- ISBN13: 9780758210210
- Condition: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
Product Description
Between baking up a storm for The Cookie Jar and unravelling the mystery of her cat Moishe’s recent strange behaviour, Hannah Swensen has a lot on her plate. But she’ll always make time for her business partner, Lisa, who’s in the midst of preparing for a big family reunion. Everyone is delighted when Lisa’s long-lost uncle makes a surprise appearance. No one has heard from Gus in twenty-five years. Uncle Gus is immediately the hit of the reunion. He’s almost as popular as Hannah’s scrumptious carrot cake, which is also Gus’ favourite dessert. But the next morning, as the whole family gathers for the group photo, one person is missing. Hannah offers to track down Uncle Gus, but her search leads to a shocking fi… More >>
Carrot Cake Murder
The effect of this book is a good parallel to the flavor of Carrot cake, which is down-home basic, yet satisfying, with a variety of uniquely contrasting flavors surfacing with individual potency, combining to design a “yum” which craves a daily return. I wonder, though, with carrot cake being a simple spice cake with carrots in the mix… why is carrot cake so much more addicting than simple spice cake?
Well, think a minute… Carrots… those highly nutritious, crunchy, moist munchies which bunny rabbits have made famous… or which have made rabbits famous… Carrots… also known as those items which cajole a person to want to go further or to get more.
This is what Fluke’s series has done amazingly well, and Carrot Cake Murder has stepped up a plateau in enhancing each of the appeals of Hannah Swensen’s life and world. I’m impressed with how much this author has been able, in this # 10 in the series, to magnify those very signature elements which have grown (based on huge leaps in sales ranks with each book’s debut) readers at a phenomenal rate from the step out of each new book in this series.
At first, in beginning to read the series, one of the “carrots” for me was wanting to see which of Hannah’s two boyfriends she would marry, why, and how the one left out would take his fate. That curiosity was built to a peak, and many of her readers, including me, believed that the previous book # 9 (or was it the one before that) would finally get Hannah to the altar, standing beside either a cop or a dentist.
In that book, Hannah threw a curve which I thought was ingenious, in ending the novel with the love-triangle on a whole different ball game. I was both impressed and very satisfied with that ending.
In this book, Hannah accomplished another unique evolution of the characters in the love triangle, ending with another surprise, which worked perfectly for my entertainment reading needs.
What is really surprising to me, though, after having read and digested Carrot Cake, burp, is that I realize I’m hoping Hannah will stay single for quite a while longer, possibly throughout the series. She is a unique character on her own, and the evolving friendships with Mike and Norm continue to interest me as each of these characters is deepened. If Hannah were to get married, to one of these guys or to someone else, it appears to me that whatever guys were left out might have a hard time retaining reader interest. I would hate to permanently lose either of these guys from their prime spots in plots, and I’m no more ready than Hannah is for her to leave her full and satisfying life as a feisty single girl, cozily connected to her beaux (however many they become), her family, friends, and community.
(Note that I am a sixty-year-old woman who is in love with her husband and cherishes married life. Hannah is Hannah; I am me. I prefer Hannah and her creator to remain who they are and grow their own ways, which gives more spice to my reading than if they were to follow my footprints. I write my own novels for that.)
I enjoy Hannah’s world being so much like my situation was when I was growing up. Yet, even if my background didn’t have parallels, I would warm to the humor and spunk in this series’ characters. The interplay among all the characters, especially Hannah, Norman, and Mike, is entertaining, and would be to me no matter what Fluke decided to do there (even if Hannah did get married). The characters are appealing within themselves, however they relate to one another. Of course, I was curious about what Fluke would do with her trilogy this time, even though I was no longer expecting an ultimate resolution.
Reading the funny opening, taking place in church, with the statement by Hannah, “… the amen couldn’t come fast enough,” I easily slipped into the plot. I enjoyed Hanna’s courage to blurt out the announcement of the pastor’s upcoming romantic commitment. A church being packed with people of various religious backgrounds was an interesting contrast to Fluke’s intimate plot walk-outs, at home in the morning with her alley cat, Moishe.
Developed very well in this # 10 in the series were a few unique justifications for an amateur sleuth’s participation (and sometimes outright interference) in an official murder investigation.
(This type of justification is an ongoing necessity of amateur sleuth mysteries, because it’s well known that, in official investigations in the real world, these types of interfering situations could not, likely should not, be allowed. In this sense, amateur sleuth mysteries begin with a handicap, which various authors deal with in different ways.)
Take note of the several women who approached a reluctant Hannah with juicy, intimate tidbits, telling how each of them knew, from personal experience, that Gus was Gus. Of course each of these women said that they would NEVER tell these experiences to anyone but Hannah (and certainly not to an official investigator), and each soul bearer made Hannah swear she wouldn’t tell…
When I finished reading CARROT CAKE, I was easily able to say I loved it, as usual. Fluke moved up a plateau in the richness and warmth her series has been nurturing, enhancing each of the established assets of Hannah, her setting, characters, and plots with just the right touch of intrigue, and baiting of interest.
