It’s hard to believe that this is the twenty-fifth book in the Hannah Swensen series by Joanne Fluke, a native of Minnesota herself. I’ve always loved the firsthand descriptions given of the various seasons in Minnesota. It sometimes makes me want to be there in the winter, but only if I could get hauled around and not drive in the snow lol. I don’t know how she comes up with all the deliciousness or great titles, but I always pretend I’m enjoying whatever goody Hannah is cooking up. There are plenty of amazing recipes in this book. Maybe one of these days I’ll getting around to making some of them!
My Goodreads review:
Coconut Layer Cake Murder by Joanne Fluke
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
After reading the latest books in the series from about 22 on as arcs, I’d started thinking that someone else might have been doing the writing, because it wasn’t really up to how it used to be in the earlier Hannah books–the conversations were too simple and they used each other’s names way too many times to be natural. But since I just finished book 3 not even a week ago, I felt like it was recent enough to make a good comparison, and honestly this one was almost back to the style of the older books. There was still lots and lots of cookie talk and conversation…but hey this is Lake Eden, a small town that when I started reading these books, I’ve just learned that we get a lot of the people’s personal lives. It might not read like a regular cozy which focuses mostly on the mystery, but it’s awfully typical of small towns where there really isn’t much to talk about except someone’s health, the latest gossip, the weather or yummy food.
Speaking of yummy food, there were tons of great sounding recipes in the book. I have yet to make any of them in the series, but they sure sound good while I’m reading. It’s like I’m eating them in my mind and not gaining weight lol. The mystery did seem a little dragged out with how they had nearly half the police force sitting out the case, since it involved one of their own. But I wasn’t completely sure about who the killer was until Hannah came up with it. There was no cliffhanger ending to this book and to be completely honest, I hadn’t even remembered that there was one. I’m hoping that the future books are taking this path toward being more like the older ones.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC of this book provided by the publisher via NetGalley, and my opinions are completely my own.
Cuddle Up With a Cozy Mystery 