FRESH BREWED MURDER by Emmeline Duncan is a standard cozy mystery! I was interested to read this once since I’m a coffee lover but this book takes the coffee to the extreme! The main character, Sage, owns a coffee cart in Portland and discovers a murder right by her cart. In the first three chapters the same metaphor was used three times! Most of the book was about Sage making coffee and dealing with her coffee business. The murder was barely a part of her life and her storyline. I don’t think I would read the next book in this series as I know everything about coffee now! The recipes at the end were a nice touch.
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Thank you to Kensington Books via NetGalley for my advance review copy!

I truly enjoyed this story. It was a fun quick read. I could have done with a little less focus on the advocacy though. However, that's not enough to keep me away from this series. Already looking forward to future installments!

An entertaining and well written cozy mystery. Great plot and character dynamics. I highly recommend this book. I received an advance ebook from the publisher and Netgalley and this is my unbiased review

This is the first in a new series.
It didn’t particularly grab me as I didn’t connect with the characters.
It was a very contemporary cozy which isn’t always the case.
I voluntarily reviewed an advance reader copy of this book.

New series set in Portland, Oregon's hip coffee food truck scene. Young amateur sleuth and barista, Sage Caplin, finds a dead body soon after she opens her coffee cart, Lots of story lines that are ripe for development in future entries in this intriguing series

I had a great feeling about this cozy murder mystery and I was right! I craved ALOT Of coffee during this book about a hipster run food truck with high end coffee.

Fresh Brewed Murder is the first book in a new culinary mystery series. Set in Portland, featuring coffee culture with an engaging amateur sleuth, Fresh Brewed Murder is an exciting modern cozy.

20-somethings Sage and Harley are opening a coffee cart in the competitive food truck world. Some of the other vendors are jealous that Sage has been given a prime location. Others dislike that she gives away food and drinks to the local homeless people.

One morning, Sage discovers a murdered customer, in front of her cart. Even worse, he was killed with a box cutter from her cart, making her the prime suspect. Now she has to unravel layers of mysteries involving local property development, protesters, her estranged mother's past misdeeds, and complicated family ties.

Such a fun book! Emmeline Duncan brought Portland to life for me. I enjoyed the coffee talk and never felt like it was an info dump or page filler. Sage and Harley felt authentically knowledgeable about coffee- roasting the beans and creating beverages.

She handled homelessness, runaways, and gentrification sensitively.

Sage, with her humor, dating angst, desire to give back, and conflicted feelings about her own past is a well-developed and believable main character. I wanted to hang out with her while drinking one of her coffee creations.

Freshly Brewed Murder is a fast-paced, quick read with a twisty mystery. The book has a great sense of place, conversational style, and an engaging, spirited main character. I can't wait to read more about Sage, her quirky family and friends, and her further coffee business adventures.

Loved the story of this cozy mystery and how it was brought to life. Never been to Portland, but I was easily transported into a loving part of this city. Emmeline Duncan wrote, “....I felt like I was glowing as I looked around. This wasn’t only a ramshackle lot. It was a community. Being a part of it made me feel warm inside.” That’s exactly how I felt! I felt like I was part of this sweet, quirky community of random people, who fit like a family. My only issue was quite a lot of grammatical errors throughout the book. Some sentences didn’t read fluidly. Loved the main character, Sage and her connection with her friend/co-owner Harley. Hopefully this turns into a series!

What a great read. I read it in one sitting. The story was very engaging. The characters are sweet and adorable. My favorite is Sage.I thought this fast paced cozy mystery was exceptional and I loved it. I definitely recommend this series.

So happy I had the chance to read this! I love the cozy mystery genre, but they're not always as modern in terms of social issues as I wish they were. This one was, which I very much appreciate, while also including a delightful and twisty little mystery. Will continue to follow this series!

Fresh Brewed Murder by Emmeline Duncan left me craving coffee and the next book in the series! This book is perfect for modern cozy mystery fans. Set in Portland, Oregon. Sage and her business partner Harley are opening a coffee cart in a food cart lot. Everything is going well until a local developer turns up murdered. Sage finds him which launches her to prime suspect. Faced with life behind bars and a premature coffee cart closure Sage launches her investigation. I loved seeing different parts of Portland included in this book. It was fun and felt so recent. Perfect introduction for new readers to the mystery genre or someone who wants to read something more current.

This is the first book I have read by Emmeline Duncan, and it won't be the last. I was immediately sucked in to the food cart scene and could feel the Portland vibe coming through the pages. The main character, Sage Caplin, is easy to relate to. I love her knowledge of coffee. I am kind of a coffee snob myself, so I relished in her rich description of roasting beans and the deep delicious flavors of freshly brewed java. Sage has an interesting back story, which we learn as the book develops. She and her friend, Harley have opened a coffee cart in downtown Portland. Land in Portland is very valuable, so the food cart owners are understandably nervous when a developer comes around trying to buy their land. When said developer ends up dead in front of her food cart, even Sage's police officer father can't keep the detectives from sniffing around. Things become more complicated when Sage realized there is a family connection to the dead man.

I really enjoyed this book. I found it to be quick read, mostly because I didn't want to stop reading! I enjoyed how the story line progressed and Sage's relationships and business grew. She and Harley are always looking for new opportunities to spread their love of coffee!

Such a quintessential cozy mystery. This book was exactly as advertised. I love the way the author dove into the coffee world while still maintaining the elements of mystery and murder. Great read!

A mystery with a bit of real meat on the bones is just what is needed for a read of quality entertainment! Strong characters that are well fleshed out, a multi-dimensional plot that will have you furiously turning pages to try to figure out "who done it" and real issues that we deal with daily run as an undercurrent to make the book feel more realistic! Great wit, good suspense and a great setting makes for a great read! I can't wait to read more from this author especially with these characters!

I enjoyed this new entry in the cozy mystery genre and its fresh take on it. The plot revolves around Sage Caplin, a millennial running a coffee cart in Portland and a murder that occurs nearby. The character's voice was fresh and easily believable as a young 20-something in hipster Portland. The author did not shy away from adding real issues like homelessness in her story, yet still made it feel like a light-hearted murder mystery. The conclusion of the mystery was solid and it brought all the storylines together. I can't wait to read Sage's next adventure!

New author for me. I enjoyed reading this book. . Hopefully you do also. Can't wait for the 2nd book in the series. If you haven't read it yet I highly recommend it.

I enjoyed this book. I thought the middle was a little bit slow but overall the pacing of the book is good. I liked the characters, they're well rounded. I enjoyed the recipes at the end. I did not suspect who the killer was, it was a surprise. #FreshBrewedMurder #NetGalley

Received an eGalley for an honest review.

I am very happy that I was allowed to read the first book in this cozy-mystery series. I loved the coffee aspect (hello I am a coffee addict!). The whole mystery was well-hidden and confusing enough to keep me reading until the end. I thoroughly enjoyed the character development. The love triangle also added a fun aspect to this story. Cannot wait to read the next book in the series and catch up with Sage and Harley!

Cute little cozy set in Portland and chock full of coffee. Characters are distinct and interesting. This is the first of a series and as a reader of this first one I am definitely curious to see what will happen next.

While I love a good cozy, this book was almost too "hippish" for my tastes but it did have some good qualities to it. Will not read anymore in this series. Thankful to NetGalley for providing a copy to me.