Review.- Christmas Cake Murder

Title:    Christmas Cake Murder

Author:  Joanne Fluke
Series:  Hannah Swensen #23

Genre:   Cozy Mystery

Publisher:   Kensington

Format:  Kindle ARC
No. of Pages:  225

Date of Publication:   September 25, 2018

My Rating:  4 Stars

DESCRIPTION:

It’s Christmas many years ago, and topping young Hannah Swensen’s wish list is becoming the go-to baker in Lake Eden, Minnesota. But as Hannah finds out, revisiting holiday memories can be murder . . .

With her dream of opening The Cookie Jar taking shape, Hannah’s life matches the hectic December hustle and bustle in Lake Eden—especially when she agrees to help recreate a spectacular Christmas Ball from the past in honor of Essie Granger, an elderly local in hospice care. But instead of poring over decadent dessert recipes for the merry festivities, she instantly becomes enthralled by Essie’s old notebooks and the tale of a woman escaping danger on the streets of New York. Hannah’s surprised by Essie’s secret talent for penning crime fiction. She’s even more surprised when the story turns real. As Hannah prepares to run a bakery and move out of her mother’s house, it’ll be a true miracle if she can prevent another Yuletide disaster by solving a mystery as dense as a Christmas fruitcake . . .

Link to purchase the series

MY THOUGHTS:

Revisiting the past can have unexpected results, especially when a mystery enters the picture. Hannah Swenson is on her way to becoming a baker extraordinaire, and her talents and skills have been requested to recreate a Christmas ball from the past. The event is to honor dear Essie Granger, who is currently in hospice care. As Hannah plans on what delectable desserts she will make for Essie’s honor, finding Essie’s old notebooks takes her down a different path.

Is it autobiographical or is it fiction? That is precisely what Hannah wants to know. As the story unfolds, Essie’s story becomes more clear. 

Since I’ve devoured this entire series, I wanted to give you a heads up that you won’t have to choose between Team Norman and Team Mike. This book actually starts early in Hannah’s career, before she even has to think about her choice. In fact, even though this is Book 23, it’s actually the perfect prequel for the entire series. Hannah’s relationship with her mom and sisters plays a big part in this story, all while she also explores Essie’s old notebooks. 

So, if you are lover of this series as I am, this early look into Hannah’s life was a nice switch. It was nice to see how her family coped with her dad’s passing and to also see her sisters starting out in their lives. 

Many thanks to Kensington Books and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion. 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Like Hannah Swensen, Joanne Fluke grew up in a small town in rural Minnesota where her neighbors were friendly, the winters were fierce, and the biggest scandal was the spotting of unidentified male undergarments on a young widow's clothesline. She insists that there really are 10,000 lakes and the mosquito is NOT the state bird.

While pursuing her writing career, Joanne has worked as: a public school teacher, a psychologist, a musician, a private detective's assistant, a corporate, legal, and pharmaceutical secretary, a short order cook, a florist's assistant, a caterer and party planner, a computer consultant on a now-defunct operating system, a production assistant on a TV quiz show, half of a screenwriting team with her husband, and a mother, wife, and homemaker. 

She now lives in Southern California with her husband, her kids, his kids, their three dogs, one elderly tabby, and several noisy rats in the attic.  

Joanne Fluke has baked over 500,000 chocolate chip cookies for fans of her Hannah Swensen mysteries since the series debuted in 2000, not to mention countless pies, cakes, muffins and other sweets.  However, it’s not just the desserts that keep readers clamoring for her next novel.  Reviewers have long praised Fluke’s work, with Kirkus Reviews calling her novel PEACH COBBLER MURDER, “her tastiest yet.”  Publishers Weekly said her holiday Hannah Swensen Mystery, SUGAR COOKIE MURDER, is “a delectable culinary romp…[with] wacky and delightful characters.”

Fluke’s CHERRY CHEESECAKE MURDER marked her debut onto The New York Times bestseller list in March 2006, and she followed up that success again a year later in March 2007 with her second New York Timesbestseller, KEY LIME PIE MURDER, praised by Publishers Weekly as “Yummy…Fluke has developed a charming supporting cast—all feel like friends by the time the murder is solved.”

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