Martin Walker’s Bruno books are effectively a homage to Perigord in the Dordogne where the author lives. And I’m with him. I fell in love with the Dordogne when I first went there on a school trip in 1965 and have been back many times since. It never palls although it’s a lot more crowded these days.
Bruno is the Chief of Police in fictional St Denis where the community spirit is very strong. He knows everyone, is involved in local activities and has no wish to live anywhere else – ever, and that’s despite a very powerful love interest who’d like him to transfer to Paris.
Of course these are crime novels and Dark Vineyard is the second in the series. St Denis lies at the heart of a traditional wine growing area but there’s a research station where a field of crops is destroyed by arsonists. Then there are two deaths which seem coincidental but may be linked and/or not accidental. Max appears to have drowned in a vat of pressed grapes, which put me in mind of George, Duke of Clarence, brother of King Edward IV who is supposed to have been drowned in a vat of malmsey as a form of execution in 1478.
Inevitably there are twists and turns as Bruno eventually works out what happened and sees justice done. It’s unlikely but compelling as most good crime fiction is. And the characterisation is great. Even Bruno’s dog, Gigi seems real.
There’s a lot to like about Dark Vineyard. The descriptions of the scenery, rivers, bridges and valleys made me long to go back to Perigord. The writing is as sensuous and evocative as that of HE Bates in The Darling Buds of May or Peter Mayle in Tousjours Provence. It’s also very well informed about the wine industry and I learned a lot. Of course I knew that grapes are traditionally pressed by marching on them in bare feet but this novel’s description of the vendage with locals gathering as if for a party, having their legs hosed down and climbing into the vat in turns is unforgettable. I can’t believe Walker made it up, He must have taken part in this ritual.
It’s an interesting take on local politics in France too in which the Mayor, Bruno’s direct boss, seems to have a lot of power.
As well as being an efficient but generally relaxed cop, Bruno is an accomplished cook. Walker has even written a book of Bruno’s recipes and I’m afraid food is the reason I shan’t be reading any more of this series.
It’s a personal thing but I have been a vegetarian for 45 years and found the detailed accounts of food and cooking utterly nauseous. I really don’t want to read about people at a dinner party eating the heads of woodcock by holding their beaks or lambs strung up and stuffed. I didn’t care for the fatted goose livers being sold from under the counter in the market either. Yes, I know it’s a way of life but not for me, thanks.
