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Christmas Cake Murder
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
33 posts | 26 read | 12 to read
Its Christmas many years ago, and topping young Hannah Swensens wish list is becoming the go-to baker in Lake Eden, Minnesota. But as Hannah finds out, revisiting holiday memories can be murder . . . With her dream of opening The Cookie Jar taking shape, Hannahs life matches the hectic December hustle and bustle in Lake Edenespecially when she agrees to help recreate a spectacular Christmas Ball from the past in honor of Essie Granger, an elderly local in hospice care. But instead of poring over decadent dessert recipes for the merry festivities, she instantly becomes enthralled by Essies old notebooks and the tale of a woman escaping danger on the streets of New York. Hannahs surprised by Essies secret talent for penning crime fiction. Shes even more surprised when the story turns real. As Hannah prepares to run a bakery and move out of her mothers house, itll be a true miracle if she can prevent another Yuletide disaster by solving a mystery as dense as a Christmas fruitcake . . .
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Sharpeipup
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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Rainy day reading in the new coffee shop near us.

Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Pretty ☕️ 3mo
25 likes1 stack add1 comment
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Traci1
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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So, my dog may be a ginormous butthole, but my oldest kiddo is really sweet. I got a package this morning. He'd found me a replacement for the book Poppy ate. 😊 The original one wasn't particularly sentimental to me, but this one sure will be.

Ruthiella So sweet! Definitely keep it on a high shelf. 11mo
Traci1 @Ruthiella yep it's on the top. 😁 11mo
Bookzombie That‘s so lovely! 11mo
57 likes1 stack add3 comments
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NovelGirl82
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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I haven‘t taken declarations down yet, so finishing holiday reads still seems appropriate…

19 likes1 stack add
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NovelGirl82
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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I got a pedicure and made cookies for my husband to take to the hospital for his nurses tonight, so this is where you‘ll find me until it‘s time to cook dinner. This is my one day off this week/weekend, so I‘m going to take advantage of at least part of it. Happy Christmas Eve to those of you who celebrate!

LeahBergen Happy Christmas to you! 🎄🎄🎄 2y
AmyG Merry Christmas 🎄 2y
17 likes2 comments
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Q84
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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Pickpick
TheSpineView 😊📖📚 3y
47 likes2 comments
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Chili
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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Bookgoil Doing great! 3y
Andrew65 Great 👏👏👏 3y
22 likes2 comments
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ElizaMarie
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
Bailedbailed

So I tried to read it. But I just couldn‘t get into it. The characters were so unbelievable and I failed to really care about their Christmas baking parade thing.. blah. I just couldn‘t ... eh.

Go #TeamNutcracker !!! ❄️ #WinterGames

@Bookworm54 , @Clwojick , @StayCurious

1 point participation

Running total 3,034

Cosyreader I haven‘t read the books but I loved the films! It‘s the Murder She Baked series :) 4y
ElizaMarie @Cosyreader ooo maybe they would be good. I mean the women were very “high class“ which normally I don't have a problem with that normally or anything but. it just seemed really unlikable like they didn't have real drama or anything it just seemed weird to me. Maybe its one of those you have to be in a different frame of mind to want read it? oh well Also I don't bake so... the recipes weren't a big thing for me. but... thanks for the suggestion 4y
5 likes2 comments
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ElizaMarie
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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So I picked this one because I thought it might be cute but then reading everyone‘s reviews gives me serious doubts! But I‘m listening to it while my hubby watches wresting and I post pics from the last few days.... it‘s a short audio. So.. maybe I can last it?

Go #TeamNutcracker !!! ❄️ #WinterGames

@Bookworm54 , @Clwojick , @StayCurious

1 point participation ⛄️

Running total: 2,887

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Susanita
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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Tedious descriptions of everyday activities, stilted dialogue, some odd choices of wording, weird recipes, and a HIPAA violation or two thrown in for good measure. Not really much of a “mystery” here, but at least we should have a fun book club discussion! Saved from being a “pan” because I like the idea of a Christmas cake parade.

Bklover I read my first Joanna Fluke book about a week ago and was not impressed. The “mystery” was silly, the characters idiots, and yes- the recipes were weird. I though maybe I had just picked the wrong one to start with. 4y
24 likes1 comment
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Hestapleton
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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Panpan

This book was a horrible mess. No murder until the end, atrocious writing, stomach-churning recipes. But I did it for the points guys! #teamfozziwig #wintergames #holidayread
+21 points

BarkingMadRead Thank you for making the sacrifice lol 4y
StayCurious That's such a great picture! 4y
Susanita Oh dear. I‘m about to start it for book club. 4y
See All 9 Comments
Hestapleton @Susanita it‘s short and goes fast, so you have that going for you. This was my very first cozy mystery, so it could be I don‘t “get” the genre yet too. It has great reviews on GoodReads. 4y
mabell This one is far into the series. And I really enjoyed the beginning (of this series.) Ugh I hated this book. A cozy series I love is Donna Andrews‘ Meg - this one is a few in, but it‘s a holiday read! (edited) 4y
brit91 😻😻😻😻 4y
Susanita Yeah this book is not good. 4y
Hestapleton @Susanita I find it‘s better if you eat a piece of chocolate every time one character uses a stilted address for another: “of course, Mother.” 4y
Susanita LOL! A friend of mine has a parrot that calls her mother, and that's what I'm thinking of every time. 4y
46 likes9 comments
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Inkblotsandcoffeestains
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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Mehso-so

