I'VE GOT MY MIND SET ON BREW - Stephanie Jayne

GROWTH AND CHANGE - 4 stars

Plot - 4 stars - After a job loss and a bad breakup, Kat discovers a surprising new career as craft beer brewer. But the brewpub is sold, and the new owner places his light-on-experience son in charge of the pub. Despite clashes between them, Ryan confides that drastic changes will be needed if the pub has any hope of survival. Forced to collaborate, Kat realizes Ryan isn’t as bland as she assumed—he might even be exactly what she’s been craving.

Writing - 4 stars - This is a new-to-me author, and she caught my attention right away. I wasn't in love with the characters at first, but she allowed me to get to know them and gradually get to like them.

Characters - 4.5 stars - This is where the story shone for me. I'll admit that I was totally against Kat at first. She was so entrenched in Resistance as it was that she couldn't see it as anything different. So she was the "resistant one," unable to recognize any benefits to change and growth. But I enjoyed watching her find herself and learn to accept the "good changes" around her, making her own choices rather than just going along with what was best for everyone else. Ryan, for his part, is also willing to make changes, although it's not always clear that these changes will benefit Kat as well.

Title - 4 stars - A cute play on words, reminding us that this is a romance, but with a "brew" twist.

Cover - 4 stars - I'm not usually a fan of cartoon-y covers, although they seem to be currently trendy. But I like the big mug of beer and the bright color to draw the eye.

Overall - 4 stars - I suppose Kat's life had been in the same mode at the brewpub--kind of stuck in a rut without any plans to change or grow. So it was fun to watch her learn how to reach out and/or accept help and advice in making changes. The story kept moving forward quickly and kept my interest throughout. I enjoyed the main characters as well as the supportive ones who added more depth to the book.

I liked this book though it took some time. I like the back drop of the story and all of the little pieces worked through. It created some interesting dynamics and depth in the characters with some cool information regarding the brewing process.

#arc
#netgalley
#ivegotmymindsetonbrew

The romance is its worst element. We find the protagonist, Kat, confronting Ryan forever, all the while secretly admiring his looks. Like a chameleon changing its colour, Ryan's behavioural pattern seems to alter every five pages. After a while, all these elements get too repetitive and boring. The banter between them rolls out pathetically, devoid of making any sense. Their conversations are not organic and don't even possess the charm of a talk with an AI chatbot. The entire romantic angle seems to be as accidental and disastrous as their first encounter. The ending is also as unimaginative as the rest of the plot.

This one was just fine for me. A cute, fast read, following Kat, a female brewer who just wants to brew her own brews amidst brewery politics in a male dominated field. Each chapter started out with a description of a type of beer which was a fun way to lay out the character's relationship with beer.

The romance on this felt flat and the male main character's story line was cringy to me. He's a nepo baby handed a brewery and just felt whiney to me. I almost wish this hadn't been a romance because Kat's story and rise to becoming a brewmaster was way more fun to read about!

While I really wanted to like this book it was so difficult to get through. The storyline was extremely repetitive and it felt like the characters kept moving around in circles, but never getting anywhere. The main character was frustrating and I didn't really enjoy her.

I also thought there would be a little more romance, but this book focuses a lot more on what's going on to the brewery, rather than the love story developing like it would seem from the synopsis and title. I didn't understand the love story piece of this when it was clearly more of a fiction work with a smidge of romance thrown in just for funsies. Except it wasn't fun.

If you prefer your romances to focus more on the side story and less on the romance story then I could recommend this one. Unfortunately it just wasn't for me.

This story was a fun read. It was a bit repetitive, without a lot of action, but overall just ok. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC copy

Thanks, Alcove Press, for the early review copy via NetGalley. (Available Now)

We walked into our local quirky brewery in Montana one Sunday and asked the owner, Evan, what was new on tap. He replied, “Oregano Beer.” He explained how he looked out his window, saw a bumper crop of oregano, and thought, “Huh. I wonder how that would taste in a beer.” Of course, we told him yes, so he warned, “You might want to cut it with something else. If you drink it straight, your mouth goes numb.”

We still tried the beer.

Once.

