Cream Puff Murder (Hannah Swensen series Book 11)

Delightful Hannah Sweeney has been sampling too many of her delicious cookies and can't get into the dress she will wear for a special event, so it is off to the gym with her sister Andrea. When she finds the exercise teacher Ronni in the Jacuzzi, both her boyfriend Mike and Andrea' s husband Bill are on the suspect list. Throughout the past books, Hannah has been unable to decide between Norman, the hometown dentist, and Mike, the handsome police officer. This mystery shows up some flaws in one man's character. Will Hannah seriously consider them? Love the characters and all the delicious cookie recipes. Easy read. Two cats are adorable also!

I have been reading this series over the summer, and the first 2 or 3 books were fun. However, they are 80% story and 20% recipes. At this point, I think I'll just pass by the rest of the series and go to the last one to see if Hannah actually marries anyone. She's in her 30's, Mike and Norman are in their 30's, it's just not realistic that they can get by with a cuddle and kiss every now and then. Mike is the only realistic character in this series. Every time a new 'hot chick' comes to town, he fools around with her, and it's very predicable that she will be murdered and Hannah will come to the rescue and solve the murder. The characters have not developed in this series at all.

I enjoyed reading the first 4 books so I ordered the rest of the series (I am missing one because I’m waiting for it to come out in paperback)The type of book you can put them down for 15 minutes or 2 days, pick it back up and never miss a beat. Fun, lighthearted and bonus recipes in each book.

Hannah returns, still with two main admirers, and now, the murder victim is one of the admirer's "romantic" interests. Because of the victim's popularity with the police department, many of the officers are prohibited from working on the murder case. They are also prohibited from contacting Hannah about the investigation. However, there are ways of avoiding direct contact, while still getting their instructions passed along. Hannah originally intends to not investigate. Best intentions fall to the wayside as the pressure mounts on the suspects, many of whom Hannah knows and cares for. Hannah begins the inquiry into the murder, only to find she is being forcefully directed in her methods by several police officers. The story unfolds in an entertaining and suspenseful manner.

I really enjoyed this series in the beginning but have grown tired of its form. Nothing ever changes and Hannah's inability to choose a man or even manage a hot and steamy night with one of them leaves the reader tired of her constant indecision. It also seems that the end of the last book presented a new twist to her love dilemma which was completely dropped and never mentioned in this book. I don't know how the author thought that no one would notice. I enjoy seeing the recipes and while some sound very good, I never actually tried making any of them.

I like these books as a light and fun distraction. The recipes are great too but only of you are cooking/baking for a lot of folks! The only thing that really bothers me about these books is the persistent love triangle. No self respecting woman would still be considering the character of Mike as an eligible spouse. He is increasingly disrespectful throughout the course of the series, whereas the character of Norman would be the perfect husband. The idea that Hannahs character is holding out for Mike belies a shallowness and superficiality in her character that the author seems to adamantly portray Hannah as NOT having. Except when it comes to men. It really annoys me.

If you are looking for a solid murder mystery, do yourself a favor and get an Agatha Christie. If you're looking for cute cookies that will take an entire day to make (seriously who has the time for most of these?) then by all means, Hannah Swenson is for you.This time she needs to fit in a dress. The dress has been ordered but Hannah seems to have gained some weight. While joining her sister Andrea to work out, Hannah stumbles across the dead body of one of the personal trainers. Ronni, the murdered woman, was known to be rather free with her favors and there is more than one possible suspect, including three of Lake Eden's own police force.

Story was good and I did not have an inkling who did it this time. I baked two of the cookie recipes and plan to bake the Brownies Plus recipe for Sunday Family Dinner tomorrow. The Candy Bar Bar Cookies went over big time with everybody, but a word to the wise, if you refrigerate these cookies overnight, microwave or set them out for the chocolate to get to room temperature before serving. I decided to try a leftover at lunchtime today and the chocolate was hard as a rock, but I set them out an hour before I gave them to friends tonight and they loved them. Another enjoyable book. Thanks Joanne Fluke. Starting Plum Pudding Murder tomorrow.

Pleased with my book, very good condition.

Good

Really enjoy this series and this was no exception,Ms Fluke does it again! An antidote to the woes of the world!

really enjoy the plots of the story but can be spoilt by recipes, interesting characters and enjoyable read to be had

Great read