This was a so-so book for me. I liked the premise of the story, however I felt like the actual writing just wasn‘t great. A lot of conversation between characters felt forced, or over explained. I was able to finish the book only because I wanted to know how it would end. #holidayread #wintergames #merryreaders @Clwojick @StayCurious

Clwojick 21 pt 4y
7 likes1 comment
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ferskner
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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A pretty terrible picture of a pretty good cake. I made a white cake filled with red fruits jam and frosted with a luscious Swiss meringue buttercream and gold sprinkles. The event was my boss's work anniversary, but we turned it into an impromptu holiday party. I love a festive cake!

#wintergames #tmskellington #festiverecipe @Crimson613 @StayCurious @Clwojick

coffees 26pts! Ahhh I love cake!! 4y
JazzFeathers Oh, my goodness! I might steal the idea for this cake! 4y
Crazeedi Yum!! 4y
61 likes4 comments
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TheQuietQuill
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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Panpan

I don‘t know why, but the style of writing really frustrated me. It was so repetitive, and I‘m so glad to be done with this one. Onto the next!
#wintergames #elfies #holidayread

@Bookwormjillk @StayCurious @Clwojick

34 likes1 comment
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Laura317
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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Panpan

This book was a no-go for me. I finished it, but it seemed far-fetched. Everyone was perfect, mom had money to throw at anything, and the main character, Hannah, was boring. I kept waiting for action but didn‘t get it. The recipes in the book sounded good if I actually cooked.

FantasyChick Oh no! I was looking at this book too but I might just pass on it now. 21pts for Holiday Read :) 4y
CogsOfEncouragement I almost started this today, but after remembering that I did not enjoy the first book in the series all that much, and reading reviews on this one, I decided to pass. 4y
Laura317 Yeah @FantasyChick @CogsOfEncouragement I can‘t recommend it. 4y
27 likes4 comments
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TheQuietQuill
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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My husband is amazing ❤️ It‘s been a rough few weeks for me, and I was diagnosed with Graves Disease. He knew something was wrong, and to help me feel better he bought me the new Kindle. I may be in pain, but at least I now have my awesome kindle and books (and my hubby) to keep me company. I can‘t wait to start reading on this for the #wintergames

@StayCurious @Clwojick

#elfies

StayCurious I hope participating in the #WinterGames will help cheer you up and provide some lovely distraction. Sending you hugs 🤗 4y
TheQuietQuill @StayCurious it definitely will ☺️ 4y
Bookwormjillk We‘re going to have fun this month! I hope it helps take your mind off the pain. 🤗 4y
See All 9 Comments
TheQuietQuill @Bookwormjillk it‘s going to be so much fun 😊😊☺️☺️ 4y
TheSpineView That is so sweet! He us a keeper! 4y
Princess-Kingofkings Hugs to you as you travel this new road. 4y
TheQuietQuill @TheSpineView He sure is! ❤️ and @Princess-Kingofkings Thank you ❤️ 4y
Tamra Very sweet and I hope the Kindle is a lovely distraction. 4y
tournevis *hugs*That sucks, but knowing helps. And you hubby is super sweet. 4y
44 likes9 comments
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TheBookishSock
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
Bailedbailed

🌟
I just couldn‘t get past the first 30%. The story inside the book is more interesting than the actual book content. The majority of what I read was written is passive voice - which I loathe (writing about past events in active voice is possible and much more engaging). Whenever a plot point is introduced it is then repeated two or three times because the main character repeats herself to other the other characters.

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Traci1
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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Panpan

Blech! ?? (and that's generous)

The "mystery" event occurred about 30 pages from the end of the book. I would never have finished this book if it hadn't been so short. As it is I feel like I wasted the 2 hours I spent reading it.

Now to try to finish Children of Blood and Bone for the #24B4Monday.

ScarletQuill That's why I never got into this series -- 2/3 of the book was random small town life happenings, the murder happens towards the end and thenit's over. Not what I came here for, please. 5y
65 likes1 comment
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Traci1
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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I think if I rolled my eyes any harder at this book they'd fall out of my head. Hannah is explaining how to turn on a gas fireplace. By flipping a switch. "Do you push the switch down to turn it off?" No Lisa. Pushing it down calls the monkeys. ?

This has no purpose in the plot. It's filler. In a 270 page book. That has about 80 pages worth of recipes. And as of page 62 has no mystery at all. Except for the mystery of why I'm still reading it.

TheBookgeekFrau 🤣🤣 5y
Coffeedaily I admit to only reading recipes. I lost interest several baked goods ago. 5y
BookNAround Your last line. 😂😂😂 5y
Kelly_the_Bookish_Sidekick 🤣🤣🤣 This is hilarious! I'm sorry the book was a dud but your review got a genuine cackle out of me, so Cheers! 5y
75 likes4 comments
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Traci1
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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Starting on this one. Mine is a signed copy, and it got me wondering if authors (and other people who put their autograph on lots of things) start out trying to have a nice, pretty signature and just devolve into chicken scratch over time, or if everything they sign looks the same.