As a craft beer enthusiast, I was immediately drawn to the unique setting of this workplace rom-com. The story revolves around a 'down-on-her-luck craft beer brewer and her privileged new boss' who find themselves at odds as they strive to rescue a quirky brewpub. This enemies-to-lovers narrative, set in the world of craft beer, piqued my interest from the start.

Do you know the Grumpy/Sunshine trope? This was more grumpy/grumpier. While Kat and Ryan eventually learned to grow beyond their misconceptions to form a valuable partnership, it felt more business than personal, as the main characters had little natural chemistry.

There were many interesting side characters, but they were mostly underdeveloped. In addition, an entire storyline about Kat’s younger, chronically ill sister didn’t advance the story.

I’m willing to take a chance on quirky beers and stories, because sometimes they’re fun discoveries. You never know unless you try.

This is such a cute book! Kat is an aspiring brew master who works in the craft beer industry in Chicago. She loves learning about how to brew beer and how changing small things about the brewing process makes the beer taste different. But working in a brewpub was her dream until the owners who hired her need to sell and they bring in a new investor who puts his son in charge. The new manager has no interest in the way things were done previously and tries to turn the brewpub into a sports bar. Ryan also won’t help Kat progress to the next level to a brewmaster.

One night, Ryan confesses that the pub is having some major financial issues and they are going to increase sales to stay open. Can Kat and Ryan work together to save the pub?

One unique part of the book I really enjoyed was that each chapter has a different description of a style of beer. Kat also often describes people as a style of beer, which I also thought was very cute. Ryan is a bit of a gaslighter and Kat had a lot of personal problems that lead her to fall right into his traps sometimes. It wasn’t as romantic as it should have been, it was more toxic.

Thank you @katerockbooktours @stephaniejaynebooks and @alcovepress for my gifted book.

'I’ve got my mind set on brew' is a new romance from Stephanie Jayne focusing on Kat, a trainee brewmaster trying to get her life back on track after her ex-boyfriend left her in debt. She works at a small brewpub run by older couple Prairie and Joe until they decide to sell as Joe is terminally ill and can no longer sustain the brewery. Kat is desperate to reach her full potential and maintain the pub for the sake of the employees and the community. Enter Ryan, the new manager and son of the new owner who has zero experience with beer or the hospitality industry. Kat and Ryan bumps heads even before new owners take over with Kat accidentally throwing her phone at him.
I would say the main plot for this book was Kat’s determination to be recognised for her skills, which Ryan dismisses constantly. I found their romance difficult to believe as they were so completely different. Ryan had no faith in her skills just because she didn’t have a qualification. To me, if felt like Kat and the other employees were below Ryan and he held a certain amount of entitlement in his new job.
I found the ins and outs of brewing interesting to read, there was a lot of it though so it could have been a contemporary novel with Kat’s trials in getting recognition for her skills.
Unfortunately, this wasn’t the romance book for me. I didn’t like Ryan and at times Kat was very timid and didn’t always defend herself when it as required.
Thank you for the eARC

A great read. Kat is expecting to be promoted to head brewer, but instead the place she works is bought out and new brewers are put in place. Will she get her chance elsewhere instead? Looking forward to more books from this author.

Kat is working at a local craft brew pup after a break up and financial loss leads her to start over. She’s created a little family with her co-workers but when the couple who own it decide to sell she is feeling very unsettled.

The new owner has put his son in as the new manager. His inexperience is showing and Kat is not having it. He has visions of a frat bro sports bar and not keeping in line with the kitschy eclectic style it current has, and the family vibe.

Kat has dreamed of becoming a head brewer but he isn’t taking her seriously either. When Ryan seeks out Kat’s help and shows her the struggles the bar is having they are a great pair.

Their snarky banter was fun and lots of tension. A little of a too slow burn for me but it had a lot of cute fun moments too. The ending was unexpected but also happened I feel like it needed to as well.

I received an arc for review, all opinions are my own and given freely.

This was a cute, romance read! I love a good enemies to lovers trope! Will read more by the author for sure! I loved the pun in the title.

I’ve Got My Mind Set On Brew is a fun and quirky rom com that encompasses humour, craft brews, friendship and following ones dreams. I really enjoyed my time with this novel – and I definitely want to explore the world of craft beers a little more after reading it!

