When an entitled customer with a bad attitude gets Nikki fired from her job as a waitress, Nikki Sands finds herself caught in the sights of the wealthy and incredibly sexy Derek Malveaux. Impressed by her knowledge of wines - and embarrassed by his date - he offers her a job as a winery manager at his vineyard and she accepts because - well, a girl's gotta eat. Where else would her wine expertise come in handy anyway? The eye candy was a nice bonus too. On her first night at Malveaux Estate, Nikki finds something wrong with the fertilizer around the bushes by her cottage: there's a dead body in it. Smack in the middle of the investigation, new girl Nikki is questioned as the prime suspect and told to stay put in Napa Valley. Nikki puts her sleuthing skills to work as she navigates the dramatic dynamic of Malveaux Estate's residents. As she gets closer to the truth, Nikki realizes she will have more than just a new job to worry about.Nikki has just set foot on Napa Valley’s rich soil when she realizes her new job may not be as safe as she thought. First off, Derek Malveaux is disconcertingly sexy. Second, his top winemaker is dead in the bushes outside Nikki’s cottage. It doesn’t take a connoisseur of foul play to know something’s taken a terrible turn…

Life is sweet for Nikki Sands. She’s toasting her new job at Malveaux Estate in Napa Valley and balancing a love triangle with a neighboring winemaker and her boss, vineyard owner Derek Malveaux—the catch of the county. And tonight, Nikki will be on the arm of Napa’s golden boy at a Sonoma mansion for the wedding of the decade… Nikki’s friend Isabel agreed to cater the wedding—before she learned that the groom was her cheating lover. After the ceremony, Isabel asks Nikki to bring the obnoxious bride another glass of wine. But Nikki finds the new wife sprawled on the floor—murdered. Since the dear departed made enemies easily, there’s a bushel of suspects—many of them close to Nikki. Now, it’s up to her to get to the bottom of what may have been a killer bottle of wine. Wine Pairings and Recipes included.

As the Vineyard Manager at Malveaux Estates, Nikki Sands knows a lot about wine pairings, but she has a harder time making matches in her own life. Is it finally time to give up her crush on her boss, Derek Malveaux, and commit to winemaker Andr s? With big changes afoot at the Estates, Nikki’s days of wine and roses may be over sooner than she thinks… Malveaux Estates has added a boutique hotel and spa to its beautiful grounds, and everyone in Napa is abuzz about the hotel’s restaurant, Georges on the Vineyard. Its opening has been delayed a bit by the quirks of star chef Georges Debussey, better known for his cuisine than his couth. When Georges doesn’t return to the kitchen after a relaxing Syrah bath splash at the spa on opening night, Nikki figures the bubbles must have gone to his head. But instead of bubbles, it was a bullet-leaving Nikki to wonder what kind of wine can be paired with murder…

When things in the land down under start to heat up, murder steps in. Nikki and her boss-turned-boyfriend came to Australia to visit the Hahndorf Winery, but it seems they’ve also walked onto a movie set. And when lead actress Lucy Swanson is found dead in her trailer, bitten by a poisonous snake, Nikki must comb the vineyards of the valley to catch a killer with a venomous streak—before she’s struck herself.

Nikki Sands is exactly where she wants to be as the Manager of the Malveaux Estates in Napa Valley—and “shacking up” with the owner, her boyfriend Derek Malveaux. But she starts to lose control when some self-helpers arrive and steal her peace of mind… Nikki couldn’t be happier settling into the vineyard with her boyfriend Derek. But when a guru and his followers check into the winery’s boutique hotel and spa for a retreat, she feels far from enlightened as she’s forced to take on the role of the event coordinator. Their first outing on the famous Napa Valley Wine train reinforces her doubt when a member goes missing. The guru’s devotee is found in the wine storage car where someone quite literally—and fatally—put a cork in him. It’s up to Nikki to stop a killer who’s developed a real taste for murder…

The big day is swiftly approaching for Nikki Sands—Manager of the Malveaux Estates in Napa Valley—and her fiancé Derek Malveaux, who owns the winery. But when they start receiving cryptic messages questioning their belief in fate, things quickly turn fatal… As the wedding grows closer, it seems the entire affair is cursed. A chewing gum fiasco forces Nikki to cut her hair and go platinum blonde. Then Derek’s old college buddies, along with an assortment of old flames and frustrating family relations, show up to work Nikki’s last nerve. But when Nikki’s close pal Simon is shot as he walks her down the aisle, Nikki realizes that she has to find a matrimonial murderer before her wedding becomes someone’s funeral.

NOTE: THIS IS A SHORT STORY WITH TWO ADDED EXCERPTS. Nikki Sands is back! In this short story Nikki discovers that a rare and extremely expensive bottle of Pinot Noir has been removed from the Malveaux Estate Cellar and everyone she knows and loves is a suspect... When Nikki's newlywed husband, Derek, asks her to locate the only bottle left of the very exclusive, collectible wine of Pearl's Pinot for a couple of special clients, she figures that it's not a problem. The problem that she sees is that Derek seems to have forgotten that the evening he has invited these important clients to dinner also happens to be her birthday. Priding herself in her organizational and management skills, Nikki is shocked to discover that Pearl's Pinot has disappeared from the cellar. There are only a few people who have access to the private cellar and they include two of her closest friends—Simon (Derek's brother) and Alyssa, as well as the new chef at the gourmet restaurant on the vineyard. Nikki refuses to give up trying to find who took the perfectly purloined pinot, and as with all of the mysteries this modern day Nancy Drew solves the answer as to whodunnit is sure to surprise! Includes recipes and wine pairings, as well as the chapters of the next Nikki Sands' Mystery; A KILLER MARGARITA, along with an extensive excerpt from the debut novel in Michele Scott's new mystery series: THE GREY TIER; A DEAD CELEBS MYSTERY.

Napa Valley winery manager Nikki Sands is full of Christmas cheer and anticipating an exciting family vacation to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico to ring in the New Year. Along with her husband Derek, his brother Simon, and Simon’s partner Marco they head for sun, surf, and sand expecting to enjoy some serious R & R. However, things turn dark rather rapidly when Nikki uncovers a dead body washed up on the shore. The victim, a woman who goes by the name Dream, was staying at the same hotel as Nikki, and seemed like a troubled soul. When someone who Nikki believes did not commit the crime is arrested, in typical Nikki Sands fashion she goes on the hunt for a killer. This time she not only receives a little help from Simon and Marco, but also—surprisingly—from her newlywed husband Derek. When a second body turns up though, Nikki & Co. begin to realize that they might be in way over their heads on this one, as it looks like a Mexican Cartel could have a hand in the murders. With car chases, masterful disguises, and a couple of Chihuahuas wearing ponchos and sombreros, Nikki will have to find who is behind the murders quick, or possibly find herself and her family six-feet under. Includes festive drink and recipe pairings!