemaker’s Wife is a stirring, immersive story set in France during the early 1940s, as well present day, that is told primarily from three different perspectives; Inès Chauveau, a young wife who after feeling neglected and misunderstood naively makes choices that have far-reaching, life-changing consequences; Céline Laurent, the half-Jewish wife of Chauveau’s winemaker who lives in constant fear of the advancing Germans except when deep within the vineyard caves where she finds solace, hope, contentment, and love; and Liv Kent, a recently divorced American who journeys to France at the request of her grandmother only to uncover a family history that’s littered with secrets, betrayals, and sacrifices. Thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Shuster Canada for a digital galley in exchange for an honest review. Two parallel storylines, two unlikable characters in the beginning(to me), two histories fusing in the end to ultimately become a good read.

Much of The Winemaker’s Wife revolves around characters being complacent in a time of crisis; therefore, it’s easy for one to be willfully blind to what’s really happening. Are there other times in history where this same observation applies?As with many historical fiction, there are dual timelines, present day 2019 and the 1940s. The majority of the book takes place in the Champagne province in northeast France. I really enjoyed the descriptions of the Maison Chauveau and its underground maze of caves and learning about the process of making/storing wine and champagne. The ending was also satisfying which bumped up my rating. Read The Widow Clicquot by Tilar J. Mazzeo, a history of Veuve Clicquot (and a woman who’s mentioned in The Winemaker’s Wife), and compare it with the information presented about champagne making in this book. Discuss how important history and culture is to French winemaking. Read Wine and War by Don and Petie Kladstrup, which is about French winemakers who resisted the Nazis. Discuss the Resistance techniques depicted in both books and whether they were effective. Making champagne (or wine) is such an interesting process. I loved learning about it throughout this story. With a bit less detail, Kristin Harmel takes us though the process of making wine much like Lisa See did in The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane. What's cool about learning about creation or farming processes like this via fiction is that it's far less boring (at least to me) than reading a non-fiction novel. You also get to see the impact things like weather, harvest delays, machinery breaking, etc. has directly on the process and people involved. The Winemaker's Wife is the next best thing to actually going out and making champagne in France yourself. Then we have the modern story of Grandma Edith and Liv. While reading the modern chapters I was usually impatient to return to the WWII era to see what new scrapes this foursome was encountering. This was a brutal time of German occupation, French citizens collaborating with the Germans, and French Resistance networks. Those elements were touched upon in the story. Michel was working for the Resistance. I would have liked to read more about that work in the book. The story often dipped into Romance/Chic Lit levels of angst, especially in the modern storyline.

Through the perspectives of Inès and Céline, we experience the intrigue of their daily lives before and during the German invasion of France during WW11; we learn details of the champagne production at the (fictional) Maison Chauveau in northern France near the city of Reims; and we also hear a little about the French resistance (hiding munitions and Jews). An alternate present-day timeline shares the story of Liv who is mysteriously whisked away from her home in New York to France by her eccentric grandmother. There are secrets from the past to be revealed. My Thoughts: Look, I get that there were people who are oblivious, or scared, or complacent in war. Their main focus is survival and the survival of their families, or they're just too naive or traumatized to understand the hell their once normal world has been thrust into it. I'm not mad that this book didn't feature some heroine that risked her life to spy on Nazis or smuggle people across the boarders... This reading group guide for The Winemaker’s Wife includes an introduction, discussion questions, and ideas for enhancing your book club. The suggested questions are intended to help your reading group find new and interesting angles and topics for your discussion. We hope that these ideas will enrich your conversation and increase your enjoyment of the book.

Kristin was born just outside Boston, Massachusetts and spent her childhood there, as well as in Columbus, Ohio, and St. Petersburg, Florida. After graduating with a degree in journalism (with a minor in Spanish) from the University of Florida, she spent time living in Paris and Los Angeles and now lives in Orlando, with her husband and young son. She travels frequently to France for book research (and—let’s be honest—for the pastries and wine) and writes a book a year for Gallery Books/Simon & Schuster.