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leighash_87's review against another edition
3.0
Usually I'm not thrilled with books like these but I was looking for something simple yet interesting I could listen to and this fit the bill. I actually listened to it and I would suggest that as well. Sweet read.
joradora's review against another edition
2.0
There are some books that are fine if there's nothing better to do. This is definitely one of them. It was ok. I needed an audiobook to listen to on my commute and my library's app can be rather tedious to weed through when I don't have a lot of time so it was a settled-for choice. I didn't hate it but I probably won't go out of my way to look for the next in the series.
caitkom's review against another edition
4.0
This was a little on the religious side for me, but overall a good read. Amber Wright is the manager for an Amish Village in Indiana. Things are going great until she receives a call that Ethan Gray, who runs the coffee shop was found dead on the floor, the only evidence being a couple small bb holes in the window of the cafe. Ethan's dead is classified as natural causes, but when menacing Bible verses appear on Amber's front porch and on the front of some of the shops Amber starts to wonder if there isn't more to the story. She enlists the help of her neighbor Tate, and a teenage Amish girl who works in the shops and starts snooping around.
meezcarrie's review against another edition
4.0
I confess: I have never read a book by Vannetta Chapman until Murder Simply Brewed. It may have been my first but it definitely won’t be my last! Murder, intrigue, romance, and faith are all blended to create one entertaining story!
Amber Wright, a 40-something single woman who lives with her cat on the premises of the Amish Artisan Village she manages, feels like she has the perfect job. Hannah Troyer, the twenty-two-year-old Amish girl who works in the Village’s quilt shop, feels that way too. One Englisch, one Amish, their paths don’t cross much outside of the Village. Until the day that Hannah discovers a body in the coffee shop next door and calls Amber in a panic. That’s the day that everything changes.
When Hannah takes over the coffee shop in the absence of the recently-deceased (from an apparent heart attack) Ethan Gray, she and Amber become fast friends. As seemingly-random acts of vandalism begin to pile up around the Village, the pair grow less comfortable with the police department’s ready acceptance of Ethan’s death by natural causes. They set out to find the truth on their own, with the help of Amber’s neighbor Tate and Hannah’s best friend Jesse, and maybe they’ll each find a little romance along the way as well.
Very much enjoyed this book! While I do like reading Amish fiction, I especially love those stories that aren’t typical of the genre. Murder Simply Brewed is one such example. The interactions between the Englisch and the Amish were lots of fun to read and gave more dimension (and less stereotype) to the characters in the process. The murder mystery added an element not usually seen in Amish novels, and I just wanted to curl up into this whodunit with a quilt and a mug of hot chocolate despite the summer temps outside. Lastly, the romance between two separate couples wove sweetly throughout the story and created an atmosphere of “cozy” tenderness even amid some high tension scenes.
Amber Wright, a 40-something single woman who lives with her cat on the premises of the Amish Artisan Village she manages, feels like she has the perfect job. Hannah Troyer, the twenty-two-year-old Amish girl who works in the Village’s quilt shop, feels that way too. One Englisch, one Amish, their paths don’t cross much outside of the Village. Until the day that Hannah discovers a body in the coffee shop next door and calls Amber in a panic. That’s the day that everything changes.
When Hannah takes over the coffee shop in the absence of the recently-deceased (from an apparent heart attack) Ethan Gray, she and Amber become fast friends. As seemingly-random acts of vandalism begin to pile up around the Village, the pair grow less comfortable with the police department’s ready acceptance of Ethan’s death by natural causes. They set out to find the truth on their own, with the help of Amber’s neighbor Tate and Hannah’s best friend Jesse, and maybe they’ll each find a little romance along the way as well.
