Hello, readers! Welcome to Books, Beans, & Brews, a new column where we feature amazing books paired with coffee and beer from some of your favorite local establishments. My name is Sam Jacquest a.k.a. The Book Lady. I own Blue House Books, Kenosha’s full-service independent bookstore in our beautiful Downtown community.
This column is dedicated to recommending books and sharing exciting bookish news with you, including authors visiting Kenosha, book-to-screen adaptations, and so much more. I can’t wait to share my love of books with you all!
Let’s start with some really exciting news: Annelise Ryan is coming to Kenosha! The author of A Death in Door County will be at The Rhode Center for the Arts on Tuesday, December 12th for the official release party of her new novel Death in the Dark Woods. These are both part of the Monster Hunter series, a collection of fun cozy mystery books about a cryptozoologist on the hunt for legendary creatures in Wisconsin. You will absolutely love the local setting and fun mystery. Plus, her trusty sidekick is a dog, so you know you’ll love it!
And now for our book and drink pairing! Normally I’m not one to give into the hype of viral books because, let’s be honest, they normally end up being disappointing, but I am so glad I bought into the hype of Fourth Wing! I’m currently halfway through its sequel Iron Flame and I’m obsessed. It has dragons, magic, and the perfect amount of spice (and I don’t mean the kind you eat). BLAK Coffee in Kenosha has the PERFECT latte to match: Violets Flame. It has the perfect amount of sweetness to match a book filled with lust and magic, but get it warm and settle in for a long, cozy reading session because you won’t be able to put this book down!
Fourth Wing and Iron Flame are the first two books in the Empyrean series by Rebecca Yarros, and they follow Violet Sorrengail as she makes her way through Basgiath War College. Violet and her fellow cadets must work to earn the honor of bonding with a dragon in order to train to join their country’s war efforts against enemy kingdoms. Even if you’re not normally a fantasy reader, these books are so incredibly entertaining they will have even the most reluctant readers staying up all night turning pages.
That’s all for now, but check in next week for more recommendations and bookish news from your local neighborhood bookseller!
