Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read.

Start by marking “Eight Hundred Grapes” as Want to Read:

Other editions

Enlarge cover

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Open Preview

Eight Hundred Grapes

Laura Dave (Goodreads Author)

3.57 · Rating details · 23,992 ratings · 2,602 reviews

There are secrets you share, and secrets you hide…

Growing up on her family’s Sonoma vineyard, Georgia Ford learned some important secrets. The secret number of grapes it takes to make a bottle of wine: eight hundred. The secret ingredient in her mother’s lasagna: chocolate. The secret behind ending a fight: hold hands.

But just a week before her wedding, thirty-year-old Geo ...more

Get A Copy

Hardcover, 260 pages

Published June 2nd 2015 by Simon Schuster

More Details... Edit Details

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Reader Q&A

To ask other readers questions about Eight Hundred Grapes, please sign up.

Be the first to ask a question about Eight Hundred Grapes

Lists with This Book

The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George

My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry by Fredrik Backman

LibraryReads June 2015

10 books — 48 voters

The City Baker's Guide to Country Living by Louise Miller

The Bookshop on the Corner by Jenny Colgan

The Simplicity of Cider by Amy E. Reichert

Sweet Reads: Light yet Satisfying

36 books — 29 voters

More lists with this book...

Community Reviews

Showing 1-30

Average rating 3.57 ·

Rating details

· 23,992 ratings · 2,602 reviews

More filters

Sort order

Start your review of Eight Hundred Grapes

Sep 11, 2019 Melissa rated it really liked it

Shelves: womens-fiction, unputdownable, 2019, fantastic-writing

Synchronization. Everything lines up like a sign of where you are supposed to be. But what do you give up? Because you give something up. As simple—and complicated—as the other line, the other way your life could have been if you had taken a different path.

Synchronization. Happens with reading, too. Sometimes a book lands itself in the hands of a reader who truly relishes the narrative journey. Times just like this. Eight Hundred Grapes and I met at the library by happenstance. An afternoon ...more

flag 201 likes · Like · see review

May 24, 2015 Shelby *trains flying monkeys* rated it liked it

Recommended to Shelby *trains flying monkeys* by: Brandie

Shelves: netgalley, read-2015

You have to grow, mold, squish about eight hundred grapes to get just one bottle of wine. If that isn't an argument to finish the bottle, I don't know what is.

Georgia Ford shows up at her parent's vineyard in her wedding gown.

She had been at her final fitting for the dress when her world was turned upside down. So she heads home.
Back at the winery she grew up at she realizes that after she left home to move to Los Angeles to practice law she didn't realize that her parents and brothers were ...more

flag 104 likes · Like · see review

May 13, 2015 lisa rated it it was ok

Shelves: shelf-awareness-arc, first-reads

Here's a drinking game for all you fun-loving wine drinkers out there: take a sip of wine every time you read the phrase, "I looked at him, confused", in the novel Eight Hundred Grapes by Laura Dave. The pronouns of the sentence can change, ("I looked at her, confused"; "They looked at me, confused"; etc.) but I guarantee you will be pretty tipsy by the time you get through this.

I received this ARC through a promotion by Simon & Schuster listed through Shelf Awareness. I was pretty happy to get Here's a drinking game for all you fun-loving wine drinkers out there: take a sip of wine every time you read the phrase, "I looked at him, confused", in the novel Eight Hundred Grapes by Laura Dave. The pronouns of the sentence can change, ("I looked at her, confused"; "They looked at me, confused"; etc.) but I guarantee you will be pretty tipsy by the time you get through this.

I received this ARC through a promotion by Simon & Schuster listed through Shelf Awareness. I was pretty happy to get it since I thought it would be a nice recommendation for book clubs who like an excuse to drink some good wine during their discussions. Unfortunately, I won't be recommending this book to book clubs, unless the wine drinking is more important than actually reading the book. In fact, I would suggest skipping this book altogether and just drinking wine.

There is nothing horribly wrong with the novel, but all the little things that bothered me about it added up at the end, and left a bad taste in my mouth (much like cheap wine). First of all, there was that darned phrase, "I looked at him, confused", which was used way too often. Also, the story didn't flow very well, giving us situations that didn't make sense. Georgia catches her fiance in what she presumes is a lie, only to jump in her car and drive for hours and hours to her family's vineyard. She doesn't explain herself to anyone, just shows up in her wedding dress, and proceeds to refuse to speak to her fiance, and righteously lecture her parents and brothers for their own faults and failures.

