Blood Vines by Erica Spindler (ARC)

Blood Vines by Erica Spindler

In this bare-knuckled adrenaline ride from New York Times bestselling author Erica Spindler, Alex Clarkson’s worst nightmares are about to come true…

A sinister, hooded figure…

When Alexandra Clarkson starts having terrifying visions filled with blood and ceremonial images, she tries to find a rational explanation – maybe her mind is playing tricks on her, resurrecting creepy tableaux from her research on religious ceremonies and sects. But when Alex’s mother, Patsy, commits suicide without leaving behind any information, Alex is left wondering: could she be haunted by something from the childhood she doesn’t remember?

Naked, writhing bodies…

Detective Daniel Reed was the last person to speak to Patsy. What he reveals to Alex is shocking. Twenty-five years earlier, Patsy was married to Harlan Sommer, one of Sonoma County’s most prominent vintners, when their infant son disappeared without a trace. The loss destroyed the Sommers’ marriage, causing Patsy to leave and take Alex with her.

A dead child…

Called on to investigate the identity of a baby’s remains unearthed in a Sonoma vineyard, Reed had picked up a trail that led him to Patsy in San Francisco. Now Reed and Alex both wonder if the cold bones could be her baby brother Dylan, and Alex decides to accompany Reed back to Sonoma for the investigation. No sooner does she arrive, however, than she is drawn deep into the search for a twisted killer…

Alexandra Clarkson is having nightmares again. The images are scary ~ hooded figures, a faceless screaming baby, flickering candles and naked bodies writhing together. She has no idea what the dreams mean. Could it be tied to the work she is doing on her dissertation of religious practices and rituals? But the images were so vibrant, so real. Her booty call, ex-husband, psychologist thinks she could be repressing memories from her past. Memories that should stay buried??? But then tragedy strikes. Alexandra's bio-polar mother Patsy commits suicide. And along with her death, Alex realizes she may never find out the truth about who her father is. While going through her mothers things, she finds an article in the newspaper with the name of a detective and his phone number circled. When she calls the number to find out what her mother was so curious about she was rocked to her core.

Detective Daniel Reed is horrified by what he sees. The virtual mummified remains of an infant were uncovered while vineyard workers were removing some old, infested vines. The vineyard belongs to the Sommer family. A family that 25 years ago suffered the loss of their beloved 6 month old son Dylan, believed to have been kidnapped right from his crib while his sisters slept right across the hall.

After meeting with Daniel, Alex is more confused than ever. It seems that when she was a young child her mother was married to Harlan Sommer, Dylan was her baby brother, and they all lived at the vineyard together. But after his disappearance the marriage collapsed. Patsy took Alex away, never to return again and at the same time virtually erasing all of Alex's memory of her time there. Upon arriving at the vineyard, Alex is greeted with mixed emotions. While some are so happy to have her back, there are others that are terrified of what she may remember.

While Daniel works the police angle of the case, Alex works the personal one. She returns to the vineyard because the memories are most vivid there. But the more she remembers the more she is terrorized. Ominous messages are left for her, including a sacrificed lamb in her bathroom and people she knows and care for start turning up dead. The families of Sonoma County are rich, connected and will stop at pretty much nothing to keep their perfect imagine in tact. But would they go so far as to kill for it? And while both Alex and Daniel are working their respective angles, they're also working each other. There is no denying the attraction between the two of them - it's electric. But what happens when it starts to look like Alex might have something to do with what has been going on and Daniel needs to start playing cop and stop playing lover?

The more Alex digs the more disgusted she becomes. She soon wonders if she really wants to find out the truth. Does she really want to know who her father is? Can she believe the truth she hears about her mother? Can she forgive Daniel for treating her like a suspect and open herself up to the love he apparently has for her? Blood Vines is an exhilarating saga of love, murder, family drama, wonderful characters, and long buried secrets that will keep you guessing right up until the very end. It's a story that should be read slowly and savored, enjoying each word as you would a fine wine. This is one book not to be missed.

Release date: March 2, 2010