Without a Brew A Sloan Krause Mystery

Ellie Alexander — 2020

Amateur sleuth Sloan Krause delves into a murderous winter wonderland in another delightful mystery from cozy writer Ellie Alexander, Without a Brew. It's winter in the Bavarian village of Leavenworth, Washington, which for local brewmaster Sloan Krause means lots of layers, pine and citrus-flavored craft beers, and getting the new guest rooms at Nitro into pristine condition before visitors flood in for IceFest—a local tradition filled with fireworks, ice carving, and winter games of all varieties. But Sloan and her boss Garrett quickly learn that being brewkeepers turned innkeepers may not be as idyllic as it sounded. While one couple staying with them seems completely smitten, a flashy group arrives in the evening demanding rooms. Sloan and Garrett are less than impressed, but agree to rent to them anyway. The night takes a turn when brewery patron Liv Paxton finishes her frothy pint and, with no previous plan for an overnight stay in Leavenworth, eagerly takes Sloan up on the offer of sanctuary from the snow—until she has a strange run in with some locals and the other guests. Sloan could be imagining things, but when Liv's room is found trashed the next morning, a hateful message painted on her car, and Liv herself is nowhere to be found, Sloan is convinced another mystery is brewing. With many of the potential suspects hunkering down under Nitro's roof, she knows her co-workers and friends won't be safe until she serves up the killer a hoppy pint of justice.

Reviews

Crystal L@umcrystal

May 2, 2023

Without a Brew is part 4 in the Sloan Krause Mystery and now I have to go back and read them all! Sloan is just coming off a divorce, separating her not only from her husband but from his family and the only family she's ever really known; but she's doing it with as much strength and grace as she can muster. Running a small brewpub with Garrett, they've decided to make things even more profitable by also opening up a Bed and Breakfast upstairs. Although they planned on a soft opening, an odd set of circumstances leads them to a full house, packed with out of town jerks, honeymoon couples, and a mysterious stranger that everyone else seems to know. This book was so much fun! I'm a lover of craft beer so it was great to also have the parts of the story where they discussed the brewing process, why craft beer isn't usually served in pitchers, and what makes people so drawn to craft brews. But I think that even people who don't like beer or don't drink at all would still love this book. The brewery may be the setting but the story is really about Sloan, her mysterious past, the missing woman from the bed and breakfast, and the cutest town ever - Leavenworth, Washington. The ending of this book left me wanting so much more (in a good way because the story was already wrapped up but there's so much more to discover)! I plan to go back and read the first three books and will definitely be waiting for book 5 in the series. 5/5 Stars! Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Minotaur Books for providing me with an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.