Maybe she does this because her family is a bunch of wooden characters with no depth, or charisma. Her relationship with her mother especially seems awkwardly written, with their dialogue falling off the page like gravel. Georgia keeps saying her brother Finn is much more charming than her other brother, but I could not find any charm, in any of the characters throughout the book.

Another issue I had was with the ridiculous sentence fragments. Some authors can pull off sentence fragments, and some can't. Laura Dave is obviously one of those authors who can't. This didn't bother me too much at first, but by the end of the book, I was so frustrated with it. (The last few lines. Of this book. Nothing but fragments.) The more I read, the more I felt like I was reading a rough draft of a novel, or notes on how to improve it.

I was also frustrated by the lack of discussion about wine. I enjoyed reading the few bits of winemaking the author included in the plot, but I would have loved knowing more. Even better descriptions of the wines mentioned in the book would have been great. I love reading wine descriptions; they can be so imaginative, and I felt the author missed an opportunity to show us her writing prowess.

The awesome thing about this ARC was that it came with a piece of paper on which the author had chosen wines that she recommended drinking while reading certain parts of the book. I thought this was an AMAZING touch, and I really hope this information is included in the finished product. I wish the rest of the book had lived up to these wine recommendations, but sadly, it did not.

...more

flag 99 likes · Like · see review

Jul 12, 2015 Mandy rated it it was amazing

Miranda Lambert once sang about a house that built her entire being. Georgia Ford's life soundtrack could be summed up in that song, but it's more than a house, it's also a vineyard.

This book was a gem. I enjoyed every page and this family. I loved the Ford Family. They reminded me of mine in a way, except my parents were split and I had one sister and no brothers. The heart of this book reminded me of my own, we have a beautiful farm that has been in our family for 100 years and if my dad tried ...more

flag 59 likes · Like · see review

May 26, 2015 Jen rated it liked it

It really takes 800 grapes to make a bottle of wine! That’s pretty amazing and makes me appreciate grapes a 'whole bunch’ more. This story is light - nothing deep here; no complexity of characters, themes, plots or developments. Premise is love at the forefront, family winery at the backend and a whole lot of secrets, miscommunications and wine in between. I have to admit, I enjoyed it. Likeable characters with a likeable backdrop and who doesn’t like a little pinot noir with a story? I’m good w ...more

flag 49 likes · Like · see review

Jun 03, 2015 Jayme rated it it was amazing

Shelves: my-4-and-5-star-books, women-s-fiction, general-fiction

The book starts out with a quote..You have to grow about 800 grapes to get just one bottle of wine. If that isn't an argument to finish the bottle, I don't know what is..Anonymous

I love wine country, wine tasting, books with relatable characters and books with MESSY (imperfect) relationships!

This novel has all of that!

I opened a bottle of pinot noir, and read this book in one sitting.

Salut!🍷 ...more

flag 42 likes · Like · see review

Jun 25, 2015 LeAnn Suchy rated it did not like it

Shelves: romance

Originally reviewed at Minnesota Reads.

For the past few months, I saw Eight Hundred Grapes by Laura Dave highlighted everywhere. It was on lists of upcoming novels I shouldn’t miss. It was praised in publisher webinars as one of their great new books. It was marked as a to-read by thousands of people in Goodreads. Everywhere I turned I saw Eight Hundred Grapes, so I decided to check it out.

Eight Hundred Grapes was a predictable bore with a self-centered main character. It should be called My Eig Originally reviewed at Minnesota Reads.

For the past few months, I saw Eight Hundred Grapes by Laura Dave highlighted everywhere. It was on lists of upcoming novels I shouldn’t miss. It was praised in publisher webinars as one of their great new books. It was marked as a to-read by thousands of people in Goodreads. Everywhere I turned I saw Eight Hundred Grapes, so I decided to check it out.

Eight Hundred Grapes was a predictable bore with a self-centered main character. It should be called My Eight Hundred Grapes, Mine, Mine.

