Begins where the previous book left off, after Reboul, the victim of the Vintage Caper, comes looking for Sam with a caper of his own in mind. (Sam did leave him a business card after all)
Reboul wants his plans for development of a part of the Marseille coast to be the one chosen by the committee. But the committee chairman hates him so Reboul hires Sam to front for him.
There are 3 different plans up for discussion by the committee and people are willing to go to various lengths to make sure their plan is the one chosen, including, but not limited to: vehicular assault, arson, bribery, extortion & kidnapping.
It was a nice little adventure. I like Sam. I am not at all sure about Elena but mostly positive.

Total brain candy. Just what I needed for spring break.

A fun, if predictable caper. There were no surprises in the direction the plot took, or the eventual resolution, but still the story was enjoyable. What keeps me from rating the book higher, beyond the predictability, is how stereotyped every character is. The women in the story are especially insufferable. Elena, for example, is a corporate executive and the significant other of Sam. Presumably she is an intelligent woman and would be Sam's confidant - yet the only topics we hear he weigh in on are ones of food and style. The frequent side-tracks into local history and recipes are also distracting.

Begins where the previous book left off, after Reboul, the victim of the Vintage Caper, comes looking for Sam with a caper of his own in mind. (Sam did leave him a business card after all)
Reboul wants his plans for development of a part of the Marseille coast to be the one chosen by the committee. But the committee chairman hates him so Reboul hires Sam to front for him.
There are 3 different plans up for discussion by the committee and people are willing to go to various lengths to make sure their plan is the one chosen, including, but not limited to: vehicular assault, arson, bribery, extortion & kidnapping.
It was a nice little adventure. I like Sam. I am not at all sure about Elena but mostly positive.

Not as engaging as Peter Mayle's other novels, but a pleasant holiday read. A mental meander through the charming south of France with a little excitement mixed in.

This is an adequate vacation read. The characters are shallow and the plot is simple. There are no grand messages or musings - just a recounting of a fictional incident of political intrigue in an exotic locale and descriptions of clothes and food.

I tried to like this, but I had to force myself to get through it. I see reviews about a "Light-hearted read," "easy vacation read," etc. It was nothing like that for me. I couldn't keep track of things, and I found the thing very confusing. Maybe if I had read the series in order it would have helped. This took time away from books I would have enjoyed more.