A Room with a Brew (A Brewing Trouble Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
3rd in Series
Berkley (October 3, 2017)
Mass Market Paperback: 288 pages
Synopsis
It’s Oktoberfest in Pittsburgh, and brewpub owner Maxine “Max” O’Hara is prepping for a busy month at the Allegheny Brew House. To create the perfect atmosphere for the boozy celebration, Max hires an oompah band. But when one of the members from the band turns up dead, it’s up to Max to solve the murder before the festivities are ruined.
Adding to the brewing trouble, Candy, Max’s friend, is acting suspicious… Secrets from her past are fermenting under the surface, and Max must uncover the truth to prove her friend’s innocence. To make matters worse, Jake’s snooty ex-fiancée shows up in town for an art gallery opening, and she’ll be nothing but a barrel of trouble for Max.
Guest Post
Why Pittsburgh?
By Joyce Tremel
I’m often asked by readers why I chose Pittsburgh as the setting for my Brewing Trouble series. The reasons are numerous. Anyone who has read the books so far has probably figured out by now that Pittsburghers are a little different. We use expressions like “n’at” and “yinz.” We call thorny shrubs “jagger bushes.” We often use the word “jag” which comes from the Scots-Irish and means “thorn.” When we call someone a “jagoff” we’re not swearing—it just means they’re a jerk, or a “thorn in our side.” There are websites and dictionaries explaining Pittsburghese to non-natives. I actually bought my editor a Pittsburghese dictionary for Christmas.
Pittsburgh is a beautiful city. It’s gone from being a smoky, dirty place in the early twentieth century to a clear and bright high-tech oasis. It’s home to Google and Uber. It’s the first city where Uber is testing self-driving cars. (Frankly, if they can navigate here, they can drive anywhere. We have streets that aren’t even streets—they’re tiny alleys, or sometimes just concrete steps on a hillside.) Our hospitals and medical centers are always on the cutting edge of the next important breakthrough. The University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University are leaders in research in neuroscience and robotics. There’s a vibrant downtown and cultural district. And one of my characters, Candy Sczypinski, would be highly upset if I didn’t mention the sports teams—the Pirates, the Penguins, and Candy’s beloved Steelers.
I can’t forget to mention the food. We Pittsburghers like to eat! Part of the fun of writing this series has been figuring out what my characters are eating or cooking in certain scenes and developing the recipes. Around here, we love Buffalo Chicken Dip and pierogis, so I invented a recipe in To Brew or Not to Brew (book 1) that combined the two—Buffalo Chicken Pierogis. And what goes better together than caramel and chocolate? Not much, so I came up with Caramel Pecan Brownies in Tangled Up in Brew (book 2). They are to die for, by the way. I had a great time planning the recipes in A Room With a Brew (book 3). Since it takes place around the time of Oktoberfest, I included some German recipes along with some distinctly Pittsburgh recipes like Ham Barbecues and that picnic staple, Pretzel Salad. Never heard of it? I guess you’ll need to read the book. It’s delicious!
We like to have a good beverage or two to wash down all that tasty food. Craft breweries are abundant in the Pittsburgh area. In the real Pittsburgh neighborhood of Lawrenceville where the fictional Allegheny Brew House is located, there are now four craft breweries. Max O’Hara would feel right at home. Pittsburgh also has some top-notch restaurants that rival any you’d find in New York City. You can even find a winery or two not far outside city limits.
It’s also a friendly city. Residents are always quick to help out anyone in trouble. You can often find a fire hall or church hall hosting a spaghetti dinner to raise funds for someone with a medical issue, or for a family who lost their home in a fire. If a stranger asks someone for directions, we’re always happy to show them the way—as long as we don’t have to use north, south, east, or west. We’re more likely to say, “Turn where the Isaly’s used to be.” We might be the only city where the natives give directions on what used to be in certain locations.
So you see, Pittsburgh really does have everything. Maybe in the future when readers ask me why I chose Pittsburgh, my answer should be, “Why not?”
About the Author
Joyce Tremel was a police secretary for ten years and more than once envisioned the demise of certain co-workers, but settled on writing as a way to keep herself out of jail. She is a native Pittsburgher and lives in a suburb of the city with her husband and a spoiled cat.
Her debut mystery, To Brew Or Not To Brew has been nominated for the 2015 Reviewers’ Choice award for best amateur sleuth by RT Book Reviews. The second book in the series,Tangled Up In Brew was released in October 2016 and chosen as a “Top Pick” by RT Book Reviews. It was the winner of the 2016 Reviewers’ Choice Award for Best Amateur Sleuth. It was also named one of the Best Books of 2016 by Kings River Life Magazine..
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check out the other blogs on this tour
October 2 – Bibliophile Reviews – REVIEW
October 2 – Books,Dreams,Life – SPOTLIGHT – family emergency
October 3 – A Holland Reads – REVIEW
October 3 – Blogger Nicole Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
October 4 – The Power of Words – REVIEW
October 4 – Dee-Scoveries – SPOTLIGHT
October 5 – My Reading Journeys – REVIEW
October 6 – Cinnamon, Sugar, and a Little Bit of Murder – REVIEW
October 7 – Bookworm Cafe – REVIEW
October 7 – Reading Is My SuperPower – GUEST POST
October 8 – A Cozy Experience – REVIEW
October 9 – Laura’s interests – REVIEW
October 9 – Valerie’s Musings – INTERVIEW
October 10 – The Montana Bookaholic – SPOTLIGHT
October 10 – StoreyBook Reviews – GUEST POST
October 11 – Back Porchervations – REVIEW
October 11 – T’s Stuff – INTERVIEW
October 12 – Socrates’ Book Reviews – REVIEW
October 13 – Celticlady’s Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
October 13 – – Melina’s Book Blog – REVIEW
October 14 – Books a Plenty Book Reviews – REVIEW
October 14 – Island Confidential – SPOTLIGHT
October 15 – Brooke Blogs – REVIEW
There’s a lot of Pittsburgh influence in my hometown of Erie, from the Steelers to pierogies to Primanti-style sandwiches and Pittsburghese. Are pepperoni balls and pepperoni bread popular in Pittsburgh? I rarely find them anywhere outside of my hometown.
sounds awesome thanks for the post