The self-centered main character is Georgia Ford and we meet her as she’s on the run from her wedding dress fitting because she found out that her fiance was hiding something from her. Instead of confronting the situation, she runs to her family’s vineyard where she also uncovers some of their secrets. Ignoring everyone else’s feelings, she thinks about herself and how this all affects her. Her biggest selfishness is in her unwillingness to allow her parents to sell their vineyard. Brushing off their reasons why it would be good for them, she thinks about herself and why she doesn’t want them to sell a vineyard that she hasn’t visited for years. She’s such a self-righteous bitch to everyone around her, claiming she knows how they should run their lives while hers is falling apart.

It’s okay to hate a main character, but then I need strong minor characters around them, which we don’t get here. All the other characters are so dull and vacant, only there to be punching bags to Georgia’s rants. There are odd flashback chapters with Georgia’s parents when they were young and buying the vineyard, which were probably there to try to give them a bigger voice, but they seemed so out of place. Those chapters carried me out of the story and they occur at such random times. Had they been every other chapter, or had those chapters showcased some motivations for what was happening in the current story, then maybe they would’ve worked, but they seemed extremely unnecessary.

The story here is also not that gripping. It’s terribly predictable and we’ve seen it before. A bride runs away, close to the wedding, back to a family she hasn’t seen in awhile, and there is drama with a competing business, and the man heading up that competing business is good looking, and there is conflict between the runaway bride and the businessman, but the conflict can also be seen as sexual tension, but he’s an enemy to the family and she can’t do it, yadda, yadda, yadda. You’ve read this story before.

And don’t even get me started about the writing. There are a lot of sentence fragments in this book, sorta like the one I just used. But there. Are a lot. Of them. I like a good sentence fragment and I use them from time to time, but she uses copious amounts of them. They are used frequently, in many places where there really doesn’t need to be that much of an emphasis. I couldn’t get used to this style of writing in a book that didn’t really call for it.

I don’t understand the praise this book is receiving. To be fair, I don’t read a lot of books in this genre, but I think I can tell a good one from a bad one. This is not a good one. ...more

flag 41 likes · Like · see review

Jul 20, 2015 Cathrine ☯️ rated it liked it

82.5 points. Good: a solid, well-made book.

Grippy tannins, oh my. Pinot Noir is one of the main protagonists in our story. It is said to be a very transparent grape that can communicate the difference in terroir, or grape-growing environment, between adjacent plots of a vineyard. Of course I felt that drinking some while I read about the breakdowns in a family’s communications and love-lives in the midst of a vineyard and winery would be most beneficial to my appreciation of this complex blend. ...more

flag 37 likes · Like · see review

Aug 02, 2015 Emily Goenner rated it did not like it

Why, why, why did I read the whole thing?

flag 36 likes · Like · see review

May 22, 2015 TL rated it really liked it

*minor edits, some stuff was messed up haha*
4.5 stars rounded up :)

Wasn't that the gift of a home? You looked at it the same way, but then when you needed it to, it showed you all over again the many ways you'd been during the time you had been living there. The many ways it brought you back to yourself. The many ways it still brought you back to yourself.

A lovely book that pulls you into the characters and the scenery... it's easy to fall in love here thanks to the wonderful writing setting the ...more

flag 24 likes · Like · see review

Mar 18, 2015 Bonnie rated it really liked it

Shelves: arcs, contemporary

‘Synchronization. Systems operating with all their parts in synchrony, said to be synchronous, or in sync. The interrelationship of things that might normally exist separately.

In physics: It’s called simultaneity. In music: rhythm.

In your life: epic failure.’

A mere week before Georgia is set to marry, when she’s in the middle of her final dress fitting, she sees something on the street that leaves her questioning everything about life and relationship. Incapable of any rational thinking, she ‘Synchronization. Systems operating with all their parts in synchrony, said to be synchronous, or in sync. The interrelationship of things that might normally exist separately.

In physics: It’s called simultaneity. In music: rhythm.

In your life: epic failure.’

A mere week before Georgia is set to marry, when she’s in the middle of her final dress fitting, she sees something on the street that leaves her questioning everything about life and relationship. Incapable of any rational thinking, she gets in her car still clad in her wedding gown and drives to her childhood home seeking solace. Unfortunately, her arrival is unexpected and she discovers things at home are also complicated making her feel yet again that she has no idea what has been going on around her and she has no idea how to even begin to handle it all.

