To Brew or Not to Brew: A Brewing Trouble Mystery (A Brewing Trouble Mystery, #1)

by Joyce Tremel

An all-new mystery series set in a Pittsburgh craft brew pub, featuring a brewmaster with a head for sleuthing. Recipes included! 

The Allegheny Brew House is a dream come true for Maxine “Max” O’Hara, who went all the way to Germany for her brewmaster certification, and is now preparing to open her own craft brew pub in a newly revitalized section of Pittsburgh. But before she can start pouring stouts and lagers to thirsty throngs, there’s trouble on tap. Suspicious acts of sabotage culminate in Max finding her assistant brewmaster and chef Kurt Schmidt strangled in one of the vats.

Between rescuing a stray gray tabby she names Hops and considering a handsome ex-hockey player as her new chef, Max doesn’t have a lot of time to solve a murder. But with a homicide detective for a dad, she comes to criminal investigation naturally. And if someone is desperate enough to kill to stop her from opening, Max needs to act fast—before her brand-new brew biz totally tanks...

• ISBN10: 0425277690
• ISBN13: 9780425277690
• Publish Date: 1 December 2015
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Penguin Putnam Inc
• Imprint: Berkley Publishing Corporation,U.S.
• Format: Paperback (US Mass Market)
• Pages: 304
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9780425277690

Reviews

[MurderByDeath]

A pretty good first and much more interesting than I thought it would be.  I raced through this one this morning without pausing for much more than a quick drink (iced tea).   

Maxine O'Hara is opening her own craft brewhouse in Pittsburgh, after earning her brewmaster certification in Germany.  Someone keeps sabotaging her preparations though and finally has Max's full attention when they kill her assistant brewmaster.   

Pretty good characters, decent setting and a decently plotted mystery; I figured out the murderer pretty quickly, but Tremel managed to mislead me for a few chapters.  No love triangle (yet) and almost no TSTL moments.   I'll definitely check out the second book.