In Vodka Veritas — Tina Whittle

Author's Note: I didn't become a fan of cocktails until my fifties. Before then, I was a wine and beer gal, nothing too fancy. And then I learned to appreciate the charms of a single malt scotch, which led to dalliances with cask-aged sugarcane rum, Brazilian cachaça, and Polish bison-grass vodka.My protagonist Tai (who was a bartender before she became a tour guide before she became a gun shop owner before she became a sleuth) shares my appreciation for all things shaken and stirred. Trey...not so much. As this story demonstrates.In Vodka Veritas takes place on September 21st (Trey's birthday) following the events in Darker Than Any Shadow. It's not a mystery—there is no crime and therefore no crime solving. It instead presents another chapter in Trey's backstory (including his knack for poker) and reveals a competitive streak that Tai will become very familiar with in future books.