(June 3)įorecast: Mayle's soft-touch Provençal scene-setting is once again likely to translate into big bucks, with Ridley Scott signed up to direct the film version and a 175,000 first printing planned. Mayle's simple story provides lighthearted if unadventurous reading and a fond endorsement of the pleasures of viniculture. The arrival of young Californian "wine brat" Christie Roberts, Uncle Henry's long-lost daughter, complicates matters for Max, but her surprise offer and Charlie's arrival lessen the impact of a vicious vineyard scandal involving a delicious, high-priced, discreetly produced wine called Le Coin Perdu. Max settles into his new life easily thanks to the attentions of local notary Nathalie Auzet and busty cafe owner Fanny. The estate, Le Griffon, is in a dire state of disrepair and the wine cellar is filled with bottles of a dreadful-tasting swill, but it's nothing that vineyard caretaker Claude Roussel and prim housekeeper Madame Passepartout can't resolve. A delightful, best-selling tale about the business and pleasure of wine, adapted into a Ridley Scott movie starring Russell Crowe and Marion Cotillard. Max spent holidays at his Uncle Henry's vineyard as a child, so when he inherits the place, the prospect of returning is tempting a generous "bridging loan" from ex-brother-in-law Charlie seals the deal. , etc.) and ninth book follows 30-something Max Skinner from a sabotaged financial career in London to his adoption of the Provençal lifestyle on an inherited vineyard in France. Mayle's breezy, uncomplicated fifth novel ( Chasing Cezanne
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