A Good Day for Chardonnay by Darynda Jones [Review]

A Good Day for Chardonnay (Sunshine Vicram #2) by Darynda Jones
Format: ebook
Source: provided through NetGalley
Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Date read: March 15, 2021

Sunshine Vicram
1. A Bad Day for Sunshine
2. A Good Day for Chardonnay - Hardcover | Kindle
3. A Hard Day for a Hangover

Darynda Jones
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Synopsis (Goodreads):

Running a small-town police force in the mountains of New Mexico should be a smooth, carefree kind of job. Sadly, full-time Sheriff--and even fuller-time coffee guzzler--Sunshine Vicram, didn't get that memo.

All Sunshine really wants is one easy-going day. You know, the kind that starts with coffee and a donut (or three) and ends with take-out pizza and a glass of chardonnay (or seven). Turns out, that's about as easy as switching to decaf. (What kind of people do that? And who hurt them?)

Before she can say iced mocha latte, Sunny's got a bar fight gone bad, a teenage daughter hunting a serial killer and, oh yes, the still unresolved mystery of her own abduction years prior. All evidence points to a local distiller, a dangerous bad boy named Levi Ravinder, but Sun knows he's not the villain of her story. Still, perhaps beneath it all, he possesses the keys to her disappearance. At the very least, beneath it all, he possesses a serious set of abs. She's seen it. Once. Accidentally.

Between policing a town her hunky chief deputy calls four cents short of a nickel, that pesky crush she has on Levi which seems to grow exponentially every day, and an irascible raccoon that just doesn't know when to quit, Sunny's life is about to rocket to a whole new level of crazy.

Yep, definitely a good day for chardonnay.

Thoughts on A Good Day for Chardonnay: I must say that Auri is VERY MUCH her mother's daughter. She's smart and wily and she's a trouble magnet. Which means Sunshine is kept on her toes when it comes to keeping her kid from diving headfirst into danger. (Seriously, they're two peas in a pod and it's kind of hilarious to watch their convoluted thought process when they don't end up on the receiving end of blunt force head trauma.)

But that's another story for another day. Right now we have a bar fight that ends in a little bloodshed, a homicidal Levi looking to exact revenge on the people who hurt his friend, a missing kid, a PAINFULLY awkward "date night" between two people who are not romantically inclined (so painful. so very, very painful.), and Sunshine following up on the scant clues she has regarding her own abduction years ago. Oh, and then there's Auri on the hunt for a serial killer. Did I not say she was very much her mother's daughter? HA!

As Sunshine slowly remembers more bits and pieces about her abduction, we get a few answers that left me VERY relieved. Total bonus: We got some solid Sunshine and Levi interactions and I really really really like those two when they smolder at one another. Also, they make a pretty darn good team when they give in and start working together.

Things are still weird and quirky in Del Sol and there are a whole lot of bodies that keep popping up. Sunshine might never have expected to end up the sheriff of her hometown (especially since she technically never ran for the position), but she's doing a darn good job getting things done. Sure, things get a little messy, but sometimes you have to break a few eggs or something.

Am I looking forward to the next book? After that ending, YOU BETCHA!