The plot instantly captures the attention and immediately delves into a unique and fast-paced plot. Perfect for those that enjoy magic and clever protagonists, and will fit perfectly on your reading list.

Not your typical mystery and I liked the story. There are many characters to know and connected to the mystery. Looking forward to more stories for kind of genre.

The Wizard's Brew caught my attention from the first page and kept it right up to the last! I found myself completely immersed in Detective Vrexen's world. This was a quick, witty, read and I'm so excited to find out that there will be another book. I had never read a magical detective book before, but this book opened my eyes to a whole new subgenre! I definitely recommend to anyone-kids and grown ups alike!

Note: a French version of this review has been posted on the ImaginAtlas blog, and will be linked here.

Jordan Reed's The Wizard's Brew is a dark and hard-hitting story that kept me hooked from start to finish. As a fan of urban fantasy mysteries like The Dresden Files, I was immediately drawn in by the summary of this book.

The plot of the story is simple: Zane Vrexon, a private detective suffering from financial difficulties, receives a letter from an old friend, Dennis, who fears that his wife is in danger. The next day, Dennis is found dead in his potions shop, killed by a magic dagger; his widow Vana becomes, by the same token, the number one suspect. Zane, linked to Dennis by both his friendship and his job, takes charge of the case and finds that the mystery goes much deeper than he suspected.

The universe created by Reed is as rich as it is fascinating. Although the story takes place in an urban city, it is far removed from our world. The city of Alviun, capital of the Empire, is a dark place. Factories and houses constantly belch smoke, the latter joining the rains of ash and grime in an effort to create an atmosphere that is sure to evoke the industrial towns of the late 19th century.

The first chapter of the story, following Zane chasing a thief through dark streets, is a great introduction to his character. It demonstrates his dedication to his job, as well as his guilt for some of the things he must do in order to survive. Despite being a soldier and detective, Zane is unable to protect those he loves from the horrors of life and finds himself forced to hurt people he sympathizes with in order to earn enough money to survive and feed his addiction to healing potions.

I was impressed by the excellent conceptualization of magic in this book. The presence of both verbally spoken spells and wands used as firearms makes magic much more accessible to the general public. These elements make the magic system much more complete and substantial. The novel also explores “Fey” magic, an ancient, mysterious, and misunderstood form of arcana found in the dagger that killed Dennis. The intricate layers of magic make the story more intriguing, and the popularization of magic in the world created by the author is something that I really enjoyed.

I really like how Reed plays with the classic old, jaded detective trope in creating his main character. The protagonist is a weary veteran of the Ghoul Wars, with physical and mental scars resulting from his service. These scars play an important role in Zane's life; he is partially disabled, and must use a cane to walk. This characterization of the character remains consistent throughout the story; Zane suffers pain if he finds himself without a cane, making his walk much more painful later in the story.

The chronic pain resulting from his scars has also led Zane to an addiction to healing potions, which he struggles with throughout the story. Reed manages to paint Zane as an interesting, if flawed, person. Reed does not seek to justify his negative actions or glorify his addiction. A die-hard detective, Zane also takes on the role of an anti-hero; he is always polite, and not afraid to express himself, though he is at times quite awkward.

Reed is incredibly good at character development. The author does not neglect anyone, even secondary characters, such as Zane's landlady Mrs. Mose. Mose receives scenes that take her from a background figure to a three-dimensional character. Hints at the lives and different perspectives of other characters enrich the world of The Wizard's Brew, filling it with mysteries to explore.

Even though Zane is the protagonist, the story alternates between three different points of view: his own; that of Alyssa Benedictus-Lasome, a professor at the Institute of Witchcraft and Science; and that of Fex, Dennis' apprentice and assistant at the potions store. Even though they are all inevitably dragged into the case, the characters still retain their own arcs and goals. Their alternating perspectives move the story forward quickly, as an obstacle encountered by one of the characters does not prevent the others from continuing to dig deeper.

Alyssa, an expert in Fey magic, is a rather isolated professor who has lived in the Institute for over a decade. Like Zane, she feels a personal duty to help with the case, as she belonged to the same department as Dennis. Alyssa is able to talk to Fey beings who would never have opened up to Zane, and Zane is able to show Alyssa some of the more positive aspects of the town. I really enjoyed how they complement each other, and would love to read more stories where they work together to solve more mysteries.

Fex's perspective adds another dimension to the narrative, as it allows Reed to explore fantastic racism. Fex is a gnome, one of the many Fey people living in Alviun. Terribly despised and mistreated by many humans aside from Dennis, Vana, Alyssa, and Zane, Fex is able to manipulate the expectations humans have of him and deceive them in order to further his own personal gains. His perspective allows the reader to see how the more subtle racist comments that Zane misses are hurtful to Fex. While fantastic racism—and representations of racism in general—can be tricky territory for fantasy novels, Reed deftly navigates this minefield, and produces a work that's all the richer for it.

I'm not going to spoil the end of the book, so I'll just say this: the climax is truly satisfying. While I was able to guess one of the multiple twists in store, I couldn't exactly predict the ending, which is the hallmark of a good mystery novel.

The Wizard's Brew is a stunning debut novel that fit right into the subgenre of urban fantasy mystery. The world created by Reed has a unique take on old myths that is fascinating to read about. The book is quick and well plotted; the rare static moments served to further develop the characters, which I greatly appreciated. I will definitely be keeping an eye on Jordan Reed. I would love to read more books in this series the future, especially if Zane and Alyssa become a crime-solving duo.

