Authors: Claire Matturro

Wildcat Wine (31 page)

Thank you
to the vintners at Rosa Fiorelli Winery in east Manatee County for their tour, their samples, and for the time they took to share their knowledge about muscadine grapes, making wine, sulfites, and growing grapes in the Florida climate.

Mike Lehner and Bill Matturro provided their language skills in translating English to Spanish. I appreciate their help.

Debra Smietanski, CPA, board-certified estate planner and Tampa lawyer extraordinaire, I thank you for answering my questions about personal representatives, estates, and all things numerical.

My husband, Bill, also a lawyer, kept me straight on the patent process and the difficulties of bringing a new product to market, read all seven drafts, and provided a calm, well-reasoned sounding board for my ideas. Thank you, Bill.

As before, my brother, Lieutenant William D. Hamner of the Selma, Alabama, police department, was an endless source of information on forensics and weapons. Brother Bill, thanks again.

These fine folks were all very helpful and generous with their knowledge and skills. Any mistakes are of my own making, not theirs.

No acknowledgment is complete without thanking Carolyn Marino, Jennifer Civiletto, and all the wonderful people at HarperCollins for their professionalism, their talents, and their time.

About the Author

A former appellate attorney and member of the writing faculty at Florida State University College of Law, CLAIRE HAMNER MATTURRO now divides her time between Florida and Georgia. She is also the author of
Skinny-dipping
. Visit her website at www.clairematturro.com.

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A Heady Bouquet of Praise for Lilly Cleary and Claire Matturro

“Claire Matturro fits right in with the former boys club that includes Carl Hiaasen, Tim Dorsey, and James Hall. In some ways she's more than an equal . . . Good to know there are more Lilly Cleary adventures coming. Her sweet, sassy, sexy personality is enthralling.”

Denver Rocky Mountain News

“Claire Matturro takes the legal thriller firmly in hand and invigorates it with an irreverent but always on-target mix of humor, suspense, and characters so real you'll swear you see these people every day. The author combines . . . the kind of off-the-wall humor that Janet Evanovich does so well, adds a sophisticated twist to the wit, and then layers in an insider's jaundiced view of the law akin to Lisa Scottoline's novels.”

Ft. Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel

“Matturro's brassy heroine has elbowed her way onto Hiaasen and Leonard's turf . . . We Florida writers don't need this kind of competitionâand I'll be standing in line for her next one.”

Tim Dorsey

“Matturro's writing is crisp . . . [She's] a fresh
South Florida voice, reminiscent of
Carl Hiaasen . . . Thankfully, there's enough room in the literary crime pool for both of these writers.”

Miami Herald

“Matturro proves that multilayered mysteries
don't have to be put solely in the hard-boiled category. Using humor and absurd situations, Matturro illustrates all that is wrongâand
rightâwith our legal system . . . Matturro
also constructs a most appealingâand
annoyingâheroine in Lilly Belle Rose.”

Charleston Gazette

“Charming . . . Lilly Belle Cleary . . . moves at the speed of sound . . . In a breezy, self-aware style, Cleary brings a reader into the sordid, ethically challenged world of defense attorneys . . . Cleary emerges as a likable, if misguided heroine.”

Detroit Free Press

“Hiaasen may have a lock on Key Biscayne whodunits . . . but stay tuned for more of
Matturro's take on lifeâand the legal
systemâalong the Gulf of Mexico.”

St. Petersburg Times

“A delightful heroine: A sharp, sassy, sexy attorney with a penchant for trouble and an almost neurotic dislike of clutter, personal and physical . . . Cleary is likable, an entertaining addition to the ranks of wise-cracking crime novel heroes.”

Virginian-Pilot

“A bright, brassy, sexy heroine enters the lists of legal fiction with a joyful noise . . . This new kid on Grisham's block is one to watch.”

Kirkus Reviews

“Attorney Lilly Cleary blends cynical amorality with a fetish for organic foods that perfectly reflects today's political and cultural values. I loved the fresh, original voice and am already looking forward to her next adventure.”

Margaret Maron

“A tough, clever, brassy heroine . . . Matturro's breezy writing is . . . as funny as Janet Evanovich.”

Cleveland Plain Dealer

“Timely, irreverent, and loads of fun.”

James Grippando

Books by Claire Matturro

Wildcat Wine

Skinny-Dipping

Forthcoming in hardcover

Bone Valley

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, dialogue, places, and incidents are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

ISBN-13: 978-0-06-056708-8

ISBN-10: 0-06-056708-2

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EPub Edition Â© OCTOBER 2011 ISBN: 9780062133595

10Â Â 9Â Â 8Â Â 7Â Â 6Â Â 5Â Â 4Â Â 3Â Â 2Â Â 1

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