Eight Hundred Grapes takes you straight into the heart of wine country: Sebastopol, CA in Sonoma County. Dave impeccably describes the rolling green hills, the winding roads and the foggy mornings before the sun breaks through. If you’ve ever been there personally, her detailed descriptions will successfully dredge up all of your memories of this beautiful place.

The detailed descriptions also extend to the multi-faceted characters that grace these pages. Georgia was an incredible character that had an admirable relationship with her parents, especially her father, that was really quite touching. The way she managed to face a whole slew of personal drama was done in a way that can not only be understood but appreciated. Grapes might at first seem like your typical family drama but it has a definite quality and character to it that was most appealing with writing that did an incredible job in perfectly describing feelings that can so often be difficult to convey in words. This story really snuck up on me in terms of feeling and emotion; I wasn’t expecting to become as involved in the outcome of the characters as much as I did but Dave’s writing and sense of normalcy really pull you into the story.

‘Wasn’t that the gift of a home? You looked at it the same way, but then when you needed it to, it showed you all over again the many ways you’d been during the time that you had been living there. The many ways it had brought you back to yourself. The many ways it still brought you back to yourself.’

Eight Hundred Grapes is a poignant tale of learning to deal with the imperfections of life, about listening to your heart and the significance of having somewhere you can truly call home.

I received this book free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. ...more

flag 19 likes · Like · see review

May 22, 2015 Jennifer rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2015-coffee-books-challenge

"I stopped paying attention to her. I stopped doing the things that someone does for the person he loves. Because I was tired. Because other things always seems to matter a little bit more...That doesn't happen overnight, you know. It happens slowly. You should be careful of that. You should be careful not to take the person you love for granted. Not only because they'll notice. But you'll notice too. You'll think it means something it doesn't...Like that's how much you care."

This book was an ab ...more

flag 20 likes · Like · see review

May 04, 2016 Obsidian rated it did not like it · review of another edition

I did not know it was humanly possible to despise every damn character in a book that is not written by Gillian Flynn. Seriously. I want someone to put together a freaking pie chart to show most despised characters and see if one particular author manages to somehow cause the reader to hate every single person that they read about.

I have always wanted to go to California and go vineyard hopping. This book has turned me off of doing that anytime soon.

Georgia Ford pulls a runner the week before he I did not know it was humanly possible to despise every damn character in a book that is not written by Gillian Flynn. Seriously. I want someone to put together a freaking pie chart to show most despised characters and see if one particular author manages to somehow cause the reader to hate every single person that they read about.

I have always wanted to go to California and go vineyard hopping. This book has turned me off of doing that anytime soon.

Georgia Ford pulls a runner the week before her wedding because she discovers something super explosive about her fiancee (yeah when we get to the reveal I was disappointed, and then annoyed by all parties).

Georgia goes home to her family vineyard and finds out that her mother is apparently falling or fallen in love with someone else, her father is selling the vineyard, and her two brothers are acting weirdly around one another.

Georgia thinks she knows what is best for everyone though you tell her to her face she doesn't know. She psychoanalyzes all people who come across her and does so badly. She backpedals on everything in her life and her constant justifications for why she does certain things are just in a word, stupid. She even gets involved in trying to stop her family from selling the vineyard because she thinks she knows what her parents need. Sigh.

Other characters in the book don't fare any better. Georgia's fiancee proves he is stupid for not telling Georgia something she needed to know.

Georgia's mother is going around giving advice, though she is embroiled in an almost affair (yeah thanks for the advice). Her father is no help. She has her one brother being a totally shitty brother to the other, and her other brother who is clueless to what is going on around him.

Of course the book throws in a love interest and blah. Double blah. It was pointless since you knew what was going to happen so why even read to the end.

Secondary characters are not well developed, and I thought that the author just dropped way too many storylines that she should have developed a lot more.

The book decided to go from Georgia's perspective to revisiting Georgia's father's first foray into making wine and how he met his wife and there ups and downs through the years. It made the book drag on so long, I started skimming those sections because they added nothing to the book.

