This book was cute! I enjoyed all of the beer and brewery knowledge and references. Kat comparing people's personalities to different types of beers was a fun way to tie in her love of craft beers. You can tell that the author put a lot of research into that aspect of the book.

I enjoyed Kats character. She had a nice character arc and grew a lot from the beginning of the book to the end, especially under the circumstances she was under.

I liked Kat and Ryan's relationship but at times they sort of lacked chemistry and felt a bit too much like co-workers.

Overall, it was a sweet romance with a super fun aspect and I'd recommend it to anyone looking for such!

I've got my heart set on brew is an enemies to lovers, boss/employee, opposites attract rom-com.
The idea behind the book is brilliant and I've loved that every chapter is named after a beer, such a cute idea!
Overall is was an easy and fun read, I enjoyed reading the book and I feel like the author has captured the essence of craft beer. The book started out really cute, but I was a little disaoppointed, because I think that the tension/chemistry between the main characters could have been developed better! At times it felt like there wasn't any or it just seemed more like a business partnership rather than a romance.

Thank you NetGalley and Alcove Press for this e-ARC in exchange for my honest opinion and review.

This was a "couldn't put it down" book for me! I loved all the beer definitions at the beginning of the chapters, and loved that the romantic story line was almost secondary to figuring out all the other stuff. Aside from the super hot love interest (because let's be honest, we gotta have a hot love interest!), a lot of the plot was unique and refreshing. I also enjoyed that I couldn't figure out the end until the end - usually you can tell exactly how the happy ending is going to happen, but this one really had me wondering how it would all come together. Thank you for the excellent read!

3.5 Stars, Rounded Up

In Stephanie Jayne’s novel, “I’ve Got My Eyes Set on Brew”, we meet Kat Malone, a mid-20’s professional who began working full time at a local microbrewery after losing her job in healthcare. Kat bonds with the married owners of Resistance brewpub, and begins to shadow and learn the beer brewing process with hopes of becoming a full-time brewer. Her goals and plans are upended when owners Joe and Prairie announce the selling of Resistance and new owner Ryan Bennett is brought in.

Ryan is grumpy and focused on making major changes to the pub, while Kat and the rest of the Resistance crew are digging their heels in to keep things the same. As Ryan and Kat progress through the story, their connection strengthens right along with the possibility of growing Resistance together as a partnership. As with any budding relationship, tension grows over trusting one another, especially when it comes to Kat’s career goals. Kat eventually leaves Resistance for a brewer’s job in Wisconsin, leaving Ryan and Resistance behind. The story ends happily, with Ryan returning to Kat after selling Resistance and planning his own business endeavors.

Overall, I enjoyed this book! I wish the chemistry was a bit better between Ryan and Kat, because I felt the starts of a slow burn, but then it just turned into fade to black. I never really picked up the “feels” between them. I really liked Kat more than Ryan, just because she’s a strong woman, and definitely a go-getter. Ryan seemed a bit immature and clearly came from a place where he’d never been forced to stand on his own two legs before. The beer content in this book is fabulous! If you’re a beer drinker—especially craft beers—you’ll love the descriptions in each chapter, and the clever way that Kat tried to match a beer to someone’s personality.

If you’re looking for a sweet romance in a non-traditional setting, I’ve Got My Eyes Set on Brew is a good choice for you!

Wow! This book is absolutely amazing. The descriptions are so touching and vivid. As soon as I started reading it I couldn't put it down. I recommend this book to every other reader out there.

★ ★ ★ ★ //5

I’ve Got My Mind Set On Brew
by: Stephanie Jayne

THOUGHTS:

I want to thank NetGalley, the publisher and the author for giving me the opportunity to read an e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

If you love:

-Enemies to Lovers
-Workplace Romance
-Rom Com’s
-Opposites Attract
-Slow Burns

Then this book will be for you!

I loved this fun little book. I loved seeing Kat and Ryan navigate their relationship and each other as well as watching them grow throughout the book. I loved Kat through this entire book, one of my favorite characters I have read about in a long time. If you are looking for a fun quick rom com read I absolutely recommend this book.

