Pride and Porters

Starred review from May 14, 2018
Greene’s charming retelling of Pride and Prejudice transplants the Bennets into the world of Colorado craft beer. Erin and Jen Bennet’s brewery is teetering on the edge of financial trouble when they meet wealthy Charles Betters and his friend Darcy, who have just arrived from Boston. As Jen and Charles fall in love, Erin must navigate not only her unwanted attraction to Darcy but her strained relationship with her father, who doesn’t approve of the brewery or Erin’s interest in women; their flighty sister Lydia; and the reappearance of a childhood bully in the Mr. Collins role. The story beats are comfortingly familiar, with the unusual backdrop of brewing and beer competitions, modern setting, and twists on the characters providing enough divergence to keep the reader engaged. Darcy’s dialogue occasionally comes jarringly close to her source, but that is a rare flaw in an otherwise immersive narrative. Feminism, lesbianism, and class are all touched on in this refreshing update on a classic.