The setting of the the vineyard was totally lost on me. I didn't get any type of excitement from Georgia about making wine or the smell of the Earth, the grapes, how things taste after the sun has been shining on them. All this book made me do is long for "Under the Tuscan Sun" where the author does a better job of describing wine and the taste of grapes, and cheese, and crackers and everything else you can eat along with wine.

The ending was a hot mess of a joke. Things get wrapped up quickly and I guess we get a happy ending. ...more

flag 18 likes · Like · see review

May 18, 2015 Brandie rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: romance, favorites, arc, read-2015

"You have to grow, mold, squish about eight hundred grapes to get just one bottle of wine. If that isn't an argument to finish the bottle, I don't know what is."

You had me at WINE.

Once in awhile, the perfect book at the perfect moment comes along and it's a beautiful thing. When I saw that Laura Dave had a new book releasing soon, and that it was available on Netgalley, and that it was ABOUT WINE, I jumped at the chance to read it. Her previous novel, The First Husband, is one of my favorite ...more

flag 18 likes · Like · see review

Apr 29, 2015 Cynthia (Bingeing On Books) rated it it was ok

Shelves: arcs

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I am honestly not sure how to review this book because I was a bit underwhelmed with it. I didn’t have any strong feelings about it one way or the other. The book starts with Georgia running out on her wedding dress fitting when she discovers a secret her fiancé was hiding. Yeah, she didn't run out on her wedding. She ran out on a fitting. I guess that was the excuse for why she showed up at her brother's bar in a wedding dress. The secret was that her fiancé had a child and never told her. This I am honestly not sure how to review this book because I was a bit underwhelmed with it. I didn’t have any strong feelings about it one way or the other. The book starts with Georgia running out on her wedding dress fitting when she discovers a secret her fiancé was hiding. Yeah, she didn't run out on her wedding. She ran out on a fitting. I guess that was the excuse for why she showed up at her brother's bar in a wedding dress. The secret was that her fiancé had a child and never told her. This isn't really a spoiler because the reader is informed of this within the first chapter. He didn't cheat on Georgia; he just found out about the child shortly after they became engaged and never told her. I didn't understand why she didn't stick around to at least hear an explanation. She saw him with his child and then took off. Yes, it was a major red flag that he lied to her. But here's my issue with Georgia: she sat around twiddling her thumbs about a decision regarding their future despite the fact that their wedding was five days away. She basically ran away and refused to talk to him. And when he did show up at her family's place, she heard the explanation and then refused to make a decision about whether she actually wanted to marry him. At this point, I didn't even care whether she married Ben or not. Just make a decision already. But no, she just let everyone continue making her wedding plans around her while acting like she didn't know what she wanted to do. I did not care about Ben one way or the other. He seemed wishy washy and spineless. And he was a liar, so that was that. Of course Georgia kept being surprised when she found out about another lie. Come on Georgia . . . wake up! Okay, I guess I did have some strong feelings about this book. I kind of hated Georgia's indecisiveness.

The book also had chapters from Dan's POV (Georgia's father). These chapters went back to the very beginning, when he first started the vineyard. His chapters talked about the problems they had, both with the vineyard and with their marriage. I found myself so bored with those chapters. I even skimmed them a little. I also did not care about the problems with Georgia's parents' marriage or the problems between her brothers. There was no character at all that stood out for me. I feel like a black sheep because I have seen so many rave reviews about this book. But I just didn't get it. ...more

flag 19 likes · Like · see review

Feb 20, 2017 Christina rated it really liked it

3.5 stars, rounded up

I've had this book on my bookshelf for a while now, having bought it for very cheap at BooksaMillion, for no reason other than that I loved the cover. But it takes a bit for me to be in the mood for a fluffy chic-lit. A couple of days ago, after having my heart torn out of my chest (then replaced, then torn out again...several times) by the Red Rising series, this book and it's beautiful cover immediately caught my eye. Just what I needed, a silly rom-com esque book to make ...more

flag 19 likes · Like · see review

Jun 24, 2015 Jennifer Masterson rated it really liked it

Quick, light read about family drama at a vineyard. Perfect between heavy reads or if you like chic-lit. I loved the main character and I found that it flowed very well.

flag 17 likes · Like · see review

Jan 18, 2018 Tiffany PSquared rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: my-library, 2018-reading-challenge, romance

❝You have to grow about eight hundred grapes to get just one bottle of wine. If that isn't an argument to finish the bottle, I don't know what is. - Anonymous❞

My best friend gave me this book because she knows I love wine. That's enough of a reason! It's the story of soon-to-be-wed (maybe?) Georgia and her wine-making family going through changes in Sonoma County, California.

