Hannah Swensen is at it again in this adorable and fun loving murder mystery. When a baseball anti-hero is found dead under the bleachers by Hannah's mom, it takes an army to figure out who dun it. Filled with sweet treats and loads of recipes that are bound to be crowd pleasers, once again Joanne Fluke combines mystery and food wrapped up in a great and entertaining package.

Fans will 'eat' this book up-others, not so much. It took forever for the plot to get going with much chat and cookies; as usual Hannah mixes baking with murder. Sometimes it works and in this book it mostly doesn't. The plot is basic: unpopular jerk gets murdered which makes every person in town a suspect. There is quite a bit of chit-chat at the Cookie Jar where everyone has coffee & muffins to discuss every detail of everything that just happened and Hannah interviews suspects since apparently the cops defer to her superior wisdom? That was weird and made no sense. The usual plot points we expect from the series are here with characters dropping in to impart wisdom and snark, Hannah still on the fence over Norman vs. Mike, a contrived and unbelievable "Hannah in danger" scene which is quickly wrapped up as the murderer is revealed and we all head out for a celebration dinner. But this odd mess of a book isn't over yet, dear reader; a plot twist is thrown in at the end that sets up the next book. The whole story was odd with the plot jumping all over the place and Mike was very weird in this one. I think Joanne is ready for Hannah and Norman to make a decision so she is trying to make it work for Mike, too. But, it was just strange. I've been a fan of this series since book one so I was disappointed in this entry but will be reading the next one. Only 3 stars. I would like to thank #NetGalley for my copy; this is my own opinion.

Oh no...I've read every book in this series and I keep coming back for more, but at this point, I don't know why. In the last 3-4 books the writing quality has truly gone so downhill that it's distracting from the already loose plot line. Is this a ghost writer? Joanne Fluke's writing style has changed so much and not for the better. It feels amateur. The need to express unnecessary details, the word repetition, and action repetition really bothered me. For example, early on in the book Andrea knocks on the back door of The Cookie Jar and then scolds Hannah for not looking through the peephole. Hannah then tells her to not be silly since Andrea has her own unique knock. Then at like 75% of the way through the book this scene happens AGAIN! I genuinely had to check to see if my Kindle accidentally jumped backward. Unfortunately, this is just one example of many. I do not consider myself a writer by any means, but I found myself reading the frequently clunky and awkward sentences and editing them myself as I re-read the sentence, because it was so off.

Alright, let's discuss plot. Things didn't make sense. Mike is burned out, Stella has him on a relaxation retreat at her family cabin by the lake. Now, 29 books in, Hannah is a welcomed asset to the police department? I don't buy it. Also, they act like Mike couldn't just leave of his own accord. He could. The tough love that Stella suggests is weird. It's as though no one knows how to think for themselves anymore. Hannah is considered observant and in this book she sounds dim. Hannah's mom ends up being the prime suspect, but not really. No one believes it and she begs to be considered as the prime suspect so they agree... that's just beyond my suspension of reality. Oh and is Stella, Mike's new love interest? I don't get it.

Lastly, the series hasn't aged well. I don't mind that the book is squeaky clean, but the shaming that occurs in this book is so dated. I also think it's bizarre that they all drink alcohol, but bend over backwards to never swear or speak plainly. It's gone to an extreme where characters are speaking in unnatural ways.

I see a lot of folks saying they will come back for the next, because they are loyal to Hannah's story, but I have to be honest, I won't be. It's unfair to readers that this is the product being delivered. I can't imagine this book would make it through edits without a lot of feedback. I love Kensington Books, but fans of Hannah Swensen deserve a proper Hannah Swensen book, this feels like a bad knock-off.

I would give this book 3.5 stars. This story is about a baseball tournament taking place in Lake Eden between eight teams in the local area. One pitcher, nicknamed No-No, had lost his job in major league baseball but will be pitching in the tournament. He's done some despicable things around town and is unliked by many people. When Delores loses her phone in the bleachers at the tournament, she finds his body lying there, along with a baseball bat. Various people who have beefs with him are asked to come to the Cookie Jar for informal interviews with the police detectives and Hannah and Norman (this seems a bit bizarre to me!) The resolution came quickly, but during a celebration dinner, a cliffhanger makes readers anxious for the next book.

Thanks to NetGalley for an advance copy of this novel.

