Peach Cobbler Murder: A Hannah Swensen Mystery with Recipes [Hardcover]

Joanne Fluke (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2005

With The Cookie Jar, Hannah Swensen has a mouth watering monopoly on the bakery business of Lake Eden, Minnesota. But when a rival store opens, tensions begin to bubble...As she sits in her nearly empty store on Groundhog Day, Hannah can only hope that spring is just around the corner - and that the popularity of the new Magnolia Blossom Bakery is just a passing fad. The southern hospitality of Lake Eden's two Georgia transplants, Shawna Lee and Vanessa Quinn, is grating on Hannah's nerves - and cutting into her profits. At least Hannah has her business partner Lisa's wedding to look forward to. She's turned one of Lisa's favorite childhood treats into a spectacular Wedding Cookie Cake. And Lisa's aunt will be bringing her famous Peach Cobbler to the reception. But Hannah starts to steam when she finds out that Shawna Lee has been invited - and is bringing her own Peach Cobbler. Hannah doesn't like having the Georgia Peach in the mix, especially when both Shawna Lee and Hannah's sometime-boyfriend, Detective Mike Kingston, are no-shows to the wedding. Hannah has suspected that Mike is interested in more than Shawna Lee's baking abilities. So when she sees lights on at the Magnolia Blossom Bakery after the reception, she investigates - and finds Shawna Lee shot to death. Everyone in town knew the Cookie Jar was losing business to the Magnolia Bakery - a fact that puts Hannah at the top of the initial list of suspects. But with a little help from her friends, Hannah's determined to prove that she wasn't the only one who had an axe to grind with the Quinn sisters. Somebody wasn't fooled by the Georgia Peaches and their sweet-as-pie act - and now it's up to Hannah to track down whoever had the right ingredients to whip up a murder...

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Fun...frothy...Enchanting recipes...presented with helpful procedural tips and an extra bonus."

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Kensington; First Edition edition (March 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0758201540
• ISBN-13: 978-0758201546
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.9 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (59 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #275,257 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Joanne Fluke is the New York Times bestselling author of more than 20 novels. Like Hannah Swensen, she was born and raised in a small town in rural Minnesota, but now lives in sunny Southern California. She is currently working on her next Hannah Swensen mystery and readers are welcome to contact her at the following e-mail address, [e-mail], or by visiting her website at www.MurderSheBaked.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

58 of 59 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Rival Bakery Leads to Murder, March 24, 2005

By 

Mark Baker (Santa Clarita, CA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Peach Cobbler Murder: A Hannah Swensen Mystery with Recipes (Hardcover)

It's no secret to Hannah's friends that Hannah is no fan of Shawna Lee Quinn. But that's especially true since Shawna opened the Magnolia Blossom Bakery right across the street from Hannah's own shop. Business is looking pretty poor, and if things don't change soon, Hannah and Lisa might have to close their doors.

On a happier note, Lisa and Herb's wedding day has finally arrived. So what if Shawna Lee has promised to bring her famous peach cobbler to the reception. It's only a minor dark cloud on an otherwise bright day. But Shawna Lee never makes it to the reception. Running by the bakeries afterward, Hannah finds Shawna Lee's dead body. With one of the best motives in town, Hannah knows she's got to act fast to make sure she doesn't wind up behind bars for a crime she didn't commit. But with most of the town at the wedding, who could have committed the murder?

Reading Sugar Cookie Murder, I thought to myself that Shawna Lee would make a great murder victim. Obviously great minds think alike. While the murder aspect starts out a little slowly, I really didn't mind because there was still plenty going on with these friends. And once Hannah finds the body, things really begin to pick up. Clues lead to a place I never would have imagined, but is absolute genius.

Any fan of the series will be pleased with the latest entry. If you aren't, I do recommend starting at the beginning since you really need to read them in order to gain the full appreciation of the characters. I can't wait to visit with them again.

52 of 58 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I'd give this 6 stars if I could, February 28, 2005

By 

E. M. Marks (Van Nuys, CA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Peach Cobbler Murder: A Hannah Swensen Mystery with Recipes (Hardcover)

Joanne Fluke weaves a wonderful tale of murder, love, and (maybe) betrayal, spiced with humor, and, of course, mouth-watering treats. There is just the right amount of recipes in this book (I felt the previous book had too many recipes at the end, shortening the story).

The story progresses swiftly, the characters are well defined, and there are many twists, as just as you are sure one person must be the murderer, you find another person who may be even more likely to have done it.

Another murder from a few years ago and over 1000 miles away is woven in with the main story, adding to the excitement, and to the suspect list.

Joanne does an excellent job of wrapping up every loose end and providing closure to every situation that came up, except the enjoyable ongoing struggle of will it be Mike or Norman who wins Hannah's heart.

This was a very satisfying and enjoyable read.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hannah at her best!, September 9, 2005

By 

R. A. McTeague (USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Peach Cobbler Murder: A Hannah Swensen Mystery with Recipes (Hardcover)

In Peach Cobbler Murder, Hannah becomes humbled as her business takes a nose dive when competition hits town. When one of the co-owners is murdered, Hannah becomes suspect #1. To make matters worse, one of Hannah's beau has been spending time at 'night' with the victim.
Joanne Fluke once again spins magic in a mystery by involving the character's realness. If you didn't like the character of Hannah in the other mysteries by Fluke, you can't but help but fall in step with Hannah as she tries to find the real murderer before she's jailed. By the time she is putting the clues together, you will be cheering her on, as she deals with the personal emotion involved with the 'beau'. And the surprise ending is absoluting Fluke's creativeness - I can't wait for the next one to find out the answer!