The bulk of the story is about decision and indecision. Coming to that point in your life where something happens to knock ...more

flag 16 likes · Like · see review

Jun 05, 2015 Stacy rated it it was ok

Shelves: chick-lit, annoying-protagonists, read-in-2015, book-club-reads

2 1/2 stars

I suspect the winery background is what got this book a lot of hype, but to me, this was just another chick lit and not even one of its better ones.

The annoying main character has no idea where she wants to live, what she wants to do, or who she wants to spend her life with, yet she goes around judging and interfering in her family's life. She storms into another winery, accusing them of stealing her family's business. I suppose this is supposed to be the chick lit version of "meet cu ...more

flag 14 likes · Like · see review

Apr 26, 2015 Laurence R. rated it really liked it

Shelves: to-review, to-interview

Surprisingly great!

There are many things I loved about this novel. First of all, it's simply a perfect summer read. I loved how it's written and the flashbacks that help understanding the story. It's fluent and it made me want to continue reading, just as it should.

I loved the family in this novel. While there are many things going wrong with it, they all love each other deeply and they care about their family, which was really touching. Growing up isn't easy, and there are things you wish you ...more

flag 12 likes · Like · see review

May 08, 2015 Julie Ehlers marked it as tossed-aside

Shelves: galleys, shelf-awareness

I won this ARC via Shelf Awareness and was happy to get it, which is why it pains me to say that everything about this book is stupid. Plus, there's very little in it about wine--it could have taken place anywhere, about any family business. I won't rate this since I only made it about a third of the way through, but I am for sure not wasting any more time on it. I hope whoever picks it up from the lobby of my building likes it more than I did. ...more

flag 12 likes · Like · see review

May 06, 2015 Ylenia rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2015-reads, read-on-kindle, read-for-review

*3.5 stars*

flag 12 likes · Like · see review

Jan 28, 2019 Cher rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: abandoned-dnf, contemporary

1.5 stars - I didn't like it.

In full disclosure, this book was not for me. On my last cross-country flight there was a toddler that would not stop screaming, for the entire 6.5 hour duration. Not crying, screaming. So while I quickly knew this book was not for me just a chapter or two into the audiobook, it was preferred to having my ears assaulted. It was also the only one I had downloaded on my device, and so I soldiered on. At the end of the flight, I was around 48% through and shocker, it st 1.5 stars - I didn't like it.

In full disclosure, this book was not for me. On my last cross-country flight there was a toddler that would not stop screaming, for the entire 6.5 hour duration. Not crying, screaming. So while I quickly knew this book was not for me just a chapter or two into the audiobook, it was preferred to having my ears assaulted. It was also the only one I had downloaded on my device, and so I soldiered on. At the end of the flight, I was around 48% through and shocker, it still wasn’t for me, so it was DNF’d.

I really enjoyed the author's writing and would not hesitate to read a book by her in the future, if the plotline is appealing. It is regrettable that the synopsis does not reveal the nature of the fiance’s “big secret”, especially as it is revealed practically at the very beginning of the book. Being more accurate would allow for more applicable reader attraction. Instead it misleadingly taunts the “big secret” like it would be a suspenseful build. (It's not. So not.) Had it been more descriptive, I would have never chosen it and wouldn’t be here now, writing a less than stellar review. But here we are.

So I included my own synopsis here for those that, like me, have a decade’s long TBR list and could use the extra screening to narrow down your next book. It's only spoiler-ish for about the first 10% of the book.

The fiance's secret:(view spoiler)

-------------------------------------------
Favorite Quote: Maybe that was just childhood? You hurry up, pick the opposite path, try to make childhood end. Then, as an adult, you have no idea why you were running away. What, exactly, you needed so desperately to get away from.

