The Vineyard At Painted Moon

by Susan Mallery

Searching for the perfect blend of love, family and wine

Mackenzie Dienes seems to have it all—a beautiful home, close friends and a successful career as an elite winemaker with the family winery. There’s just one problem—it’s not her family, it’s her husband’s. In fact, everything in her life is tied to him—his mother is the closest thing to a mum that she’s ever had, their home is on the family compound, his sister is her best friend. So when she and her husband admit their marriage is over, her pain goes beyond heartbreak. She’s on the brink of losing everything. Her job, her home, her friends and, worst of all, her family.

Staying is an option. She can continue to work at the winery, be friends with her mother-in-law, hug her nieces and nephews—but as an employee, nothing more. Or she can surrender every piece of her heart in order to build a legacy of her own. If she can dare to let go of the life she thought she wanted, she might discover something even more beautiful waiting for her beneath a painted moon.
…
Everyone Loves Susan Mallery

‘Heartwarming and hilarious’ – Rebecca Raisin

‘Warm, witty and romantic. The perfect feel-good read’ – Sarah Morgan

‘Susan Mallery is one of my favourites.’
#1 New York Times bestselling author Debbie Macomber

• ISBN13: 9781848458178
• Publish Date: 18 February 2021 (first published 9 February 2021)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
• Imprint: Mills & Boon
• Format: Paperback
• Pages: 384
• Language: English
• URL: https://millsandboon.co.uk

Reviews

[Nadz@Totally Addicted to Reading]

I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.They say change is inevitable and we can either choose to resist it or embrace it. When one embraces change, it provides one with an opportunity for growth, something the heroine from The Vineyard at Painted Moon will discover. Not only did the change open new doors for her, it led to her discovering that the persons who she believed had her back only saw her as a means to an end.

To persons on the outside, Mackenzie Dienes appears to have an awesome life. A beautiful home, close friends, a handsome husband and dream job as a well sought after winemaker. There is just one problem: she earned the above through her marriage. So when she realized that her marriage had ended, she knew she would lose it all, a loss she had not been prepared for.

I had a great time with this book. My first time experiencing the author’s work and I would read more of her work.

Mackenzie’s resilience shined throughout the story. She embraced the change, albeit in fear, and ended up achieving much more than she had lost. I admired her strength, her intelligence and her caring nature.

The story featured likeable as well unlikeable characters. The two I found most detestable were Rhys, Mackenzie’s soon to be ex husband and her mother-in-law, Barbara. Rhys’ actions surprised me. Initially, he appeared to be on Mackenzie’s side despite the end of their marriage. However, as the story progressed, his weak and selfish nature reared its head. Then there was his mother. OMG! The woman was controlling, malicious, belligerent and downright vicious. She scared me. Thank goodness for the characters who brought light to Mackenzie’s life.

The Vineyard at Painted Moon with its excellent character development, superb pacing and wonderful world building proved an engaging read from start to finish.

I recommend this book without reservations to fans of contemporary women’s fiction. This review was originally posted on Totally Addicted to Reading

[Jeff Sexton]

Slow Start, Sordid Middle, Solid End. This is one of those soap opera type books that starts out *slow*. There's enough to keep most readers hooked, but dang, the pacing could have been a bit tighter. Indeed, the titular Vineyard doesn't even get mentioned at all until at or after the halfway point in the tale. Instead, quite a bit of detail and most of the story is given to the fall of McKenzie Davis - who the description labels as the primary protagonist, but who never *really* feels as such. This is because so much attention is given to two other characters - Stephanie, McKenzie's sister-in-law and best friend, and Barbara, McKenzie's mother-in-law. So to my mind, these three were the core of the story, though McKenzie's own plot did indeed drive the other two's for the most part. McKenzie's story works well, Stephanie shows a great deal of development, and Barbara... starts out regal, yet falls to her own madness to become a character clearly intended to be despised. Still, overall this story could have been shortened by 50-100 pages and still worked just as effectively, maybe moreso with a bit tighter plotting such a reduction in page count would have required. Yet there is nothing technically wrong with this story or the storytelling, and therefore the tale overall gets the full five stars. Very much recommended.