DivineDiana 🤔 5y
wordzie 😎 5y
CoverToCoverGirl I can clearly see that that says Joanne Fluke 😳 because I read hieroglyphics too! 😃 Always lovely to have a signed book though. 5y
Traci1 @CoverToCoverGirl I know hers really isn't all that bad. I've definitely seen worse ones. I bought my daughter and her best friend signed copies of John Green's Turtles All the Way Down, and he signed like 200k of those suckers. I think the girls' were probably like his 189,000th or something because it's pretty unrecognizable as human writing. 5y
75 likes1 stack add4 comments
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mabell
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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A Christmas-time mystery that isn‘t very Christmas-y, this is one of the Hannah Swenson stories that is not sequential. Taking place in the past, shortly after the passing of her father, we learn how Hannah came to have the Cookie Jar. That aspect is interesting for longtime readers, but the story itself (also a story within a story) is rather a downer. I don‘t think this is one I will revisit.

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Reita325
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
Mehso-so

I am addicted to mystery series and follow many different kinds. I am also a completist. If I like the first couple in a series, I end up reading all of them. One doesn‘t expect a series to become unlikeable after 15/16 books but I became annoyed with Hannah and haven‘t enjoyed the series since she got married. This one is short and takes place before Hannah has her cookie shop. The author, I fear, has either lost her way or grown bored.

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Rhondareads
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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A few weeks after Christmas and this lovely cover has me nostalgic.Wonderful assortment of books came in the mail today.Thanks @flatironbooks for Birthday by Meredith Russo ,fsg& Kensington books my tbr is so delicious.

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mrsh62010
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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My mom LOVES these Hannah Swenson mysteries. Found this signed copy for her Xmas gift

tpixie Perfect!! 5y
21 likes2 comments
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BethM
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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Thank you so much @Theshadedbuffalo for a lovely package! New to me books that are Christmas themed- I can't wait! I always used to open my shoe on St. Nick's- it was wonderful to start the tradition again! Thank you @Avanders you're the best 😘#stuffedstockingswap #sss

Avanders 😍🎄❄️🥰♥️ 5y
76 likes1 comment
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Bourriquet76
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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My version of a festive read

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ShelleyBooksie
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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Panpan

This one was a pan for me. The characters in this book were to "picture perfect" and lacked any depth to interest me. The story line was flat and very predictable.

6 likes1 stack add
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TheHeartlandBookFairy
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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Pickpick

I won this sweet little book and it is the prequel to the series that I've been reading. It was fun to go back to the very beginning And see how it all started! Now I will be sharing these books in my Heartland Little Free Libraries 😁📚❤️

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actualdisneyprincess
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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Mehso-so

I really don‘t know how to classify this one, because the ending was sweet, but the rest of it was such a chore to read. I‘ll call it a so-so because it‘s got that Hallmark Christmas Movie feel-good feeling, but...that doesn‘t mean the writing was good. 🤷🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️ #christmascakemurder #hannahswensen #joannefluke #onlyhereforthecookies

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actualdisneyprincess
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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WILL SOMEONE PLEASE EXPLAIN TO ME WHY I KEEP READING THIS SERIES BECAUSE IT HAS GOTTEN ABSOLUTELY HORRIBLE AND RIDICULOUS AND I SWEAR TO GOD THERE‘S A THIRD-GRADER GHOSTWRITER WRITING FOR JOANNE FLUKE. I DO NOT NEED TO KNOW THAT MUCH ABOUT AN APARTMENT COMPLEX SHE ISN‘T MOVING INTO. Also, Hannah has done that stupid “parroting what everyone else has just said” thing the whole damned time. 🙄 #christmascakemurder #joannefluke #hannahswensen #wtf

Ashley_Nicoletto 🤣🤣🤣 5y
Pamwurtzler 😂😂 5y
derr.liz I love when you post about this series because I relate 100%!!! So bad...but can't stop ? I even started playing bingo with myself based on all the repeated phrases and events that happen in every book like "too late for a breakfast cookie, too early for a lunch cookie" 5y
actualdisneyprincess Omg I SHOULD DO THAT. “I love everything you bake, dear.” Every time Hannah repeats what someone else JUST SAID, VERBATIM. (I‘m so glad it‘s not just me lmao.) 💖💖💖😂😂😂 5y
13 likes4 comments
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actualdisneyprincess
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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Guess I‘m not done torturing myself with this series...🙄 #christmascakemurder #hannahswensen #joannefluke #cantkickthehabit

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Librarybelle
Christmas Cake Murder | Joanne Fluke
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Mehso-so

I was really anticipating this one, as the previous book in the series ended in a major shocker. But, alas, this is a flashback Christmas story. This one was just meh. Not the greatest in the series, though the recipes sound good. I‘d call this one more of a Christmas story than a mystery.