First Sentence: My father has this great story about the day he met my mother, a story he never gets sick of telling. ...more

flag 11 likes · Like · see review

Mar 31, 2015 Mandy rated it did not like it

Shelves: audio

Puke. Seriously, just ... ugh. I may have been more tolerant of this book if I'd read it at a different time, but right now, even in the mood for something beachy, I wanted to throw it out the window. It is a book about the whitest white people problems. Absolutely the most first world problems ever. It felt like I was reading about the perfect lives in those Sweet Valley High books from when I was in middle school, except set on a vineyard in Sonoma, and all those gorgeous people have grown up ...more

flag 10 likes · Like · see review

May 29, 2015 Camie rated it liked it

When Georgia sees her fiancé with another woman she heads to her families Sonoma County vineyard "The Last Straw" for solace, only to find that the rest of her family members are having their own problems. A nice easy summer read, about love, family, and finding a home in the world. Add wine, chocolate , and a nice summer evening , enjoy !! Date night movie rights have already been optioned. 3 stars ...more

flag 11 likes · Like · see review

Sep 29, 2020 ♥ Sandi ❣ rated it liked it

Shelves: z-closed-2020-5000-books, contemporary, 1-have, 300-pages-or-less, cozy-or-chick-lit, romance, z-closed-2020-retired-bookworms

3 stars

It is pretty well known that a romance novel is not my first choice - actually isn't even in my realm of probable reads. However I do break down from time to time and read a quasi-romance as a pallet cleanser. Usually a romantic mystery, or a historical fiction that is too heavy, for my taste, with romance, will be my choice.

However I blew it with this book. This is a romantic romance with nothing but romance oozing out of every sentence. So I am being generous with a 3 star rating. I th ...more

flag 9 likes · Like · see review

Apr 05, 2015 Carmen Blankenship rated it liked it

Shelves: netgally-reading-list, 2015-releases

Eight Hundred Grapes by Laura Dave was a great book, the perfect beach read.

Our heroine is Georgia, a real estate attorney who is about her architect fiance. Our poor girl gets quite a surprise when she looks out the window while being fitted for her dress. Her fiance Ben just may be keeping secrets.

This starts Georgia's journey home and to more secrets and changes.

I really enjoyed this book and Laura Dave's style. Told him first person and going back and forth to different time periods can b ...more

flag 9 likes · Like · see review

Oct 08, 2015 Andrea rated it it was ok

Shelves: fiction

2.5 Stars
Meh. This book just did not click for me. It should have, I mean we're talking about a winery...in Sonoma, no less (where I would move to in a heartbeat!). But the main character was too wishy-washy and temperamental. None of the other characters quite did it for me either, honestly. The story was fine. But "fine" is not really what I'm looking for in a novel.

(This sounds really harsh. It wasn't BAD, just not recommended) ...more

flag 9 likes · Like · see review

May 14, 2015 Nicole R rated it liked it

Shelves: play-book-tag, romance, ner, 2015-pick-a-year-challenge, california, kindle, relationships, family, 2015, chick-lit

Romance. Winemaking. Sonoma County. This book had the perfect varietals to make a story I adore. But, when the fermentation was complete, the overall assessment was light bodied and lacking in complexity, with a pleasant finish that faded quickly.

Georgia Ford flees to her family's Sonoma County vineyard less than a week before her wedding after learning that her fiancé has been keeping a life-changing secret from her. She seeks the comfort of her parents, whose loving and stable marriage nurtur Romance. Winemaking. Sonoma County. This book had the perfect varietals to make a story I adore. But, when the fermentation was complete, the overall assessment was light bodied and lacking in complexity, with a pleasant finish that faded quickly.

Georgia Ford flees to her family's Sonoma County vineyard less than a week before her wedding after learning that her fiancé has been keeping a life-changing secret from her. She seeks the comfort of her parents, whose loving and stable marriage nurtured a family, a vineyard and wineries, and a community. She wants the protectiveness of her older twin brothers, who are exact opposites but complete the Ford children triumvirate. However, when she gets there she realizes that hers is not the only life in turmoil and secrets is the word of the day.

The story was enjoyable. It wasn't the brilliant, unique, must-read of the summer that reviews and editorials would lead you to believe, but it was a short, quick read that I wanted to keep seeing what happened next. My favorite aspect was the descriptions of the winemaking; Dave creatively structured the story so that the events in the Ford family reflected each stage of the process. The setting was beautiful and vivid, and the characters could be annoying at times but their love for each other reflected through. And, whose family is not annoying at times?

