In the interest of full disclosure I know the author and would consider her a friend.

I’m not a huge cozy reader, but I loved this one. Probably in large part because I’m obsessed with coffee and I liked that the protagonists were their own bosses. This book has a lot to say about coffee and Sage and Harley feel like real baristas. But you know, nice ones that don’t make you feel stupid because you don’t know what a latte macchiato is. I genuinely felt invested in their business and wanted them to succeed.

Another thing I liked is that everyone is a suspect and it’s really difficult to figure out who seems the most guilty. The story is complex and has a lot of information to keep you guessing, but not so much that it’s super confusing. Though there are like 20 characters so I did have a few moments where I was like wait who is this again? But I really appreciated the complexity because I’d rather struggle to remember someone’s family tree a little than be bored.

There’s also some exploration of homelessness in America that I felt was well done. It does a good job of tackling a serious subject in what is meant to be a light read.

My biggest gripe is that the person I considered the main suspect is never mentioned as a suspect and I’m like come on, is no one going to say it? No one’s thinking it but me? That really held me back from finding Sage’s thoughts about whodunnit believable. I think we’re meant to see Sage as being in denial about the possibility but I would have liked her to think it at least once, even if just to dismiss the idea.

My smallest gripe is the lack of information about this goat. How’s the cutest character going to vanish half way through the book never to be heard from again?

If he doesn't appear in Double Shot Death I'm going to petition Emmeline write Ground Rules #0.5: A Goats Tale.