Very much enjoyed this book! While I do like reading Amish fiction, I especially love those stories that aren’t typical of the genre. Murder Simply Brewed is one such example. The interactions between the Englisch and the Amish were lots of fun to read and gave more dimension (and less stereotype) to the characters in the process. The murder mystery added an element not usually seen in Amish novels, and I just wanted to curl up into this whodunit with a quilt and a mug of hot chocolate despite the summer temps outside. Lastly, the romance between two separate couples wove sweetly throughout the story and created an atmosphere of “cozy” tenderness even amid some high tension scenes.
bekaaaah's review against another edition
3.0
Amber Wright is the owner of a collection of Amish shops in Middlebury’s Amish Artisan Village. Hannah Troyer is a 20-something Amish woman who works in one of her shops. When the manager of Amber’s coffee shop, Ethan Gray, is found dead from an apparent heart attack, both Amber and Hannah think there’s more going on than meets the eye. Together the unlikely pair tries to figure out who is behind the mysterious vandalisms and Ethan’s death. Add to that some blossoming romances and you have one unique romantic mystery novel.
I went through a phase of reading a lot of Amish fiction a couple years back. Nowadays I don’t really enjoy them as much and usually avoid the whole genre. This title caught my eye and I decided to check it out after reading the description. I mean, an Amish mystery? Pretty different. When I finished the book, I found that I had very mixed feelings. On one hand, I enjoyed the characters, setting, plot, moral, and overall atmosphere. On the other, I could never quite get “in” to the story. It took me a good month to finish. There were certain great things about the book, like the fact that while I was not expecting to connect with any of the characters (age difference—main characters are 45 and 52) I found myself identifying with all of them. They were relatable, likable, and real. The contrast between the Amish characters and the “English” ones was really interesting. The plot was certainly unique, albeit predictable. I haven’t seen anything even remotely similar to Murder Simply Brewed. There was nothing I didn’t like about the book, but there also wasn’t anything I loved. Hence why I give it a rating of 3 stars.
If you enjoy Amish novels, a light mystery, or a good romance, then I would definitely recommend you read Murder Simply Brewed. It’s a great book to curl up to and read with a cup of coffee.
**I received this book free from BookLook Bloggers in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts are entirely my own.
http://willbakeforbooks.blogspot.com/2014/04/review-murder-simply-brewed-by-vannetta.html
I went through a phase of reading a lot of Amish fiction a couple years back. Nowadays I don’t really enjoy them as much and usually avoid the whole genre. This title caught my eye and I decided to check it out after reading the description. I mean, an Amish mystery? Pretty different. When I finished the book, I found that I had very mixed feelings. On one hand, I enjoyed the characters, setting, plot, moral, and overall atmosphere. On the other, I could never quite get “in” to the story. It took me a good month to finish. There were certain great things about the book, like the fact that while I was not expecting to connect with any of the characters (age difference—main characters are 45 and 52) I found myself identifying with all of them. They were relatable, likable, and real. The contrast between the Amish characters and the “English” ones was really interesting. The plot was certainly unique, albeit predictable. I haven’t seen anything even remotely similar to Murder Simply Brewed. There was nothing I didn’t like about the book, but there also wasn’t anything I loved. Hence why I give it a rating of 3 stars.
If you enjoy Amish novels, a light mystery, or a good romance, then I would definitely recommend you read Murder Simply Brewed. It’s a great book to curl up to and read with a cup of coffee.
**I received this book free from BookLook Bloggers in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts are entirely my own.
http://willbakeforbooks.blogspot.com/2014/04/review-murder-simply-brewed-by-vannetta.html
k92aitlyn's review against another edition
3.0
If you're looking for a wholesome murder with an ending tied in red ribbon, this is your book. It was suspenseful, had a little too much romance for my taste, and a happy ending where the bad guy gets what he deserves. A good, light story to read with a cup of coffee.
faerytaleonfire's review against another edition
3.0
Fun cozy mystery. There were some character actions I found tough to swallow (like the entire police department's behavior), and the scene where character suggests another can stop being clumsy if he just tries enough was annoying, but the book was otherwise an entertaining read.
melmo2610's review against another edition
5.0
I really enjoyed this story! A fun mystery and I loved the Amish Village with its shops, hotel and restaurant. It seems like that would be a fun place to visit in real life. Looking forward to the rest of the trilogy.