Pink Lemonade Cake Murder is the latest Hannah Swensen Mystery written by Joanne Fluke. If you've read my reviews in the past, you know I've read all the previous ones and the books are very simple and straightforward. More pages devoted to recipes and less to the plot. So... when I consider my ratings and reviews, I incorporate those boundaries into my thinking. Unfortunately, this one got even lighter... the murder happens to unlikeable guy, check. The primary suspect is someone close to Hannah, check. The list of victims comes from a bunch of places, check. But that's where it got strange - repetitive, upside down, and quite boring. The cops helped keep the detective out of town so Hannah could investigate. The chief took direction from Hannah. And the story ended without a conclusion to the detective's predicament. It also made it sound like Hannah had finally chosen Norman over him, but it was weird. And then the huge ending with a personal impact to Hannah and Norman that just sets up a new mystery without any context. Oy... good thing I love these characters!

I feel like I would have enjoyed this more if it hadn’t gone off Fluke’s typical formula.

Probably my least favourite in the series.

Pink Lemonade Cake Murder
By Joanne Fluke
Pub Date: July 25, 2023
Kensington Cozies
Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
This author writes wonderful cozies!
This is #29
* Character Driven Plot
* delicious dessert receipes
* another murder in Lake Eden
The story ends as expected but the author does add a juicy cliffhanger to keep us coming back next time.
3 stars

Love this series and author. Looking forward to the next book in the series. Hopefully it comes out soon. Happy reading

This installment of Hannah’s detective series was good. Again the book is full of great cookie and crockpot recipes. Mike wants to quit the force due to burnout, but Hannah enlists the help of the community and Mike’s trainer, Stella, to convince him he is wrong. Of course there is a murder and Mike wants in on the action! The ending has a great cliffhanger but I wish it didn’t take so long for the sequel!

Good book. Interesting story. All the regulars were here. The book is a quick read, partially because so much is taken up by recipes, notes and directions. Those were easy to pass through to get back to the story.

I really enjoyed a good cozy mystery. I watched some if these books on the hallmark Channel as movies. This book didn't disappoint. The bonus is there is even recipes in it.. thus book was approved by netgalley and the publisher for me to read and review.

#PinkLemonadeCakeMurder #NetGalley
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an E-Arc copy of this novel.

I have read each and every one of Joanne Fluke's Hannah Swensen books. I have to say, that this book is the least entertaining of all 29 of them. The writing seemed very choppy and did not flow well at all. That being said, I am invested in the characters, and I did like the overall idea and plot of the story for this book. I just feel like the writing left much to be desired.
I felt as if I was able to guess very easily who the murderer was, and the ending was rushed.

Hannah Swensen is participating int he Tri-County Summer Solstice Celebration and her deserts are to die for, making them a popular treat with the attendees. When a retired baseball player, whom Hannah’s mother was not pleased with, is killed, her mother becomes one of the main suspects in the man’s murder.

Hannah has to step up to bat and hope for a homer as she works to prove her mother’s innocence. Can she figure out whodunit, or will she strike out?

Book 29 in this series and it is still as interesting and engaging as the first book. You know you’ve got a fabulous series when there are this many entries in the series. If you haven’t spent time with Hanna yet, here’s your chance! Each book reads fine as a stand alone, but with a total of 29 books, you’ll have a great series to binge on!

I mostly enjoyed this book. I did get irritated by the name calling the townspeople we’re doing of the girls who rode with No-No, it’s 2023 people, women can wear whatever they want without being sluts. I thought the reveal of the killer is a bit abrupt and I couldn’t figure out why there are 2 chapters after that, although I did figure out that it’s setting up the next book. #PinkLemonadeCakeMurder #NetGalley

As soon as I received the email announcing my review copy for this new Hannah Swensen mystery, I jumped right into reading. Not surprising as I have been reading this series since book 1 came out in 2000. I'm a die-hard fan of Hannah, her sisters, Norman, Mike....and all the characters from Lake Eden.

This series is one of the first cozy mystery series I ever read. Probably The Cat Who... books were the first. But this one was definitely my favorite back then. I eagerly awaited each book, and wondered if Hannah would ever make The Choice (faithful readers understand exactly what I mean there).

I will faithfully read each book in this series until the end. 29 books in I can't really abandon the series.

But.....

With a heavy heart I'm going to post an honest review.

I love this series. I love the characters. The recipes are always yummy. And there are always cute moments and some good amateur sleuthing. However, the writing quality has taken a noticeable nose-dive over the past few years. I will stand by my opinion expressed several years ago that I firmly believe these books are no longer written by the same author. I have no facts to support my guess, other than the drastic changes in writing style and quality of this series.