This was one jumbled mess of a book. I couldn't get past 70 % of it to save my life. It just wasn't for my, this particular style of writing I guess. The book seems solid but I just couldn't connect with it. Unfortunately a dnf

This Enemies to lovers Rom-Com is amazing. Set in a craft beer brew pub. I was all in for the drama! I loved Kat and Ryan. So good. I didn't want the story to end.
I just reviewed I've Got My Mind Set on Brew by Stephanie Jayne. #IveGotMyMindSetonBrew #NetGalley
[NetGalley URL]

This closed door slow burn explores personal professional and relationship growth and how each of those things intersect and sometimes contradict. Kat and Ryan have a lot to work through independently before they can make it work together. The beer chapter titles and descriptions were utterly charming and such a fun theme to tie the whole story together.

DNF -- this one just didn't work for me, I couldn't connect with the characters at all. I hope it finds its audience, and thanks for the opportunity to read it early.

I'd like to thank Net Galley, publisher and author for the advance copy and the opportunity to read I've Got my Mind Set on Brew by Stephanie Jayne, which comes out April 9.

IGMMSOB is the story of Kat, who lost her job in healthcare, which made her side job (which she needed because of some crippling debt she got into thanks to her ex) at a brewpub called Resistance become her job. To make ends somewhat meet, she also started learning how to brew beers, in the hopes she'd one day be promoted to brewmaster. As she learns more and more about the brewing world, she finds that she really likes it.

The problems start when she and the rest of the staff learn that the owners of Resistance have sold the bar to one of their friends (an investor) in order to get some money for medical bills. The new manager - Ryan, the owner’s son - doesn’t want an unofficially trained brewmaster, so she stays on as waitress, hoping against hope he’ll change his mind. But he doesn’t have a lot of experience, and her knowledge of the world comes in handy.

I enjoyed the book, even though the ending isn’t quite what we’d expect it to be. I don’t know if I really “got” the characters, it didn’t feel like they had a lot of chemistry. My favorite bit was the beer descriptions at the beginning of each chapter, and how Kat would compare each character to one. That was so fun (since I know next to nothing about beers).

Good things first the cover and title instantly captured my interest and I absolutely loved the concept with the beer and how the Kat uses it to describe people. The writing and storyline were great.

I actually liked the beginning of the book too and how the two main characters meet. But this book is marketed as an enemies to lovers which it wasn’t really for me and I sadly felt absolutely no chemistry or romance between the two. It was more business than romance and at the same time they were both really immature and just ignored their differences, to at some point be together!
Also I strongly dislike Ryan. Yes he is the boss but he was super unprofessional, honestly just really annoying and he basically used her. Also he listened to literally no one who worked there and then he somehow needs her help like I’m sorry she tried that from the beginning and you didn’t listen. Honestly she should have just left from the beginning which is why I think the ending fit perfectly and was definitely the right choice!!

Overall it was an alright read for me!!

Thank you NetGalley and Alcove Press for this e-Arc in exchange for my honest opinion and review.

The story was simplistic but I think the author failed to bring it out in an entertaining way. I felt no real chemistry between Ryan and Kat, and there was way too much miscommunication for one book. Overall, it wasn't too bad but it could've been a whole lot better.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC! This book’s premise had a lot to interest me - craft beer, Chicago, and enemies-to-friends-to-lovers. Unfortunately, it fell a bit flat. I didn’t feel much chemistry between the main characters, and I struggled with seeing Ryan as a real person. There were a lot of characters in the story and they were hard to keep straight - a lot of them didn’t even have actual interactions with the MCs, they were just mentioned by name frequently. The ending wrapped up much too quickly, basically ending their final act fight and securing a happily ever after on the last page. Still, it was a pretty fun and easy read, just not one I’d go back to.

I enjoyed this book! It’s a enemies (although that’s strong) to lovers slow burn. The story was great and kept you wanting to read. And the ending had its twists too! Great character development. Also loved that after the initial kiss there wasn’t the awkward regret/swept under the rug! The tidbits about the kinds of beers at the beginning of each chapter were a nice touch.

