Without a Brew

August 1, 2020

Sloan Krause and her boss and fellow brewer, Garrett, had planned a soft opening of Nitro, their craft beer-themed B&B in the Leavenworth, WA, Bavarian Village. But this weekend, the small town is overrun with visitors for IceFest, the winter-themed festival. Sloan and Garrett already had one couple staying at Nitro. They end up with five more guests, including a quartet led by an obnoxious, self-important man. When one of the guests is missing the next morning, Sloan calls the police. The discovery of the body means one of Nitro's visitors may be a killer, and one of their first guests is dead. Sloan is already dealing with her looming divorce, plans to buy a cottage in town, and the ongoing search for her birth mother. The ever-steady Sloan's collapse puts her in the path of a killer. VERDICT The ongoing mystery of Sloan's past is just one element in the follow-up to Beyond a Reasonable Stout. Readers who appreciate the community life in a tourist destination town or the appeal of a story with a craft beer background will enjoy this latest cozy with a strong supporting cast of characters.--Lesa Holstine, Evansville Vanderburgh P.L., IN

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August 1, 2020
Sloan Krause, a beer maven with a nose for brews, is torn between her personal problems and murder in a Washington ski town devoted to all things German. After years in foster care, Sloan has finally found a home with the Krause family--though no longer with their son, Mac, whom she left over his cheating in Beyond A Reasonable Stout (2019). Otto and Ursula Krause have given Sloan a share in their beer business even though she's taken a job with Nitro, a rival craft brewery. Her boss, Garrett, who inherited the building that houses Nitro, has just added a beer-based B&B. Unfortunately, some of his first guests spell trouble, especially entitled executive Kevin Malcolm and his friends, who are desperate for the only available rooms in town. The other guests include Ali and Brad and enigmatic Liv Paxton, another last-minute booking who disses Kevin, earning his enmity and that of his girlfriend, Jenny. Next morning, Liv's room is found trashed, and Chief Meyers retrieves her body from the river. Sloan hears that Ali and Brad have gone through hell trying to conceive and that Ali suspects that Brad had an affair with Liv, whom he interviewed as a possible surrogate. A local mechanic knew Liv from high school when they were involved in a tragic death, and Kevin's hair-trigger temper could have led to murder. Distracted by news from her longtime social worker that Otto and Ursula may have been Nazi sympathizers, Sloan must work up the courage to confront them while searching for a killer. A delight for foodies, craft beer fans, and lovers of twisty mysteries with a bit of humor.

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August 24, 2020
In Alexander’s well-crafted fourth mystery featuring microbrewer Sloan Krause (after 2019’s Beyond a Reasonable Stout), Sloan—along with her boss, Garrett
, and her coworker, Kat
—launch a bed and breakfast above Nitro, Garrett’s brewery in Leavenworth, Wash. Their guests range from a self-important corporate vice president and his friends on a skiing vacation to a couple taking an anniversary getaway. Then there’s distraught Liv Paxton, who says she’s in town from Spokane on some unspecified business. After Liv’s body turns up in the river, her car is vandalized, and her room is ransacked, Sloan begins to wonder about the reasons for Liv’s trip, potential grudges against Liv held by the other guests, and puzzling accounts from local mechanic Taylor
, who constantly contradicts himself about Liv. Meanwhile, Sloan butts heads with her soon-to-be-former in-laws about her share in their business and their lack of candor about their relationship with her birth mother. Alexander excels in balancing Sloan’s sleuthing with brewery lore. Readers will be eager to learn more about Sloan’s roots in her next outing.