Sugar Cookie Murder (Hannah Swensen Holiday Mysteries)
by Joanne Fluke
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Book Summary Information
Author: Joanne FlukeEdition: Mass Market Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2005-10-01
ISBN: 0758206828
Number of pages: 352
Publisher: Kensington
Book Reviews of Sugar Cookie Murder (Hannah Swensen Holiday Mysteries)
Book Review: Minnesota & Mistletoe. Holiday Wreathed Lake Eden; Holly Berry Heaven In a Lock Down Blizzard
Summary: 5 Stars
As reviews have noted, this book is half story and half potluck recipes. Both are yummy. I enjoyed the leap into the reality of my kitchen of Hannah's characters tweaking, testing the recipes which I knew I'd have available. The names and flavors of the recipes were (even more than normal) a part of the main plot. As I skimmed through them in the "cookbook" section after finishing the story, I recalled them fondly from the story, and each one became a unique, "history" laden treat.
Now I'm wishing I could also buy the hardback and am hoping copies remain available for a while; a hardback would allow the pages to fall open more easily than a small paperback, for reading or copying a recipe, all of which are easy, and above-board tasty enough even for a wild, hair-brained "cook" like me who rarely follows a recipe.
The opening to the story was a yummy, ingenious capture, featuring Hanna's dream, not of Jeannie, but of a huge, mushroom-scented meatball which rolled out of her closet and paused at the foot of her bed to read her the riot act, every word and page.
As usual, the plot spread out like melted butter, with the recipes, in a sense, becoming the setting, while the winter survival routines in Minnesota took a back seat this time (except in a few prime cases) to the surges of more recipes wanting to be added, with all those submitted "dying" to be included, and with all of them being prepared and tested at a Christmas gala.
Shawna Lee showed up in early plot schemes and Hannah was allowed to project her dark-side seething toward Shawna, which took some of the heat off Hannah's mother. In this one the early morning phone call from Dolores didn't even get a hiss from Moshie, though it did get spits of steam (well chewed down) from Hannah's habit. Poor Mother Dolores; she's such a well-staged, perfectly-designed character to be a scapegoat for heaping disgust and impatience upon, to allow readers a release in that common need.
Mike was a Fluky fool when it came to seeing through the machinations of a woman like Shawna Lee. It was easy for me to snicker with Hannah's hate there, and cheer in hiding. But, I still can't help but feel sad for Dolores each time Moishe hisses at her and Hannah makes it so painfully clear that her Mother is one of the most unwelcome persons in her life. In my darker moments (I have plenty of those, too), I'd wonder if Fluke might culminate this series with Dolores as murder victim, or, more likely, murderess.
Still, lots of followers of this series are probably busy women impatient with a mother's interference and neediness as the Mom grows older and feels less on top of her own life. Dolores is several steps above (below), though; she's been painted perfectly as a wrong Mom from the beginning of her career as mother.
In this one, Big D was painted as a fool in love and we were given pleasantly surprising hints that Hannah could be protective of her mother in that area, yet Hannah didn't seem to actually care about Dolores, as much she was being protective of what was hers, as Hannah met Dolores's Regency Romance, the British lord, Winthrop II. (Is that the right #?) Was he for real? (Dolores did get a short, truly heroic scene in this one, for which even Hannah admired and thanked her.)
Skipping onward and upward to the warm spots, I can honestly say I was hopeful for a delay of the murder, and was relieved that it didn't occur until the holiday event had gotten well into the phase of relishing many of the pot luck entrees. So much time and care by so many people had gone into the preparation of those recipes. I had visions of Sugar Plums going sour as characters' mouths watered in vain. Instead, each recipe was mentioned and described as it was placed onto the banquet tables. I was smug-ly happy knowing that all these taste treats were at my fingertips in the second half of the book. And, since the story part was 200 pages, it really wasn't that much shorter than the other stories in the series. The half-and-half measure of plot to pot luck recipe collection was deceiving in making the plot appear too short. It was just right in my book, even though I admit that I may have been disappointed if I hadn't known ahead of time that half the book was dedicated to the recipe collection.
