The Lost Vintage

By Ann Mah

Book Overview

"If you enjoyed Sarah's Key and Kristin Hannah's The Nightingale, then this wonderful book by Ann Mah is for you." -- Tatiana de Rosnay

Sweetbitter meets The Nightingale in this page-turning novel about a woman who returns to her family's ancestral vineyard in Burgundy and unexpectedly uncovers a lost diary, an unknown relative, and a secret her family has been keeping since World War II.

To become one of only a few hundred certified wine experts in the world, Kate must pass the notoriously difficult Master of Wine examination. She's failed twice before; her third attempt will be her last chance. Suddenly finding herself without a job and with the test a few months away, she travels to Burgundy to spend the fall at the vineyard estate that has belonged to her family for generations. There she can bolster her shaky knowledge of Burgundian vintages and reconnect with her cousin Nico and his wife, Heather, who now oversee day-to-day management of the grapes. The one person Kate hopes to avoid is Jean-Luc, a talented young winemaker and her first love.

At the vineyard house, Kate is eager to help her cousin clean out the enormous basement that is filled with generations of discarded and forgotten belongings. Deep inside the cellar, behind a large armoire, she discovers a hidden room containing a cot, some Resistance pamphlets, and an enormous cache of valuable wine. Piqued by the secret space, Kate begins to dig into her family's history--a search that takes her back to the dark days of World War II and introduces her to a relative she never knew existed, a great-half aunt who was a teenager during the Nazi occupation.

As she learns more about her family, the line between resistance and collaboration blurs, driving Kate to find the answers to two crucial questions: Who, exactly, did her family aid during the difficult years of the war? And what happened to six valuable bottles of wine that seem to be missing from the cellar's collection?

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0062823329
• ISBN13: 9780062823328
• Release Date: August 2019
• Publisher: William Morrow & Company
• Length: 400 Pages
• Weight: 0.69 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 5.2" x 7.8"

Customer Reviews

FRANCE Current 2015, backstory France during world war ll

What a wonderful Gripping Story... that I wish could still go on !! This story will transport you in time to the start of the German invasion of France, 1939, to the more current time in 2015 ! It is a powerful story of the struggles of war, and the terrors of Nazi Occupied France and a family secret that has been buried for centuries, That you learn about through a hidden diary, from a great Aunt, that she had kept, when she was a young girl in her late teens. It glides effortlessly back into the current..and the vineyards of modern day Burgundy, where a family wants to keep that part of the past, buried and forgotten. It weaves the past and present, that unfolds layer after layer, with depth and detail, that will sweep you away in this beautiful tale of Love, Loss, Courage, and self discovery. It is about the passion and pride of generations of winemakers, and family history. It's a love story, a mystery story, historical truths...Its truly a remarkable novel ! The detail, the Characters, the food descriptions, wine descriptions, to the beautifully painted details, of the vineyards and the country side, and small villages...make you feel, see and almost taste as if you were there !!! I wish I could give this book 10 stars ! Just an Excellent, Excellent, story from start to finish !! I just purchased this book on a whim..BUT am So Glad I did !!! It will absolutely remain as one of my " KEEPER" books, that are like good friends, you just don't want to part with ! Hope this doesn't lead me to a path of Hoarding Books !! Lol lol... which I could easily see happening, as more and more I read, I don't wanna part with !!! Seriously...this is truly an Outstanding Story...that you don't want to put down, just a great read !! If you have the chance, try and read it...you won't be disappointed at all !!

Vivid Storytelling

Every family has their secrets. Every secret has a back story. Some secrets are buried forever as generations pass; some secrets are merely hidden away, only to be found seventy years later in a walled up wine cave. Ann Mah tells a vivid and wrenching story about a family in German-occupied France during WWII and how their struggles continued to have an impact on their descendants today. I've read many WWII stories, but this was the first time reading about how it severely affected women and children. Talk about wine is only the icing on the cake in this book - the cake of the story is the family dynamics and finding their way to forgiveness.