Double Shot Death
At Campathon, an annual eco-friendly music festival held on a farm outside of Portland, fans celebrate the Pacific Northwest’s music scene in quintessential PDX style, with gourmet food carts, reusable utensils, camping… and lots of coffee. How else to get through three days of nonstop entertainment? Sage has scored a coveted place for her Ground Rules coffee cart thanks to her new-ish boyfriend, Bax, who’s friendly with Maya, one of the musicians performing.
The festivities begin with a stream of customers, friends, and acquaintances stopping by for Ground Rules’ world-class blends, expertly brewed by Sage and her newest barista. But there are tensions between Maya and her former bandmates, who are on the cusp of making it big, with Ian, the band’s manager. When Sage stumbles upon Ian’s dead body in the nearby woods, his hand still clutching one of her coffee mugs, it’s clear that someone’s grudge boiled over into murder. Can Sage work out who’s responsible before another innocent life fades out, and the curtain falls on Campathon, and maybe her own future, for good?
The Details
Series: A Ground Rules Mystery – Book #2
Author: Emmeline Duncan
Genre/Category: Cozy – Coffee/Music
Publisher: Kensington Cozies
ISBN: 149673341X
Page Count: 288
Rating: 
The Review
Double Shot Death is the second book in the “A Ground Rules Mystery” series. The story is easy to follow, fun to read, and who doesn’t like a good cup of coffee? Add in a music festival with egos and old grudges, throw in three days of camping under the stars, and you have a scenario made for murder.
Sage is taking Ground Rules to the public in an all-new way. Her cart will serve up incredible blends of coffee to the music-loving camping fans for the next three days. It sounds like a blast until someone decides it’s the perfect time to commit murder. Sage is found standing over the body, and some of the other cart vendors are pointing their fingers directly at her. But it doesn’t take long for the police to figure out that Sage doesn’t have a motive to kill a stranger, but that doesn’t stop them from keeping her on the suspect list. Suddenly making coffee, listening to music, and camping isn’t as fun as she thought it would be. It doesn’t take long for the killer to strike again. Could someone she knows be the culprit, or are these murders about rivalry and jealousy?
The characters in this series are fun; they are young and full of ideas. I would have liked to see more of Sage’s business partner, Harley in this story, she seems to play too small of a part in the series to matter, but hopefully, that will change. Suspects are sprinkled throughout, and all have a possible motive. Evidence is there, but readers may have to dig a bit to uncover the more interesting clues. The music festival is entertaining but has been done quite a bit in other cozy series, as has the coffee angle. What sets this series apart, however, is the coffee cart idea, and for this book, the camping gives readers an unusual location.
The victim has secrets, and few of the music festival goer’s even notice his passing. The killer will come as a surprise to most readers. Although I knew early on who the killer was, the motive eluded me until all the pieces to the puzzle were presented. Readers will be delighted with the resolution of the investigation. I don’t think I want to go camping any time soon; this story reminded me of what I dislike most about camping and why I don’t do it anymore! Overall, I enjoyed Double Shot Death and anticipate that this series will continue to grow with each new book.
The Author
Emmeline Duncan is a mystery writer based out of Portland, Oregon. Emmeline/Kelly is a board member of the Northwest Chapter of the Mystery Writers of America and co-organizes Friends of Mystery’s Bloody Thursday lecture series. She’s also a member of Sisters-In-Crime, Willamette Writers, and SCBWI.
Readers will want to read book one in the A Ground Rules Mystery series, Fresh Brewed Murder for a refresher or, if they are new to the series, for a delightful debut intro.
Represented by: Jabberwocky Literary Agency
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