Key Lime Pie Murder

Hannah is up to her knees in murder gain as she discovers another dead body and as with the other books in this series; she is up to her knees in cookies, coffee, other baked goods, two guys competing for her affections and the regular cast of Lake Eden. Her quirky cat also plays a significant part in this one...I love her cat. This is one of those series that is simply fun to read. I will be honest here and admit to you that I do not take the mysteries in these books by Joanne Fluke all that serious, and I have the distinct feeling that the author does not either. I really don't feel they are set up as traditional "who done its," but rather pleasing little vehicles to describe the life in a small Minnesota town. As with the other books in this series, Hannah, et al are kind of caught in a time warp, especially Hannah who is thirty something, is not married, has rejected cell phones, computers and many of the techie stuff we are all surrounded with on a daily basis. Her attitude toward sex, excitement, game playing is right out of the 1950s. This in a strong way is quite refreshing. I rather admire the author for sticking to her guns. In this story, Hannah is the baking judge at the annual town get-together, her younger sister is in the beauty contest, her mother is still trying to get Hanna married off and our heroine is still baking up a storm at her cookie shop and home while consuming mass quantities of coffee. I do not that in this offering that our young Miss in mentioned to have put on about twenty extra pounds...hmmm, I wonder why. Anyway, one of the ladies connected with the pageant is murdered, in a rather brutal way and guess what? Yup, Hannah finds the body. Furthermore, our nosey redhead immediately sets about the task of solving the murder. These are simply written books and are quite predictable. If you are looking for something that will challenge your mind, leave you gasping in awe over the twisting turning plot, or are looking for some torrid love scenes, then you probably should look else where. These, as I stated, are simply fun books to read; good ones to kill (no pun intended) a rainy Saturday with. The author has again been kind enough to share in great detail, many of the recipes included in the book. I have, like in the past, tried some of these edible delights and the author has come up with some winners here. For a good enjoyable read, one that will not tax you all that much, you could do worse. Now if you are looking for great literature, Greek tragedies, complex Victorian syntax, complicated plots or jaded romance, then there are literally thousand upon thousands of those lining your library shelves...go read them. Don Blankenship The Ozarks

I can almost smell the hotdogs and taste the onion rings; I can almost hear the music; I can see the horses trotting and feel the dust swirling. The atmosphere of the carnival and rodeo is cozy and satisfying and warm and pleasant. I think this book is the best one of the series, even though they are all superb and you don't think a book can get any better. This book is special because of the carnival and rodeo atmosphere. The midway brings me pleasure and contentment. A fair theme is one of my favorite themes. Hannah is a judge for the baking competitions at the fair. The foods she judges are so good you can almost taste them. The chocolate cherry coffee cake, key lime pie, cappucino royales, Kitty's Orange Cake, just to name a few, are enough to make you feel you are in tastebud heaven. Hannah finds a body, and she is determined to find the killer. Her sisters are wonderful and helpful to her. There are some wonderful, fun, and funny adventures in this book. Character development is so good and vivid that it is amazing. The clues and mystery are clever. This entire series is the perfect example of "cozy". This series is my favorite series. There are no words to express how cozy the atmosphere and how clever the mysteries of this whole series is. A lot of the books in this series take place in winter, so the snow is an added bonus to the coziness in those books. This book, however, takes place in summer, and the carnival/rodeo is a very unique added bonus to the already cozy atmosphere. On a scale of 1 to 5, 100 stars wouldn't be enough for this book. This book is cozy, comfortable, clever, incredible, satisfying, fun, and funny.

Each of the books in the Hannah Swensen Mystery Series is terrific. Hannah is a very likeable character and very easy to relate to. The mysteries have enough twists to keep you guessing, but give you enough clues to make it fun to figure out "who did it." As an added bonus, the recipes are great! From this particular book, I've tried the popovers and honey butter. Both were super easy and absolutely delicious. I also highly recommend trying the blueberry muffin recipe from the book of the same name. My only problem with this book (hardcover edition) would be with the editing/proofreading. Hannah, herself, is a stickler for good grammer and proper word usage. She would not have been happy with the mistakes found in her novel. Most common were extra words in a sentence (an example might be: The girl went went to the store.) I've noticed this slightly in previous books in the series, but it seemed more prevalent this time. Just something the publishers might want to watch out for. Otherwise, this was a very enjoyable read! I highly recommend it.

Joanne Fluke never fails to please, but gosh darn it, Hannah needs to make a choice about her boyfriend. This is getting ridiculous! As you might have guessed from my beginning, Hannah, Mike and Norman seem to be back where they were a few books ago - nothing's really changed. Norman is just so PERFECT!!! AGHHHH!!! Anyway, in his mystery, Hannah is judging events at the local fair when one of the judges is murdered. The one thing here is Hannah seems to go through this mystery half-asleep - almost on auto-pilot. This really detracts from the story line because is more of the side characters moving Hannah around than her doing things on her own. While I like the side characters, it just isn't the same. The plot and characters of Lake Eden, though, are irrestible and well worth the time to get to know. The recipes are even wonderful and well worth the time to make! I can personally vouch for the Swedish Oatmeal Cookies - my husband LOVED them.

The Tri-County Fair has opened in Lake Eden, and it promises to be a busy week for Hannah. Her cookie shop is providing cookies for the chamber of commerce booth, her two sisters and one niece are in various contests, and Hannah has agreed to step in as the third judge for the baking contest. It's through the contest that Hannah meets Willa. She seems like a bright, engaging woman, but she hints at secrets in her past. The mystery surrounding Willa is only compounded when Hannah finds her dead on the midway just after closing one night. The list of suspects is actually rather long. But who hated Willa enough to kill her? These books are an equal mix of charm and mystery. We get doses of Hannah's life as well as the crime at hand. There is a good mix of the two, although the mystery does stall ever so slightly around the middle. My bigger complaint was Hannah's bad habit of not sharing info with the police. That seemed more of an issue this time around then in previous books, or maybe I just noticed it more. It's best to read these books in order because when you do it feels like catching up with old friends who are as delightful as always. And, if you care about what is happening in their lives, you'll enjoy the many sub-plots that run through the book. The character moments provided some of the best laughs of the book, especially the scenes where Hannah continues to face her two suitors. This is the most unrealistic storyline of the series, but I love watching the love triangle continue to unfold. As always, there are more recipes as well. This go around, we get 16 of them. I've already tried the title recipe, and it's delicious. The others sound just as promising. Even though this is a murder mystery, the book is a throw back to small town life and a more innocent time. If that appeals to you, you'll love this series.