In her entertaining Hannah Swensen Mystery Series, author Joanne Fluke has written another captivating book. The delicious mystery that started it all, Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder is a fantastic debut in what is to be a great series.

Joanne Fluke creates likeable characters from page one, as the main character Hannah Swensen and her loveable cat Moishe are introduced. From there, the reader seems to be part of Eden Lake, a small Minnesota town and meets everyone from the football coach to the local police man who devotes his time to giving everyone some sort of traffic ticket. With just enough detail, and all the latest scandal, it is easy to find yourself absorbed in this best seller.

The story kicks off as the Cozy Cow Dairy delivery man, Ron LaSalle, is found dead behind Hannah’s bakery, the Cookie Jar. Determined not to let her cookies get a bad reputation, Hannah finds herself working alongside the Deputy Sheriff, Bill Todd. When another worker at the Cozy Cow Dairy is found dead, and none of her suspects are checking out, Hannah is forced to take heed, as her sweet life may get burned to a crisp.

With the plot centered around chocolate chip cookies, it is natural to find yourself annoyed at the constant mention of sweets. To add to the frustration, at the end of every couple of chapters, Joanne Fluke has added original recipes that relate to the previous chapters. On a positive note, the seven recipes are quite good.
Obsessed with crime shows, Hannah is quick to question suspects and poke around the crime scene. It is bothersome at first, as it seems the Minnesota Police Department is not doing its job, but the reader must remember that this is a Hannah Swensen mystery. These errors are minor lapses as the book is filled with exciting twists and turns.

Over a two-year period, Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder combines the genres of mystery and romance into a good read. Tantalizing from start to finish, this hard-to-put-down, well-crafted series deserves to be read. The reader learns countless facts, from picking up fingerprints to making brown sugar; Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder gets two thumbs up!

Coming out this October, Plum Pudding Murder is sure to be another hit. Do not worry about the long wait, Joanne Fluke has twelve books in the Hannah Swensen Mystery Series.