I think this could have been a higher rating as it's a highly entertaining and gripping mix of urban fantasy and noir. It kept me hooked and entertained till the last page and I had a lot of fun.
The world building and the characters are interesting and the plot is fast paced.
I struggled a bit with the style of writing at the beginning of the book and I think that some editing would help.
There's a lot of potential and this could become a very interesting series.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

The Wizard's Brew is a rollicking fantasy PI murder mystery by Jordan Reed. Released 24th May 2022, it's 312 pages and is available in paperback and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately.

This is fantasy noir aimed at the folks who enjoyed the Garrett Files (Glen Cook) and Kevin Anderson's oeuvre. There's a mean streets vibe with a battle worn veteran protagonist sidelining as a PI who gets drawn into a deeply unpleasant magical murder and corruption plot trying to get to the bottom of his friend's death. Main character Kane's an imperfect anti-hero in the classic mold. He's addicted to painkiller potions/drink, has PTSD leftover from the Ghoul Wars, and he's sort of possessed by a sultry voice who lives rent free in his head and provides the sarcastic Greek chorus to his thoughts.

I found more appeal and a stronger rapport with the book's secondary characters, Kane's ally Alyssa and the goblin alchemist Fex than with the main character. The dialogue is rough, and the writing is choppy and disjointed, staccato really. The whole book would benefit from a couple rounds of editing. Still, the bones of a good story are there and I enjoyed the read overall. I have a special soft spot for PI noir and especially fantasy PI noir and I will definitely pick up and read any follow-ups to the series.

Three and a half stars rounded up for the good story. I'm looking forward to what comes next.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes

This is a detective noir fantasy novel set in a city filled with different races and magic. And with any city there are crimes, prejudices, and beings with problems. Zane, the detective, has been hired by an old army bubby to look after his wife. When he is killed and his wife charged with the crime, Zane is determined to find out what really happened. However, Zane is also burdened with an addiction to a drug because of his experiences of being tortured as a prisoner of war and he has a mind companion who might be trying to possess him. The pov jumps between him, Fex, a gnome employed by his dead friend, and a mage Alyssa. Their paths are entwined as the investigation into the death proceeds, the bodies begin to pile up and the case become convoluted.

I enjoyed the storyline, the characters, and there was good world-building. This is a city with all the normal problems a city has and also has different species living together, which presents its own set of issues. I like that things aren’t simple. The characters have flaws and baggage.

I would read another book in this series.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Read this if you like the Dresden Files. I enjoyed this book, and it was a fun mystery to try and solve. The world was pretty classic, but still interesting. I liked the characters, but would've liked more development of them.

The story itself was good. It was written like a noir detective story and I enjoyed it enough to finish it. However, the writing was VERY rough and the organization wasn't great. Overall I think this story COULD have been a 3 or even a 4 star if it had been gone over a couple more times.

I received a free epub copy of this book from NetGalley.

I enjoyed this book. The story was engaging. The world and magic weren't hard to comprehend. I was able to easily get sucked in and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. I look forward to reading more from this author.

I impulsively requested this book without reading very closely at the blurb and immediately started reading it. I am not fond of the noir style of writing which this book does have in a way. However, it didn’t take me long to get used to it and enjoy the book with its interesting mash-up of genres. I liked that we got to see what was happening from several points of view, and while Zane is probably my least favorite character, I did like him, and I especially liked his assistant Alyssa. This was an original universe, and I will read the next one. Recommend. I was provided a complimentary copy which I voluntarily reviewed.

More than just a generic murder mystery. I loved the magical aspect of the world and how well the author made it mesh with the hard boiled detective feel.
My favorite character was Fex, and I really enjoyed his plot arc of combating against racism, yet also choosing loyalty over personal gain. The characters were well done and intriguing, definitely enjoyed the imperfect protagonist, and the plot makes you use your brain and keep working to figure out the mystery all the way up to the reveal.
Definitely hoping for a sequel!

I loved how it jumps right into the action from the first page, and how it keeps you guessing all the way up till the end! The world building is so creative and immersive, it really takes you away to the smoggy, magic filled streets of Alviun. You'll fall in love with the complex characters and enjoy unravelling the mystery together.

An alchemist is murdered, and his old friend Detective Zane is tasked to solve the mystery in this magical world. He partners with Alyssa, a mage, to explore the darker side of the city and the secrets of a family’s legacy.

Unfortunately, this book did really did not work for me. Each character sounded the same (except for the gnomes, with an annoying tic to complete each others’ sentences). Zane especially came across robotic, with ham-fisted dialogue that tries to incorporate world detail pulled from prior knowledge.

Throughout the dialogue (of which there is a lot - we get little 3rd person narration to describe the world, which would have kept these back-and-forths lighter), I kept wanting commas to blend more naturally. This book is terse sentences, all the time. This style *could* feel appropriate for a grizzled gumshoe’s point of view, but it only added to the stilted tone when it was everywhere..

To illustrate the unnatural dialogue: so many interactions start “Welcome, my name is [x]. I do [y].” “Hello, I am [z], and I need you to do [y].” These interactions also do not flow in prose and the characters show little reactions to each other’s words. If any reaction is shown, it is done repetitively. Example: [“I will fix your door.” “Thank you for fixing my door” As Zane left, he felt guilty that she was going to fix his door.]

To the story itself, I found Zane incompetent with no good instincts or hunches throughout the investigation. Multiple times, he rejects obvious evidence in front of him. For example, he is surprised that the murder weapon, a dagger enchanted for assassination and made by a clan of assassins was made with the intention to murder someone. Also, after a magical DNA analysis shows that the murderer is more-than-human, he thinks “I don’t see how that fits, let’s think about it later.”

Zane also doesn’t have a good approach to his job - doggedly asking questions without tact and without gauging others’ reactions. I don’t know if this was fully purposefully, and it was frustrating to follow a protagonist so frequently avoiding the direction the plot pushed them in,