The problems:

Constant repetition. For example, in this newest book, Hannah repeats the ingredients for a stew she cooks for supper at least four times. Over and over again. Each character that enters the room gets the explanation for her lovely stew all over again in entirety. Character and recipe names are also repeated again and again. Makes the dialogue very clunky and hard to read. It's poor executed story padding and bad writing.

Recipes and cooking explanations overused. This is a culinary cozy series, so cooking/recipes are part of the subplot. But, poorly written dialogue and constant references to cooking and recipes completely overshadowed the mystery portions of this new book. I love the recipes, and I used to enjoy mentions of Hannah's culinary creations to fluff up the story. But it's very obvious that the cooking subplot is being used as padding to make the story significantly longer.

Non-engaging and poor attempts at suspense. The mystery and investigation is almost non-existent. The mystery wraps up in a predictable manner. And the cliff hanger at the end is ridiculous.

I referred back to the first few novels in this series. This is not Joanne Fluke's original writing style. Not even close.

It's amateurish writing, plain and simple. The dialogue is terrible. The mystery plots are getting shorter and simpler, with very little time spent on any investigation or suspense/action. The recipes and cooking have taken over almost the entire book and the story is padded so much to add length that I had a hard time reading this book in its entirety, even after being a Hannah fan for 23 years.

For a couple books, it got better. With this new book, it seems the glaringly bad writing is back. How did this book ever get past an editor in this condition?

I will read the next book. I'm a Hannah fan and I will stick by this series until the final book. But I just shake my head and wonder how the books are getting through the editing and publishing process without having some serious edits and re-writes.

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Kensington. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**

I am a huge fan of Joanne Fluke, so this book did not disappoint. A thoroughly entertaining and enjoyable read once again, full of wonderful characters and mouth watering recipes. I highly recommend this book.

The 29th installment of the Hannah Swenson series by JoAnn Fluke, Pink Lemonade Cake Murder reads just like a 60s sitcom. Not only are the characters unbelievable as real people, but the scenarios are silly and don’t really happen in real areas in America.

Over the years the Hannah Swenson novels have gotten more and more wordy; this one which has 304 pages could be done in 100 pages if the repetitive words were omitted. It is reminiscent of adding as many meaningless words as possible to get enough words on a term paper. The scenarios have also gotten ridiculous; this one is where all the characters gather at The Cookie Jar to try to get Mike, who is suffering from burnout, to stay with the force. Honestly, who cares? There is also a sub-plot where a baseball star, who has been blocked from playing baseball forever, has come back to Lake Eden to play in a tournament that Lake Eden is hosting. He is cocky and has angered several citizens of Lake Eden by parading through town with scantily clad girls riding on the back of his convertible. His nickname is No-No, and he is found murdered by Delores, Hannah’s mother. Hannah is involved in solving the murder, as usual, and uncovers several clues by questioning her friends and others who may be involved. This novel has very little suspense.

All told, this is the hokiest Hannah Swenson mystery yet. There are several good recipes, but they aren’t written in the traditional manner; rather they are written so that any moron who has never boiled water could make them. For most of us who know how to cook, the format of the recipes is definitely an insult to our intelligence. This reviewer has read all of the Hannah Swenson books, and this one proves that Fluke should stop writing while she is ahead. This one may be worth it for the recipes, but the story is stupid.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this book.

Pink Lemonade Cake Murder, Joanne Fluke, 4/4/23

3.5 Stars

I have been reading Joanne Fluke’s Hannah Swensen Series for years. These books are top notch in the Cozy Murder Mystery genre’ and I go to them when I need a fun light read. I enjoy revisiting the silly cast of characters living in the small town of Lake Eden. The enclosed recipes are always a special touch. Unfortunately, Pink Lemonade Cake Murder didn’t quiet rise to the occasion. The characters didn’t seem themselves and the storyline was missing that spark that I have come to expect from this author.

Even though this wasn’t my favorite book of the series, I will continue reading every book Joanne writes as I generally love them. I recommend this series to everyone who enjoys cozy mysteries.

I am grateful to Author Joanne Fluke, Kensington Books, and NetGalley for allowing me the opportunity to review this Advanced Reader’s Copy. This is a voluntary review, and all comments and opinions are entirely my own.

Another cute installation in the Hannah Swenson series! It’s always nice to catch up with this cast of familiar characters! It is exactly what I have come to expect and love about the series. An easy and fun read! Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Cozies for the ARC!