Thank you NetGalley and Alcove Press for the opportunity to read an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

To be honest, I have mixed reactions about this book. At first Kat sounded very immature, but she warmed up on me a little later on. Ryan was just ok. I wish I connected more with these characters, but I didn’t. On the other hand, I love the concept of this book. My favorite thing was the beer selections at the beginning of each chapter. If you don’t know much about beer, you may learn a little something reading this.

Lastly, the romance was just okay as well. I also had a love and dislike relationship with the banter in this. Some of it was okay and other times it was just cringy. I do think this might be a cute book for people who like romance and beer.

An enemies to lovers / boss x employee rom-con

Honestly I felt there was a lot left to be desired. The concept was good with the beers etc and the book did start out really cute and nice but the immaturity got to me. Ryan especially yeeeez.

It was an okay read, not the worst or the best.

This was such a fun read! From a fellow beer lover myself, I
loved the setting of the brewery and the descriptions of the
different types of beers. I enjoyed the beginning of each
chapter describing a type of beer and how Kat would assign
a person the type of beer she thought matched their
personality. She continued to do this throughout the book
and I love that.
Kat Malone trusted her ex boyfriend enough to wind up still
paying off his debt years after their breakup. She is now
working as a server at Resistence, the brew pub with her
found family, while she shadows to become a brew master
herself. Her dreams come crashing down when the married
couple who own the pub are forced to sell. In walks Ryan, the
privileged, ex frat daddy who she thinks was handed the
business by his dad, the investor. Ryan and Kat immediately
clash when all this is to him is a chance to prove himself to
his dad, but this is Kat's family and dream on the line. Their
relationship is an enemies to lovers vibe that was funny to
see unfold.
This was a fun, flirty book that I really enjoyed! Thank you to
the author @stephaniejaynebooks, @netgalley and
@alcovepress for the copy of this book. This book will
release in April 2024, so be on the lookout!

First of all, thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

I struggled a bit with this book because of how it is marketed, but I’d like to start with the positives first.

I’ve Got My Mind Set On Brew was well written, and very much stuck to the theme of beer. I enjoyed the different descriptions of types of beer at the beginning of the chapters. As someone who doesn’t drink beer at all, I found it very informative.

Kat’s relationship with her mother was handled well, and I was thankful for the way her issues with her family were resolved.

I do not, however, believe this book was a romance. The story focuses on Kat growing and finding herself. The book is extremely plot heavy in this area. Romance, as a genre, has the romantic plot at the forefront, and this book absolutely does not have that.

It was advertised as a slow burn romance, but that plot-line between Kat and Ryan was very much a subplot. I felt like their relationship lacked depth, and I was not committed to them as a couple.

Ryan frequently described how much he needed Kat for the business, and 90% of their conversations revolves around work. Any relationship building moments were glossed over and summarized briefly. This doesn’t just include the very closed door sex scenes, but it felt like their emotional connection was also closed door. Unless it had to do with work, I’d course.

Ryan’s insistence that he needed Kat for the business also felt very toxic. I didn’t like Ryan as a character, and wasn’t convinced that their relationship dynamic was healthy. I also felt that Kat wasn’t fully committed to him. For her, Ryan seemed like a side quest.

This book would have been better marketed with a focus on Kat’s journey to self discovery.

I probably wouldn’t recommend this book to anyone unless they really liked beer or brewing. It’s an enemies to lovers, boss romance that is clean/fade to black.
I enjoyed this story but it definitely centers around beer brewing and the main character not wanting to do anything but work with beer.
This whole story was mainly about keeping secrets as well and not wanting to stand up for yourself.
I was pretty annoyed with Kurt and his misogynistic attitude as well. Kat definitely deserved better and I feel like she should have left sooner.
The MMC and FMC were hot and cold a lot. He would get frustrated with work and be snippy. Then randomly tells her he loves her at a weird time which didn’t work out well.