The Bourbon Thief: A Southern Gothic Novel

by Tiffany Reisz

Betrayal, revenge and a family scandal that bore a 150-year-old mystery. When Cooper McQueen wakes up from a night with a beautiful stranger, it's to discover he's been robbed. The only item stolen--a million-dollar bottle of bourbon. The thief, a mysterious woman named Paris, claims the bottle is rightfully hers. After all, the label itself says it's property of the Maddox family who owned and operated Red Thread Bourbon distillery since the last days of the Civil War, until the company went out of business for reasons no one knows... no one except Paris. In the small hours of a Louisville morning, Paris unspools the lurid tale of the Maddox family and Tamara, heiress to the distillery that became an empire. Theirs is a legacy of wealth and power, but also of lies, secrets and sins of omission. Why Paris wants the bottle of Red Thread remains a secret until the truth of her identity is at last revealed, and the century-old vengeance Tamara vowed against her family can finally be completed.

• ISBN10: 0778319423
• ISBN13: 9780778319429
• Publish Date: 28 June 2016
• Publish Status: Active
• Imprint: Mira Books
• Edition: Original ed.
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 384
• Language: English

Reviews

[Melanie]

My review and an extended sample of the audiobook are posted at Hotlistens.com.

4.5 stars

If you’ve been following my reviews for a while, you know that I’m a fan of Tiffany Reisz’s Original Sinners series. I started that series not long after The Siren came out back in 2012. I grabbed each book as soon as possible. I just loved the characters that Ms. Reisz created. I was saddened to see that series end. This is the first book that I’ve picked up that wasn’t part of The Original Sinners series. While this standalone book (i don’t think there is another book coming, but I’m not 100% sure) is completely different from The Original Sinners, it still has Ms. Reisz’s style and flare.

So this story is told both in the present and in the past. This is not the first time that Ms. Reisz has told a story in this format. It is something that she’s amazing at. She has the story of Cooper McQueen, a very rich bourbon connoisseur, and Paris, a woman who had seeked him out in his bar. Paris tries to steal a very expensive bottle of bourbon from him. It is the only existing bottle of Red Thread bourbon. Which was once one of the best bourbons in the world. Red Thread is no longer in business. In trying to convince Cooper to hand over the bottle, she tells the history of Red Thread and the family of the owners.

So the story of this history is about the Maddox family. Tamara Maddox is the main family member. She is the only living heir to the Maddox fortune. It starts on her sixteenth birthday. There is also her grandfather, who is still the owner of Red Thread. Her mother, who married into the Maddox family. Tamara’s father killed himself. There is also Levi, who is the groom in the barn.

Once again, Reisz is a master storyteller. She takes on topics that are so taboo and makes them very interesting. In this story, we have slavery (as in historical slaves, not any kind of BDSM slavery that she tackled in The Original Sinners series), family deception, racism, marriages of convenience. Throughout the story, you start second guessing what you know, as we learn about the Maddox family at the same time as Cooper.

If you asked me how to classify this book, it would be a sensual romantic mystery with a hint of historical thrown in. This book will keep you on the edge of your seat. I so wanted to learn more about the Maddox family, but at the same time, didn’t. There is so much despair (that is the best word I could come up with) in the Maddox family. As I learned more and more, I felt that it was only going to get worse. I really loved watching Tamara go from a spoiled brat at 16 to the adult that she became, even if she was barely an adult in age, she was in spirit.

If you know me, you know that I don’t step out of the speculative fiction genre very often. Tiffany Reisz is one of the authors that I am more than willing to break my normal mold for. She is such an amazing storyteller with characters that are well developed, you can’t help but love them, even if the should really be unloveable. If you haven’t tried Tiffany Reisz yet, this is a great book to get you started.

“How are you going to get revenge against dead people? Dig ’em up and stake ’em through the heart?”
“I asked myself that same question, and I think I know the answer. You destroy what they loved, and you love what they destroyed.”

“Being happy is the best revenge.”

Narration
This is my first book with Kim Staunton as the narrator. As a person who prefers to listening, I quickly asked my library to grabbed this on audio so that I could get a listen. I will say that I thought Kim Staunton did an amazing job. I loved both her male and female voices. I loved how she changed the voice of Tamara as she went from spoiled brat to more of a grown up. If you haven’t tried her, I highly recommend giving her a shot. I know that I will be looking for more books by her.