Kat Malone is not having a good time of things. She just went through a break up, got laid off from her full time job, and is struggling to make ends meet. The only silver lining she has is her job at Resistance, a craft brew pub. But when the owners sell the business to a young and stuffy newbie, tensions rise. Especially since he denies her the brewing assistant position she was promised by the previous owners. Will she get what she wants? Will the new owner, Ryan, be able to save the pub? What happens when you realize people are just human after all?

I had fun with this read – it was quick, the pacing good. The explanation of a different types of beer at the beginning of each chapter was interesting and informative – I definitely found some that I would like to try! The side characters were well rounded, and it genuinely felt like a family. I found myself wanting to know more about each of them. I also loved how they supported and encouraged one another – even when it wasn’t easy. Kat is determined and resilient, and I appreciate that she knows what she wants and is determined to get there. She is also loyal caring and really wants the best for others. Ryan is a trust fund kid, seemingly having things handed to him throughout life, including Resistance. But not all is as it seems, and he has an interesting and emotional back story. The dynamic between them was sweet and I enjoyed their banter. The exploration of going after your dreams, what that means and that those dreams may look a little different than you initially thought, was heartfelt. I would recommend this to someone looking for a quick, fun and clean read.

Read if you like:
Closed Door Romance
Craft Beer
Enemies To Lovers
Fun Banter

Sorry but life is too short for me to continue reading books that are not bringing me joy. There are some good pieces to this such as the title, the cover, and the craft beer aspect. However the romance fell extremely flat to me and I just didn't care about their relationship enough to finish reading.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing this eARC of I've Got My Mind Set on Brew.
Ohh I loved reading this book. It's quite fun to read and I enjoyed the character dynamics between the two characters.

DNF at 25%. I went into this after some pretty amazing reads and it just could not hook me. The FMC is the typical "so quirky" and he's the pretty frat like guy. Maybe it will be a fun workplace rivals-to-lovers but I don't have it in me to give it a chance now.

Kat Malone has found herself and her passion in brewing beer. After a messy breakup and a childhood of hyper independence, Kat has finally found where she belongs, at Resistance Brewing. That’s all about to change though when the owners of the brewery unexpected have to sell and suddenly the brewery and all its staff are under new management. Management who, it turns out, know nothing about brewing beer. Kat is seeing her dreams of creating and brewing fall away as her future is in the hands of a spoiled rich kid who had the bar handed to him by his dad.

I really wanted to like this book and i really enjoyed all that I learned about craft beer, Other than that though, the romance at the center of the story I just couldn’t get behind, Ryan (the love interest) was a walking red flag to begin with, and I honestly didn’t see how he changed or how the relationship could work after the inevitable 3rd act break up.

In no way was Kat perfect either, however I feel like I at least saw growth in.

Overall, the book had a really great concept, i just felt like the central relationship was inherently unhealthy.

Thank you NetGalley, Alcove Press, and Stephanie Jayne for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Alcove Press for providing the ARC.

I was initially drawn to this book because of the title and the synopsis. A romcom centered around craft beer with a punny title? I'm there.

However, the book itself didn't really resonate with me the way that I would have liked. Kat and Ryan's relationship, to me, read very flat. I didn't enjoy their enemies to lovers start because it felt very immature and it didn't set the stage well for the inevitable switch into romance.

Not a bad book by any means, just needs a bit more work in my opinion.

I should've known I wasn't going to like this based on the cheesy title, but the premise was so good I had to pick it up! Sadly, I was wrong. I did still enjoy the premise of the book -- all the beer stuff was very fun -- but the romance had absolutely no chemistry, and I found that I didn't really care about the characters.

This is the story of two very different people who collide at a craft brewery, Can they find their way past their initial less than positive impressions to work together to save the brewery or are they just too different? Kat has dreams of becoming a brewer and has a passion for the work and the community. Ryan has been given the reins by his wealthy father and doesn't know what he wants other than to make money. The more time they spend together the more they want to be together but are they just too different? Is Kat willing to sacrifice herself to be with Ryan?