Rating: 
Summary: beautifully written
Review: The Vintner's Luck follows the adult life of Sobran Jodeau, a winemaker in Burgundy, France in the early 1800s. Sobran prospers as a vintner, raises a large family, is well-respected in his town, he has a good life. This book also focuses on his friendship with an angel, Xas, who guides him through major decisions and transitions in his life, and brings him his "luck".For Xas, 55 years is just a small portion of time on earth as an immortal, within which (because of his relationship with Sobran) his existence is altered permanently. There are a lot of touching passages on how Xas remembers Sobran, on how he has fallen in love, this human side of an angel. There are also quite logical and scientific, yet beautifully written descriptions of heaven, hell, the heirarchy of angels, and the nature of God's will -- I like how this is reconciled with the free will of angels and humans. There are a lot of significant characters and many events that surround Sobran. Most of them are resolved well in the end, however a few seem unnecessary and just crowd an already eventful novel (such as the town's murder mystery). Although some readers may be taken aback by the fact that Sobran and Xas become lovers, I think this is just one aspect of their complex relationship that however exceptional, seems to develop naturally. Overall, the Vintner's Luck is full of beautifully written insight and themes. The language just flows and it is a difficult book to put down.
Rating:
Summary: Original
Review: I bought this book primarily because of my love of Angels (but not the "Touched by an Angel" or Hallmark variety). After two years the jury's still out on this book, even though I own both Hardcover and paper back copies of the book. This story involves a homosexual romance between a 19th century French Vitner and an Angel. It takes place over the life of the Vitner when he was a boy until his death of an old man. I liked: The author is a great writer, her prose is exquisite and she puts words to paper wonderfully, without being pretentious. But most of all I loved her idea of the structure of Heaven and Hell. They actually have societies within each. It was really interesting and original without borrowing from established sources. She even gives the angels in the story a distinctive personality, and God is as loving as ever. Most of the times when authors tackle subjects like this they become sacriligious and are mocking of Judeo-Christian teachings. But not Elizabeth Knox, she spins her original tale of Heaven and Hell without being disrespectful. I disliked: The homosexual romance, I just found that it did not work. Especially with Sobran the vitner. He wasn't really a sympathetic character. How anyone could fall in love with him was beyond me. The jury is still out on this book for me. But if you want to read an original story about Heaven and Hell with beautiful writing pick up this book.
Rating: 
Summary: worst kitsch since "memnoch the devil"
Review: it's such a hard task to combine sex and the spiritual that I wish writers gave up trying! there is one single idea in this book (fallen angel falling in love with human) and this is not really worth the trouble, the rest is decoration and the desperate attempt to create a Anne-Riceish atmosphere. fake philosophy, fake emotions, dreadful "theology" and bad storytelling too.
one star for the wings though: they are pretty!
Rating: 
Summary: Wine and pickles
Review: It is unfortunate that the Kirkus Review comparing this book to THE GOD OF SMALL THINGS, is featured prominently. I feel that the comparisons are simplistic: non-Americans confront issues of spirituality in family settings that include food and beverage production businesses. But the way each book deals with issues of structure, chronology, plotting, characterisation, and, of course, theology, are radically different. THE VINTNER'S LUCK should stand (and fall) on its own merits. But if comparisons must be drawn, one might look at how Neil Gaiman characterizes religious mythology in his fiction. Heaven and Hell are made real, as are Lucifer, God, and a host of angels, all given motivations and decisions to make. This would all work out pretty well, but Knox chooses an intuitively obvious structure for conveying her plot: one chapter for each year that takes place. This makes sense, except that the angel and the vintner engage in lovers spats. It draws the events of the novel out longer than necessary. Knox cheats the structure a couple of times as well, when it suits her to draw chapter endings in more conventionally dramatic fashion. We're allowed to see the life of the vintner, but the experiences of the angel are related to us by him, in small bursts. Thus, we are given portraits only of secondary characters in the vintner's life. Of those, only his friend and employer, the Baroness, is vividly painted. For that matter, the vintner's character is muddled, as the themes of the book are played out within him. Ultimately, THE VINTNER'S LUNK is an interestingly imagined tale, but doesn't always handle its characters and plotting well in order to present a cohesive end-product. On the plus side, you don't need to be a wine connoisseur to enjoy it.
