Imperial Stout (Trouble Brewing, #1)by Layla Reyne
Published by Carina Press
eARC
LGBT, contemporary, romance, suspense
Layla Reyne spins off from her pulse-pounding Agents Irish and Whiskey books with Imperial Stout, the first installment in the Trouble Brewing series.
It's a good thing assistant US attorney Dominic Price co-owns a brewery. He could use a cold one. Nic's star witness had just been kidnapped, his joint operation with the FBI is in jeopardy, his father's shady past is catching up with him and the hot new spacial agent in San Francisco is the kind of distraction best handled with a stiff drink.
Kidnap and rescue expert Cameron Byrne has his own ideas about how to handle Nic, but his skills are currently needed elsewhere. The by-the-book FBI agent goes deep undercover as a member of an infamous heist crew in order to save Nic's witness, break up the crew and close the case before anyone else gets hurt. Nic in particular.
Things heat up when Cam falls for Nic, and the witness falls for Cam. As the crew's suspicions grow, Cam must decide how far he's willing to go - and how far into his own dark past he's willing to dive - to get everyone out alive.
Imperial Stout is great read, if you're after an action packed suspense novel with a dash of romance. There's plenty of action and twists, people going undercover, suspicions of who to trust, and dangerous situations arises from every corner. The dashes of romance isn't bad either, because Nic and Cam have chemistry, and a will-they-won't-they situation going on. However, there were a few things that hindered my reading experience.
The thing is, I think this is better suited for people who have first read Agents Irish and Whiskey series, from which this is a spin-off. I haven't, which is probably why I felt like I was thrown into the deep end without a lifeline. There's already formed relationships - including between the main characters - which are not explained in Imperial Stout, or only briefly mentioned. It took some time to figure out who is related to who and to get a feeling what kind of relationship each character has with one other. For me, it took a lot of energy and that mixed up with a beginning full of action and lots of specific jargon and initials, which was hard to keep up with, mostly because everything I know about FBI or American legal system is from TV shows and movies. It was pretty exhausting. I did catch up (and I think I have figured out the relationships and friendships), but I still feel like this one is for those who have read the previous series, or then it needs a bit more explanation on page to make sure new readers aren't totally confused.
That besides, I enjoyed Imperial Stout. It was a bit more suspense than I expected it be based on teasers I've seen, but that wasn't a bad thing. I liked both Nic and Cam, because both of them are determined, stubborn, and loyal. There's also this conflict Nic is having because of his estranged father and his past, which it kept in the dark, and I kept turning the page because I yearned to know all the secrets. As this is the first in the series, not everything is revealed and I want to pick up the next one to find out more.
Imperial Stout is a solid read, and I think for those who are familiar with the previous series and characters, it's a great one. For those people, I highly recommend it. For me, well, I'll continue with the series and I'm thinking of picking up Agents Irish and Whiskey series, too. I'm giving Imperial Stout three stars instead of four stars just because I was so confused in the beginning and it took some time to get on board with everything.
The thing is, I think this is better suited for people who have first read Agents Irish and Whiskey series, from which this is a spin-off. I haven't, which is probably why I felt like I was thrown into the deep end without a lifeline. There's already formed relationships - including between the main characters - which are not explained in Imperial Stout, or only briefly mentioned. It took some time to figure out who is related to who and to get a feeling what kind of relationship each character has with one other. For me, it took a lot of energy and that mixed up with a beginning full of action and lots of specific jargon and initials, which was hard to keep up with, mostly because everything I know about FBI or American legal system is from TV shows and movies. It was pretty exhausting. I did catch up (and I think I have figured out the relationships and friendships), but I still feel like this one is for those who have read the previous series, or then it needs a bit more explanation on page to make sure new readers aren't totally confused.
That besides, I enjoyed Imperial Stout. It was a bit more suspense than I expected it be based on teasers I've seen, but that wasn't a bad thing. I liked both Nic and Cam, because both of them are determined, stubborn, and loyal. There's also this conflict Nic is having because of his estranged father and his past, which it kept in the dark, and I kept turning the page because I yearned to know all the secrets. As this is the first in the series, not everything is revealed and I want to pick up the next one to find out more.
Imperial Stout is a solid read, and I think for those who are familiar with the previous series and characters, it's a great one. For those people, I highly recommend it. For me, well, I'll continue with the series and I'm thinking of picking up Agents Irish and Whiskey series, too. I'm giving Imperial Stout three stars instead of four stars just because I was so confused in the beginning and it took some time to get on board with everything.
3 of 5 stars
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