To Brew or Not to Brew by Joyce Tremel
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
It is rare that a cozy grabs my attention like this book, but Joyce did.The authorial “voice” is compelling. Max is a likeable character without being trite or kitschy. Maybe it’s because the hook is around beer (which I think is rather unique to the cozy world). I really appreciated the police details. Obviously Joyce doesn’t go into the same level of specificity as, say, Michael Connelly, but I did like the fact that she’s ordered out of the crime scene by her homicide detective father instead of being allowed to roam all over.
Just enough romance and it wasn’t dragged out unnecessarily.
I was sort of right about “whodunit” but not exactly and not for the reason I thought.
The characters were drawn well and the Pittsburgh details were excellent. I could totally see myself wandering through Lawrenceville and stopping at any or all of the places mentioned.
Excellent debut and I’ll be looking forward to the next one.