Late Harvest by Suzanne Barrett

Family is at the heart of Late Harvest. What would you do for your son? Or to continue a family legacy when you have nothing else? How about confront the one who broke your heart?

Kurt von Daniken wants only one thing from Glenna Ryan: The key to making Eiswein - Ice Wine. Five years ago, while working at his family's California winery, she'd begun developing the method to simulate wine made from grapes gathered after a freeze. Now, when the winery desperately needs it, the only person who might be able to duplicate

Glenna's process, Kurt's tyrannical Uncle Otto, lies paralyzed by a stroke and near death.
Glenna wants only one thing from the von Danikens: To be left in peace to raise her son, Robbie, who suffers from a birth defect and needs an expensive surgery to repair it. When Kurt suddenly appears at her home, demanding she return to Cresthaven and complete the process, Glenna knows the money she'll earn by doing so will provide Robbie the treatment he needs. She also knows she'll risk having her heart broken, again, by Kurt, the only man she's ever loved. But, what if he discovers the real reason she left Cresthaven?

Orphaned at seven, Glenna Ryan is taken in by Otto von Danikens and raised at Cresthaven winery. By the time she is fifteen, she is already helping in the lab under Otto instead of bookkeeping as her mother had done at the winery. This is when Kurt, Otto’s nephew, comes to live at Cresthaven as well. While older, they still became friends. But as she studied viticulture and fell in love with Kurt, he pulled back from her because of her younger age. Until the dance when she is eighteen. They come together and share their love as well bodies but are caught by the hard, cold uncle Otto. Otto tells Kurt how someone like Glenna will never be good enough for Cresthaven and Kurt will have to choose between the two. As Kurt stands there silent and stunned, Glenna run off hurt and broken hearted.

Five years later, Glenna lives to care for her son, Robbie, and seems to have isolated herself. She has no family of course, and all her friends were at Cresthaven, with which she has had no contact for fear Otto or Kurt would take Robbie from her. She is trying to figure out how to pay for the surgery to fix Robbie’s birth defect, and even working two jobs can’t come up with enough money. Then Kurt shows up and demands she returns to Cresthaven. He tells her Otto has had a stroke and they need her to finish developing the method for Eiswein - Ice Wine, claiming the winery could fail without it. And he all but blackmails her when she tries to avoid going back and his offer to pay for Robbie’s surgery seals the deal .

Many things have changed in the five years Glenna has been gone. She remembers Otto being cheap with the workers, their housing and care. Kurt has changed their housing from shacks to good mobile homes with low-cost mortgages, has started health care for them, and other such programs. But Kurt is different as well; he has grown cold and stand-offish, except she keeps catching the hurt he tries to hide. And he becomes friends with her son, even if he doesn’t seem to realize Robbie is his son (although several old workers do see that Robbie is a von Danikens). When Glenna finds out Otto is not just paralyzed due to a stroke but at a deterioration of the family hereditary disease, she insists Robbie see the specialists (doctor) immediately. Kurt gets suspicions again but lets Glenna brush them off with a lame excuse, and luckily Robbie does not have the hereditary disease.

The season progresses and lots of emotions are stirred up. Kurt and Robbie grow close to each other. Glenna is worried that she will not be able to live up to the lifestyle Robbie is being shown around Cresthaven. Glenna and Kurt are still attracted to each other but also still very hurt over the past, where she thinks he choose the winery over her and he seems to think she ran out on him. Over this time (couple months), Kurt seems to be thawing, getting somewhat like his younger self and less the cold man that forced her back ‘home.’ Kurt and Glenna even come together one night when Robbie stays with a friend, but the next day Kurt is busy, distance again and Glenna is more confused. So when he is still over-friendly with Robbie, she is almost panicked about the future and what will happen if he figures out Robbie is his.

Emotions continue to run high. Robbie works his way under Kurt’s shields (heart). At Robbie’s surgery, Kurt stays in the room with Glenna, working on her heart (more than before). And at the annual winery ball/awards, Glenna supports Kurt, working on his heart. And when the special grapes for the Eiswein are ready for picking but the seasonal workers are not there yet when a storm comes up, Glenna realizes that her heart is completely involved in Kurt and his future, just as she feared. Because she thinks he does not love her, just ‘needs her, her body.’ He had even asked her to marry his out of obligation, not love. And it would kill her to leave him again, but would be worse to live with only half of him as hers, that she knew she could never do. Especially after seeing him open up over the summer and become like his younger self again.

Late Harvest is an emotional ride. Almost all of the heartache seems to be because of the mean old Otto, who I would like to smack. Because he thinks Glenna being illegitimate makes her beneath Kurt, they both suffer. Yet Otto seems to have kept up with her enough to have Kurt bring him reports? And never sent any support, even though she needed help for her son (Otto must have known Robbie was Kurt’s)? Really makes me want to smack Otto!

Late Harvest is full of wonderful characters. Robbie is a cutie-pie! He helps tie the story together, of course. Late Harvest left me with one unanswered question I do have is that Robbie has had this problem since birth, why the big push for the surgery now? That was never covered and did feel a little convenient. Glenna is a strong mother who seems to be willing to do whatever is necessary for her son. Even going back to her childhood home filled with so many bad memories. I liked her and really could understand where she was coming from (and feel for her). Kurt was a little harder to feel for; he seems like a throw-back to a previous age. Yes, loyalty to family great and all, but denying you love for her background is not right or honorable, which he claimed to be. And blind faith is hard to believe in now-a-days, but at least he did change things for the better once he was in charge (so he may not have gone against his uncle, but did make things better latter). And the background characters, like the housekeeper, cook, and such were great!

Late Harvest does go a little over board in the wine making details for me, but most will enjoy this. I will admit I cried a time or two during this story of lost love reclaimed. And I enjoyed it enough I know Late Harvest is one I will reread again in the future.