Eight Hundred Grapes by Laura Dave

“Synchronization: The coordination of events to operate in union. A conductor managing to keep his orchestra in time. The impossible meeting of light reflection and time exposure that leads to a perfect photograph. Two yellow bugs parked in front of Lincoln Center at the same time, the love of your life in one of them.”

Clad in her wedding gown, Georgia Ford flees from L.A. to her family’s Sonoma County vineyard. Georgia was at her wedding gown fitting when she made a discovery about her fiancé, Ben, that caused her to reevaluate everything. Her family and their vineyard are two constants in Georgia’s life and she seeks clarity and solace with them.

Much to her surprise, she finds everyone in her family has their own secrets and are on the precipice of change. As Georgia works through her discovery and what she should do, she and her family ban together to sort out their issues and make tough decisions.

Once again, I was drawn to a story about family set in a beautiful location. This time, there was the added bonus of winemaking (apparently it takes 800 grapes to make a bottle of wine!). I loved the family in this book as they work together at the family vineyard, enjoy family dinners with Mom’s special lasagna (the secret ingredient is chocolate) and Georgia’s relationships with her brothers.

The theme of synchronization runs through the story as it is how Georgia’s dad approaches his work and his life. In the beginning of the story, she doesn’t see it working in her own life. By the end, she has learned just how right dad has been.

Check out Eight Hundred Grapes by Laura Dave at the Library (https://catalog.lclibs.org/polaris/search/title.aspx…).