Audiobook Review: Drunk on Love

Author: Jasmine Guillory

Narrators: Heidi Franklin & Ryan Vincent Anderson

Audiobook Length: 11 hours 15 minutes

Margot Noble needs some relief from the stress of running the family winery with her brother. Enter Luke: sexy, charming, and best of all in the too-small world of Napa, a stranger. The chemistry between them is undeniable, and Margot is delighted that she lucked into the perfect one-night stand she’ll never have to see again. That is, until the winery’s newest hire, Luke, walks in the next morning. Margot is determined to keep things purely professional, but when their every interaction reminds her of the attraction still bubbling between them, it proves to be much more challenging than she expects.

Luke Williams had it all, but when he quits his high-salary tech job in Silicon Valley in a blaze of burnout and moves back to Napa to help a friend, he realizes he doesn’t want to tell the world–or his mom–why he’s now working at a winery. His mom loves bragging about her successful son–how can he admit that the job she’s so proud of broke him? Luke has no idea what is next for him, but one thing is certain: he wants more from the incredibly smart and sexy woman he hooked up with–even after he learns she’s his new boss. But even if they can find a way to be together that wouldn’t be an ethical nightmare, would such a successful woman really want a tech-world dropout?

Set against a lush backdrop of Napa Valley wine country, nothing goes to your head as fast as a taste of love–even if it means changing all your plans. 

Drunk on Love is Jasmine Guillory’s latest novel. Since her previous works have been hit or miss for me, I was curious to try this one. Although this story features new characters in a new setting, it was a fun addition to see some brief cameos by some characters from the Wedding Date series. This story follows 35-years-old Margot Noble, who inherited a winery in Napa with her brother, Elliot. I loved this setting as it was the perfect backdrop for the story. While unwinding at her friend Sydney’s bar, Margot meets an attractive man who sits on the stool next to her.

The man turns out to be late-20s Luke Williams, the new hire at the vineyard. After leaving his job at a tech company in Silicon Valley, Luke is looking for a new start. He has a complex relationship with his mother and best friend Avery, which affect his relationship with Margot. Along with the main romance storyline, there is tension between Margot and Elliot as they disagree on running the business. Margot is supposed to oversee the business side and Elliot is supposed to oversee the vines, but sometimes Elliot doesn’t think that Margot can have the best ideas. The story goes through Luke and Margot navigating their relationship along with their own journeys.

This novel relies on the reader just accepting Luke’s career change into wine as it sets him in Margot’s path, but it was a frustrating detail. For me, it minimized the job of someone who actually works towards this position and Luke just steps into it. Once I moved past this detail, I focused instead on the characters and their relationship. They have undeniable initial chemistry, but I had a lot of trouble connecting to any lasting connection between them. There is a lot of dialogue, both inner and shared, but there were moments it felt repetitive. As there are some interesting secondary characters, there seems to be a lot of potential for this to be turned into a series, so I will have to see how it turns out. Overall, this was a fun romance story with the usual Guillory flare and I will definitely continue reading more from her in the future.