Cognac Conspiracies by Jean-Pierre Alaux, Noël Balen, Sally Pane (translator)

The heirs to one of the oldest Cognac estates in France face a hostile takeover by foreign investors.

Renowned wine expert Benjamin Cooker is called in to audit the books. In what he thought was a sleepy provincial town, he is stonewalled, crosses paths with his first love, and stands up to high-level state officials keen on controlling the buyout.

Meanwhile, irresistible Virgile mingles with the local population until a drowning changes the stakes.

Part of the ongoing Winemaker Detective series.

*****

“The Winemaker Detective mystery series is a new obsession.” —Marienella

“The descriptions of cognac and cigar scents and flavors drew me in as if I, too, were a connoisseur.” —4-star librarian review

“This book and its successors will whet appetites of fans of both Iron Chef and Murder, She Wrote.” —Booklist (on Treachery in Bordeaux)

*****

Sally Pane studied French at SUNY Oswego and the Sorbonne before receiving her Masters Degree in French Literature from the University of Colorado. Her career includes more than twenty years of translating and teaching French and Italian at Berlitz and at University of Colorado, Boulder. Her literary translations include Operatic Arias; Singers Edition, and Reality and the Untheorizable by Clément Rosset, along with a number of titles in the Winemaker Detective series. She also served as the interpreter for the government cabinet of Rwanda and translated for Dian Fossey’s Digit Fund.