To lead with positivity, the premise of this book was incredibly unique. I’m a big craft beer fan when I’m traveling. I always enjoy trying local brews, so I was excited to read a romance that incorporated this. There were a lot of good things included throughout and many things happening below the surface level plot that were unexpected but a welcome surprise. The book was well-written, and I wish I could say I loved it. Ultimately though, I was underwhelmed by it as a romance novel due in large part to not liking the character of Ryan. If the romance had been more of a background element to Kat’s individual story, I would have been a lot happier.

For the most part, I really liked Kat. Life wasn’t going the way she’d hoped for herself, but she was working hard to keep it together and forge a new path she was excited about. She had a good mind for business, but she also put a lot of importance on the sense of community the small brewpub had cultivated and protecting that culture. There were times I wanted her to stand up for herself more, but it also felt true to her character when she’d put herself on the back burner. I had a lot of empathy for her and was happy with her direction in the end.

Now onto Ryan. I did not like him from the beginning, and he was never really redeemed for me. By the end, it felt too little too late in my eyes. He came across entitled and spoiled. I felt like he was emotionally manipulative with Kat. I didn’t buy into their romance because of that. There would be times I thought I was coming around on him—there is a good caretaking sequence—and then he’d turn right around and do something else to let me down. I felt for him with the loss he faced in the past, but it just didn’t excuse his behavior for me.

I’ll end with a bit more positivity by saying that I really liked the diverse cast of secondary characters and the neighborhood vibes I got from the setting. I thought it established a solid feel for the welcoming community that Kat was working so hard to preserve.

This book was super fun. I loved all of the niche beer references including the beginnings of the chapters. I also adored how Kat compared people to different types of craft beer. To be honest I don’t even like craft beer but I would 100% go to try it at Resistance.
I loved Kat’s character growth through this and I think where she ended up was the best choice even though it might not have seemed that way to begin with. She was also super sassy and amusing with her 2am brain shut off.
I wasn’t the biggest fan of Ryan and that opinion only really changed right at the very end but I think his trust and faith in Kat was really beautiful. I also really feel for his family and their own journey in this.
I also enjoyed how our opinions on Prairie and Joe shift throughout the book.
The side characters were also so fun and I would definitely read more books about them and their own stories, especially Gary!

As an avid craft brewery visitor, I loved the fact that this rom-com took place in such a unique setting compared to everything else I had read! I found Kat really goofy and lovable and enjoyed the banter between her and Ryan. Some parts felt a little slow and I wished there was overall more depth to the plot and characterization, but overall this was a cute and enjoyable read for a good pick-me-up if you're in a slump!

I received this ARC for honest feedback.

I really enjoyed this read. The love story wasn't too over the top, but just enough to keep you invested. I'm not really a beer drinker, but the amount of knowledge and research that went into writing this, makes me want to branch out and try new things.
The message of building a community, and helping small businesses, is really something I can stand by. I share those see beliefs, and to weave those in, was wonderful to see.

"I've Got My Mind on Brew" has great bones for a fun story. It was very interesting to read a book set in the brewing world, which I have never seen before in romance. However, the main characters did not have any chemistry, especially the male lead. The plot itself gets very convoluted when the business dealings take place. The story seems to break away from a rom-com and sounds more like business meetings. I would have liked a little bit more of a spark between the main characters and less strife in the workplace.

This story is a heavily beer-ified enemies to lovers. It takes place when the past brewery owners have to sell, and the place is bought by ryan. You see their romance unfold following this.

I really liked the idea of this book, but the romance fell a bit short for me. He seemed oddly entitled, and she seemed short-sighted. I didn't get the off the charts chemistry. I liked the additional plot line of her sister, but am most sure all of the plot lines meshed well.

Unfortunately I didn’t enjoy this one. I wanted so badly to love the strong feminist brewer vibes, but the rest of the book was lacking for me. Really slow start plot wise, and she was constantly doing the most icky thing of throwing herself under the bus for ”love.”. At 70% in, they had kissed once. Fade to black as well. I did enjoy the undying support of her female friends.

A cute slow burn romance set in a local Chicago brewery. Kat & Ryan have their individual issues to work through both in their personal and professional lives. It was interesting to see how the author chose to have them work through said situations.

Loved the way each chapter started with a type of beer and a description! Did not love the absolutely horrible work environment (well, it seemed like it to me at least).

Mehs: There were a lot of different layers to this story, some that I understood the purpose of better than others. Sometimes it felt like there were so much going on with backstories and/or other characters that the focus was taken off of the main plot. Also, what happened with Prairie and Joe? It seemed a bit far fetched that they were not contacted again after they sold the brewery. Finally, I had a hard time visualizing the characters based on the lack of description and the disconnect between what was written and the cover art.

This was written well and I liked Kat's character and her growth. I thought the beer brewery aspect was cool. That being said, this was just okay.

