Wedding Cake Murder
By Joanne Fluke
Kensington Books
Fans of Joanne Fluke’s Minnesota-set mystery series have
been anticipating the nineteenth whodunit, Wedding
Cake Murder, complete with tasty recipes as always.
As Hannah Swenson prepares to marry her college sweetheart, Ross
Barton, she’s also competing in a nationally televised baking tournament. Talk
about pressure for Hannah, but with the support of her family and friends,
she’s ready to take it all on—competition, a wedding and cooking on television.
In New York City to tape the first leg of the contest, Hannah
meets the judges and other competitors, then wins the Hometown Challenge and
brings the final rounds of the competition home to Lake Eden. Just as the rivalry
heats up, one of the judges turns up dead in Lake Eden Inn’s walk-in
refrigerator with a knife in his chest. Celebrity chef judge Alan Duquesne’s spiteful
reputation means there is more than one person with a motive to murder him,
including some of the contestants in the Food Channel’s dessert chef
competition.
I’m a fan of the Hannah Swenson cozy mysteries, but I will
admit I’m not thrilled with her marriage to Ross in this book. Perhaps the
author has something in mind for a mystery going forward and this is part of
that story arc, but Ross seemed to come out of left field after readers
invested many hours following Hannah’s efforts to decide between Mike and
Norman, rooting for one or the other to become Hannah’s partner in crime!
Readers will not be disappointed with the mystery or Hannah’s
sleuthing escapades in Wedding Cake
Murder. It’s an easy read and it’s nice to visit with the Lake Eden
residents once again.
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