The primary drawback was the way the story unfolded, it left something to be desired. Despite a few flashbacks to how The Last Straw vineyard and winery got its start, the story was very much a snapshot of a tumultuous week in the lives of the Fords. The story did not build, or delve beneath the surface, or really provide much explanation of why these people's lives were at major turning points. Nor did the story really delve into how we got to the HEA. The book lacked complexity and richness. It didn't make the story unenjoyable, it just fell very short of above average.

Overall, a typical summer read that had the potential to be so much more with if the author would have committed the extra dedication, cultivation, and painful culling that makes an average story sparkle.

* I finished this book yesterday and was sure I would round my rating up to 4 stars. However, when I sat down to write my review today I found that the bits of charm I was struck by as I closed the book quickly faded in 24 hours, and I ended up rounding my rating down. ...more

flag 8 likes · Like · see review

Mar 26, 2015 Theresa rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fiction, ebook, kindle, netgalley

"Eight Hundred Grapes" delivered something far from what I was expecting. I expected to find an average romance taking place at a winery. What I got was a story that was rich and full and complex but at the same time, so very simple and can be summed up in one sentence. It's a story about what one wants out of life and what will have to be sacrificed for it.

Within the beautiful setting of a vineyard, the story is rich with information of what it takes to masterful at making a great wine and also ...more

flag 8 likes · Like · see review

« previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 … next »

new topic
Discuss This Book

topics	posts	views	last activity
ACPL Online Book ...: Free Day for Monday Morning Book Group	1	7	Jun 26, 2017 12:28PM
Go Fug Yourself B...: Eight Hundred Grapes February Discussion!	42	89	Feb 07, 2017 02:01PM
Go Fug Yourself B...: 800 Grapes is our February read	18	99	Jan 13, 2017 04:49PM
I'm really confused	6	74	Jun 30, 2016 07:10AM
52 weeks, 52 books: Week 2016.16: Eight Hundred Grapes	3	39	May 01, 2016 07:55AM

Readers also enjoyed

See similar books…

Genres

Fiction

348 users

Womens Fiction > Chick Lit

180 users

Romance

117 users

Contemporary

89 users

Audiobook

43 users

Adult Fiction

42 users

Adult

42 users

Womens Fiction

30 users

Family

28 users

Relationships

23 users

See top shelves…

About Laura Dave

Laura Dave

1,006 followers

Laura Dave is the bestselling author of several critically acclaimed novels including Eight Hundred Grapes and The First Husband. Her work has been published in eighteen countries, and five of her novels, including The Last Thing he Told Me, have been optioned for film and television. She resides in Santa Monica, California.

Her new novel, The Last Thing He Told Me, will be released on May 4th, 202 ...more

Books by Laura Dave

More…

News & Interviews

6 Great Books Hitting Shelves This Week

Need another excuse to treat yourself to a new book this week? We've got you covered with the buzziest new releases of the day. To create our...

Trivia About Eight Hundred Grapes

No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »

Quotes from Eight Hundred Grapes

“You have to grow about eight hundred grapes to get just one bottle of wine. If that isn’t an argument to finish the bottle, I don’t know what is. —Anonymous” — 10 likes

“Even if things didn’t always go the way they should, sometimes they went exactly where they needed to.” — 8 likes

More quotes…

See a Problem?

Preview — Eight Hundred Grapes by Laura Dave

Eight Hundred Grapes

Get A Copy

Friend Reviews

Reader Q&A

Lists with This Book

Community Reviews

new topic
Discuss This Book

Readers also enjoyed

Genres

About Laura Dave

Books by Laura Dave

News & Interviews

Trivia About Eight Hundred Grapes

Quotes from Eight Hundred Grapes

See a Problem?

Preview — Eight Hundred Grapes by Laura Dave

Eight Hundred Grapes

Get A Copy

Friend Reviews

Reader Q&A

Lists with This Book

Community Reviews

new topicDiscuss This Book

Readers also enjoyed

Genres

About Laura Dave

Books by Laura Dave

News & Interviews

Trivia About Eight Hundred Grapes

Quotes from Eight Hundred Grapes

new topic
Discuss This Book