Rating: 
Summary: Angels Are Human Too
Review: I have a fondness for novels that explore the different tenets of religious faith. I like to believe that my own faith is strengthened when I am forced to think and examine my personal theology. Good novels are a place to explore these things because they put a human face on what we often treat abstractly, if we think about these things at all. This is a really good novel. Angels have gone through a revival in the past decade or so but I've found most of this material to be uninspiring. Here, however, is an angel story to get the wheels turning. This story of a vitner who meets an angel one night and they agree to meet on the same night every year is wonderful. Knox's imaginings of God, Satan, and the angel Xas offer interesting insights into the nature of good and evil. The human, Sobran, whom Xas meets annually offers us insights into religion and faith and what it is to be human. The relationship between Xas and Sobran takes both of them (and us) beyond their traditional roles in the hierarchy of creation. I think this book hit me at just the right time. It's fascinating but its exciting and easy to read. I read the entire novel in a sitting. Certainly outside the mainstream in terms of traditional belief about angels, it's not for everyone. But for those who like to explore outside the theological box, it's good reading.
Rating:
Summary: I'm not sure how to even describe.. One of my favorites.
Review: Of things it is like ["that hateful phenomenon of likeness"]: Same Time, Next Year, only it is not, and much more. Anne Rice, if Anne Rice could write maturely and very well, only it is not, and much more. Beauty. Love. Itself.
Rating:
Summary: Dreamlike & Dense
Review: This book was recommended to me by my boyfriend who said it reminded him of an Anne Rice novel. After reading it I could see how he'd come to that conclusion; A powerful, beautiful, angel comes to earth and catches a falling drunk, our protagonist Sobran in his arms. Thus begins a yearly meeting between the two where they debate, hypothesize,and argue about love, sex, heaven, hell, fate & wine. The latter because Sobran owns a winery. My feelings about this book are so mixed. At times it reads like a philosophical debate enrobed in a novel that demands undivided attention. The first third was almost dreamlike in it's telling, but I found myself plodding through parts of the book losing interest. I could appreciate the novel for it's artistic merits, but had no emotional connection to it whatsoever. Like Xas, it left me a little cold.
Rating:
Summary: Lovely, but not quite what I expected
Review: I bought this book on the strength of the spiel on the cover, and whereas it is a very good book with strong well defined characters, it was not quite what I expected. The Angel Xas is definitely the centre of the story, but (and perhaps foolishly) I expected a gentler and more angelic character. So if you're looking for the standard story of beautiful angels with wings that smell of snow, this is not for you. That aside it is still an engrossing and clever read, and I do recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: Book of the Year
Review: The Vintner's Luck is a simple tale of the life and loves of Sobran Jodeau, set in the early 1800s in Burgundy, France. What makes the story compelling and unique is that his true love is the angel Xas, who fell out of the sky one dark night in the vineyard, and then promises to return on the same night each year. From beginning to end, the Vintner's Luck is a compelling and pleasureable read. If you enjoy reading historical fiction, fantasy or love stories, if you are looking for a book to read beyond your usual interests, if you want to take a book with you on a trip which will have you oblivious to the discomforts of travel, then read this book.
Rating:
Summary: The Ending
Review: Like many of the reviewers for this book, I found The VL an absorbing experience that left me spellbound throughout apart from.... The Ending. The final chapter's switch to modern day times was out of step with the rest of the book and should have been excluded. It left the reader none-the-wiser and detracted from the surreality of the rest of the novel. A "deflating" ending!
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