[Linda]

This review was originally posted on (un)Conventional Bookviews
I'm not sure how Reisz does it - The Bourbon Thief has an amazing narrator who knows how to spin a story, and it's like a mixture between a dark fairytale and a melancholy history lesson.



The one and only progress update I made while I was reading The Bourbon Thief was this : This whole story has me on the edge of tears, there's such a strong melancholy, or unfinished sadness here I can hardly stand it! And that feeling of being on the edge of tears stayed with me for the duration of the story - and I just couldn't stop reading. Always needing to know what would happen next, I was completely mesmerized from start to finish. Reisz is such an amazing story-teller, and it was truly a joy to have a chance to read her new title before it is released!

The Bourbon Thief switches seamlessly between past and present, because Paris, who is the one telling the story to Cooper, and as a by-product the readers get the story as well. It is a story about wealth, greed, oppression and lies. The way Paris shares the story with Cooper, and the reason behind it had me in awe of both the character and the author at the same time. It is genius to both let some of the plot unfold in front of the readers' eyes, while also plunging us all into the past through the story-telling skills of one of the characters. There are some very chilling connections throughout the story, and there are some I'm still trying to understand - especially because Paris seemed set on Cooper, and there seems to me there could be more to this story.

While The Bourbon Thief is quite different from the Original Sinners series, there is something about the story that is just as addictive as the series. I think part of it is how the story unfolds, how both the reader and Cooper are being kept in suspense as Paris uses all her cunning as she crafts a story that is so captivating it's impossible to look away. Even when I felt that I maybe should look away - I still really wanted to see up close what was going to happen. And in many ways, it was devastating. I had many moments when I thought I would know what was going to happen next, only to see that I was completely wrong. And I loved that the story took me on twists and turns that made it both exhilarating and more than a little chilling.

Written in past tense, third person, sometimes from Cooper's perspective but most of the time told from Paris' point of view, the story had a great pace, even, and not too fast. If you enjoy a story in which you become completely engrossed, characters that entice you to keep turning the pages and writing that takes your breath away, The Bourbon Thief is the book for you.



Her dress was tight as old Scrooge's fist, red as Rudolph's nose , and looking at her, McQueen had only one thought - Christmas had come awfully early this year.

Now it was her turn to spin on her bar stool, ninety degrees, and she met him face on with full eye contact, fearless and shameless. "I could own you by morning." Her words rendered McQueen momentarily speechless.

"Can't hear you," she sang out. "I'm riding in the wind with joy at my feet and freedom in my hear."

[kimbacaffeinate]

The Bourbon Thief is a departure from Reisz’s erotic fiction giving us a gothic tale that begins in the wee hours of the morning as a women dressed in red known only as Paris shares the tale of Tamara Maddox, heiress to the distillery that became an empire. Cooper McQueen wakes after a night of heated sex with a beautiful stranger only to discover she has attempted to steal a million dollar bottle of Red Thread Bourbon. The woman named Paris claims the bottle is rightfully hers. Before he has her arrested, he agrees to hear her story; one she claims will have him handing the bottle to her willingly.

I absolutely loved the method in which Reisz delivered this captivating, dark, tale about the Maddox family. It is said the Maddox family has bourbon in their blood, but we soon learn that there is also blood in their bourbon. McQueen falls under Paris’s spell as she share this captivating tale, The reader will soon find themselves snuggling down with a glass of spirits and losing time as this tale of power, wealth, forbidden love, dark secrets and horrific deeds pulls them back to the beginning where Red Thread began.

Tamara Maddox’s story completely held me captive as Reisz shared her dark tale and in doing so shedding light on slavery, sins, quest for power, and the ruthless drive of a man who would sell his soul to the devil to see his dynasty continue. She brought the south to life painting the plush landscape and revealing what took place behind closed doors. In the midst of this, a forbidden romance forms . It is one that will grab your heart and blur lines of right and wrong. I found myself weeping for characters, and cringing in horror as the story slowly reveals the Maddox family's darkest secrets.

Bourbon Thief unraveled slowly with its beautiful and seductive writing. Reisz is a masterful storyteller, brings their story of lose, betrayal, revenge and darkness to life. The story is based on real events in Kentucky’s history lending the story an authentic feel. Fans of family sagas, dark secrets, and history involving rich southern families who made their money off the labor of others will devour the tale.

Paris’s identity was revealed and the ending left me satisfied and emotional spent. While we get answers, McQueen and I were left hoping that Paris will one day return, so we could pour a glass of bourbon and she could tell us more.

Copy provided by publisher. This review was originally posted on Caffeinated Book Reviewer