Kat wants to be craft beer brewer after a disaster relationship. She meets Ryan, the son of the new owner. Ryan and Kat falls in love after their initial dislike of each other.

Kat is terrific. A great character. It is fun to watch her grow. The book would be extremely interesting to those interested in beer too. Lots of fun facts.

Thanks to the publisher for the arc.

Kat wants to be a brewer and hopes for that opportunity in the pub where she works but when the owners sell, new management stymies that dream. Ryan agrees to manage the pub for his father, the investor, but he realizes Kate has valuable skills and seeks her assistance. Their attraction is palatable although they are very different and from very different backgrounds. They work well together but ultimately, Kat has to look out for herself to achieve her dreams. I love how Kate associates people with different beer types. I don't even drink beer but found it interesting. I read this book on Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I’m saying this is a five star because I simply don’t think I can judge this book properly. It simply wasn’t for me but it was well written. I really wish I could have enjoyed it more but it’s not the book nor the authors fault.

What a fabulous beer romance (or beermance?!) book!

This wine girlie was not to sure to read about romance in a brewery, but this cool crisp hoppy story perfectly hit the spot.

I came for the adorable cover and beer angle and stayed for Kat‘s story.

Ryan, eh, not to much, but Kat- she was the star of this story and I really felt for her in tackling things in her job, family, friends, romance, and all these elements made this book very real.

I loved learning more about different beers (every chapter starts with some information), getting a glimpse of life in a brewery, and all the different employees at Resistance.
The descriptions of people and places were very well done and I could easily imagine myself enjoying a beer, some fresh wedges with sauce, and getting up to choose a song from the jukebox.

I read back to see how this book is marketed. It should be a romcom but be fair, it felt almost more a coming of age, finding your independence, dare I say women’s fiction book with a heavy dose of romance, but it worked great.
I would have been fine with a more open and ambiguous ending, letting Kat find herself and starting anew, but this also was a lovely ending.

Would recommend!

4.5 stars rounded down.

I received an ARC of this book (thanks!) and these are my own opinions.

My affinity towards beer might be a trait that automatically comes with my descent, so I was immediately intrigued by the concept of reading a book revolving around crafting beer. Being an avid reader myself, I read books upon books about growing and cultivating wine, but I never came across one about beer. And indeed, I’ve Got My Mind Set On Brew revolves heavily around the art of crafting beer and which ingredients to use to get a certain flavour. Combined with an excellent writing style and a unique choice of words it was a nice reading experience. Also the perfect use of sarcasm and self-irony made me smile quite regularly.

Unfortunately, I didn’t feel the connection between the main characters and the romance part fell a little flat for me.

But I’ve Got My Mind Set On Brew is a book I would recommend to beer enthusiasts nonetheless.

These were hard-to-relate-to characters, and a reeeeeally slow-moving story. This was a struggle. I did like the author’s style, though, and I’d be curious to read something else. I certainly learned a lot about brewing beer!

Yes! Yes! Yes! I didn't put this book down until I was finished! That's how you write a wonderful female lead!!! She was so funny with her beer analogies... side note - I want all the beers right now. I could also see a special edition with beers as the sprayed edges. Ok, back to the story, I loved how Kat was reasonable and vulnerable. She was strong and passionate, too. I just enjoyed the story! And I loved how it made me laugh out loud. Great book!

I enjoyed reading this book. The enemies to lovers part between Kat & Ryan was good. Sometimes, I could relate with Kat but then she started to self-sabotaged and I just lost interest in the book tbh. Still the writing was good and kept me engaged.

I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange of an honest review

I’m not a beer drinker, so I almost didn’t make it past the first paragraph because I was worried that was all I was getting. But I came to enjoy the little snippets of info about different varieties of beer as each was pulled into the story and used to describe characters throughout.

I really liked Kat. She felt very edgy and unique and real. She didn’t have her life figured out, she didn’t have confidence in herself, but let’s be honest, how many of us do? I found her sense of humor a treat and loved seeing her interact with all the supporting cast.

This is definitely a slow burn romance. Calling it romance is tough, because while there is this love story wrapped up inside these pages, the story was more about Kat’s self-discovery and her journey to happiness with lots of beer-related stuff thrown in. I expected some closed door or fade to black scenes. There were none. In fact, it took me a few pages of reading after Kat and Ryan first had sexy times to realize something more than talking and kissing had happened because there was absolutely no mention of it.

Kat gets all the stars here. She felt like a friend and I really didn’t want to put the book down despite not getting what I expected.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I'm giving an additional star for the brewing information because that was pretty cool.
I struggled with the characters. Ryan felt like a preppy trust fund kid who didn't really seem to have any character development throughout the novel. Kat was no better, continuously judging people for their clothes ("Kardashian clone" felt like something written 15 years ago). There was no chemistry and I just really struggled to get involved.

I mostly enjoyed this story, but I found the end rushed and unsatisfying. Kat finds herself at a crossroad and is trying to save the brewery she works in as a server which is under new management while still being true to her goals.