From my perspective SUGAR COOKIE MURDER was an ingenious holiday offering, which would also be a satisfying read during off-holiday seasons. The abundance of descriptions of preparation and presentation of the food items was warming and yummy. Being snowed in under such high flavor was a great entertainment escape, especially for a reader who's a hermit and rarely attends holiday galas or any type of party gatherings, community or otherwise. I'm such a stick-to-myself I have a hard time going to family reunions; I enjoy family intimacy one-to-one. I don't do well in groups beyond 4 people. So, this book's a gift for me to "be" in this type of intimate community holiday event which is intensely difficult in real life, and to slide into recipes when I rarely have time or energy to actually cook from one. Many in this collection appear accessible even to me, given their simplicity, lack of hoards of off-beat ingredients, and sheer mouth-watering appeal.
I love the way the recipes take such a strong role in the plot they not only become setting (as mentioned above), they almost become characters.
I like the way the Cookie Jar community of Lake Eden condensed itself further from the small town boundaries, to the community center walls and parking lot, contained within that arena with food and a simple but thoroughly satisfying agenda of entertainment, most of it around the culinary concoctions, social interactions, and a school jazz band. It seems that Fluke has proven the point that small towns are very much NOT, as Brandi Wyen whines, boring; in fact they're the antithesis of that for people who aren't boring themselves.
I wondered if an investment to prove his point might have been one of the reasons Fluke had the murder occur midway into the plot instead of staging it closer to the beginning, to prove that Hannah's "Cookie-Jar-Town" didn't need murder and detecting to make it an interesting, satisfying read (is there a contrast to Sinclair Lewis here). Fluke perfectly piled on every small town charm, without making it too sweet or sentimental, interjecting plenty of spice and savory, even with the food expanding every-which-way beyond Hannah's basic but crafty cookies.
After Fluke accomplished her goal of dramatizing the luscious luxury of Lake Eden regulars condensed into a caring community carnival in their center for a holiday bash, THEN this mystery diva popped the murder and sizzled it perfectly (on ice), with a twist in the resolution which returned full circle to her original point of dramatizing The Good Life and The Good People.
Like a Partridge in a Pear Tree denouement, a new baby was brought into the fold as a delicious "line dance," floor-pacing was performed poshly without practice, in the maternity ward hallway.
As I've mentioned in prior reviews, Fluke is a genius, but she's so, so subtle. And that light touch enriches the reader satisfaction as we're fooled (while reading; but afterthoughts can be telling) into thinking her stories are mere confections for entertainment. How mere are confections? How potent is entertainment? Are those the questions?
As a bonus for me, in this plot I noticed the best hints about whom Hannah will marry, and I'm now 99% certain I know. Prior to SUGAR COOKIE, I honestly had no clue, and enjoyed that state of perfectly balanced confusion. I'm almost ready, though, to read the book which does the deal. Maybe after I've relished the Peach in the series (which I have; see my review and Listmania).
SUGAR COOKIE MURDER is a winner, a complex (much more than I would have imagined or anticipated), perfect gift to buy for yourself during any season when you need a lift into the inner warmth of a Minnesota winter holiday.
The before, during, and after effect is better than Prozac.
Take the small-town-sugar-pill! For whatever ails you, It's better for you than any type of "real" medicine.
Linda G. Shelnutt
Summary of Sugar Cookie Murder (Hannah Swensen Holiday Mysteries)
- Includes over fifty original recipes!- Audio and large print rights were sold for Sugar Cookie Murder, as well as for Peach Cobbler Murder, Fudge Cupcake Murder, Lemon Meringue Pie Murder, and Blueberry Muffin Murder
- Fudge Cupcake Murder was a Featured Alternate Selection of the Mystery Guild.
- Blueberry Muffin Murder was a Book Sense 76 Top Ten Mystery Pick.
- Will appeal to fans of food mysteries by Diane Mott Davidson.
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