I count myself among the many readers who have found in this series a fun and spirited community they have easily come to love, and enjoy belonging to.
This series is more than a cozy mystery. To me, it’s better and kinder than the literary classic, MAIN STREET by Sinclair Lewis, though that novel served a special purpose as well. With Carrot Cake, Hannah’s world is moving very close to being a matched overlay to Norman Rockwell’s lovingly colorful scenes of Americana.
Compliments and best wishes to everyone involved in this accomplishment,
Linda Shelnutt
Author of several Kindle Books and Amazon Shorts, including:
Molasses Moon
Myrtle’s Ultimate Mystery
Full Moon Rising (The Books of Gem)
The Rose and the Pyramid (The Books of Gem) Rating: 5 / 5
The Cookie Jar owner Hannah Swensen is helping her business partner Lisa get ready for the big family reunion in Lake Eden, Minnesota. Relatives from all over the country are arriving and Lisa’s mother-in-law Marge is hoping that her brother Gus Herman will somehow hear of it and come. He left a quarter of a century ago in the middle of the night without telling anyone, leaving his family heartbroken and many residents angry because he vanished with their money.
To the family’s shock he does arrive dressed in an Armani suit, wearing a Rolex and driving a Jaguar. He flaunts his success which doesn’t endear him to many people. When Gus doesn’t show up for the reunion picture Hannah is dispatched to find him. At the Lake Pavilion, she finds his body, a wound on his chest. Marge and Lisa ask her to find the killer and resident Mac tells Hannah he saw Lisa’s father, Jack Herman walking around the time Gus was killed. Jack suffers from Alzheimer’s disease so his memories can’t be relied upon; the whole town knows that Jack and Gus had a fight before Gus left town. Jack also showed his anger towards at the reunion. Refusing to believe Jack could be the killer; Hannah continues to investigate and almost becomes the second victim.
Joanne Fluke writes a delightful and charming regional cerebral cozy. The protagonist uses her mind to discover the clues that lead to the killer’s identity and it is a pleasure to see a heroine who is not afraid to show her intelligence to the town’s residents. Hannah is the ultimate feminist a person who remains true to herself and refuses to conform to society’s female paragon.
Harriet Klausner
Rating: 5 / 5
In a cozy little town in Minnesota, three dynamic sisters dwell. Hannah, the oldest, has the cooking talent of a French gourmet chef. Andrea, the middle sister, has striking and dazzling beauty. Michelle, the youngest, also has the beauty that Andrea inherited from their stunning mother. All three sisters are savvy and lively.
Lake Eden, Minnesota is a cozy little town that I would love to live in. Characterization in this book is so vivid that you feel you personally know these people. There are characters that I feel I know and love. For example, Jack Herman is an example of a man that all men could look up to – a wonderful husband/father/person. Lisa Herman, his daughter, is a talented partner in “The Cookie Jar” coffee shop, a loving wife, an immaculate housekeeper, and has the best dad in the world. Luanne Hanks is a wonderful person that I highly admire – an honest hard worker, a loving and dedicated mother, and just an extremely noble person all around; she will one day make some lucky man a superb wife. Two winners who are after Hannah’s heart: Mike, the so-gorgeous-words-can’t-describe police and Norman, the cuddly and sweet dentist. These are just random examples of citizens in this town that I want to live in! But I got to know these characters over the whole series. Each book does stand alone, so it is okay to read them out of sequence, but I prefer to read them in order.
In this particular book, there is a family reunion for a week at Eden Lake. Lots of people are there, playing games, having activities, eating, socializing, etc. One of the family members ends up murdered. Hannah is determined to find the killer. She and her sisters are dynamic as usual. Norman is his usual cuddly self. Hannah’s adventures are fun and the book flows smoothly. I absolutely loved it!
Joanne Fluke has more writing talent than Hannah has cooking skills; than Andrea, Michelle, and their mother Delores have beauty; than Mike is breathtakingly gorgeous . . . I think you get the point. I cannot describe how good this book is (along with the entire series). This book is so cozy and so superb, it is hard to put down. It is over 300 pages, but it goes by very quickly because it is so good. I have 2 favorite cozy mystery series that tie for my number 1 spot: this particular series and Kate Borden’s Peggy Jean Turner series. This book, “Carrot Cake Murder”, is fantastic and magnificent, as is the entire series. I will sing their praises all day long. If you haven’t read any of the books in this series, you don’t know what you are missing. Rating: 5 / 5
I liken this series to being in junior high school and having cruches on two boys. I am almost embarrased to read another installment. Recently I wrote the author to ask if she would resolve the love triangle of the immature heroine but her response was disheartening and she basically said she had no control over what Hannah chooses and does.Weird. Rating: 3 / 5
I hope Joanne Fluke keeps writing more and more of these charming mysteries. I love to read about what happens to Hannah in Lake Eden, Minnesota. Rating: 5 / 5