Hannah solves another murder in her town of Lake Eden. This time it involves family and too many other suspects. The whole time everyone stays well fed with great recipes

I received an Advanced Reader Copy of this book from Netgalley. I really do love the Hannah Swensen novels, but this one seemed rushed. The murder was a good one, the resolution of the murder was surprisingly different than the previous novels, and I always enjoy the recipes. However, I would have liked there to be a little more resolution in Hannah's life and story. She just seemed to be still hanging in limbo after Ross's death.

After twenty-seven books (and a few short stories), I am invested in this series and the characters. With that being said, this was one of the worst books in the series. Nothing happened with the characters. It was all about the mystery being solved. Readers want to know about the character's personal lives, as well as the mystery. I understand wanting to keep readers guessing about Hannah and Norman/Mike, but it's really time to just make the leap. The whole rational/suspicious mind dialogue was awful. It took away from the story and was just weird. If this is how the next books are going to go, I feel like I could skip the next 5 books and not miss anything.

Thank you to Netgalley and Kensington Books for this review copy in exchange for an honest review.

What I liked about this book:

Hannah Swensen is one of my forever favorite characters ever. I live in a small town in Minnesota, and to have a bakery/coffee shop would be a dream come true. I will always love the feisty intelligent, red haired Hannah!

The amount of coffee consumed and cookies and desserts devoured in this book reminds me so much of my Scandinavian upbringing, the nostalgia is most welcome.

Hannah is perpetually stuck in about 2005? I don’t mind that nothing ever changes from her Suburban to the technology that no one seems to ever upgrade. I find it charming.

The recipes! I have never failed to enjoy a recipe put into one of JoAnne’s books. Although, I do worry for a Hannah’s business a bit because I see “we’ll test this new recipe on the customers tomorrow” about every other chapter. 😬

The murders still surprise me, even though these cozy mysteries are not meant to be too difficult to follow they are still enough of a challenge to entertain.

What didn’t work as well for me:

I have read almost every one of the books in this series so I feel like I am qualified to say that sometimes I wonder if JoAnne is still writing these herself? The dialog in this book is really difficult to read. It’s stilted, and so shallow. There used to be so much more depth than Hannah and Norman spending a paragraph arguing which of them is “nicer”. More than Hannah and Michelle politely asking each other to get plates and tinfoil and some plastic wrap. Something is amiss, it just doesn’t feel like the same Hannah I met in The Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder, or my favorite: Peach Cobbler Murder.

Hannah’s refusal to be in a relationship with Norman after literally being on again off again for 27 books is getting disturbing. They designed a house together and she’s living there for pete’s sake. At this point Hannah is literally looking like an emotionally abusive person clinging to Norman’s good deeds but giving nothing in return.

Overall, I haven’t loved the last 3 or so books I this series, I am hoping it’s just a bit of a slump because I honestly recommend these books to everyone who asks about Cozy Mysteries. I hope to see Hannah make a triumphant return to form in the next book.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

If you are familiar with this series then you will enjoy this book. While you could read it as a standalone book, you would lose a lot of the backstory that was created by the previous 26 books.

In this installment, Hannah is juggling a busy Easter season at her bakery with helping her sister who is accused of murder. While this isn't the deepest or most literary read, it was enjoyable and a good next installment in the series.

People who follow this series will want to read. When Andrea is found at the scene of a murder and the prime suspect, it is up to Hannah to help solve the mystery. There are so many suspects that Mike welcomes Hannah's interference. The only disappointment was there were no further insights into Hannah's late husband's death. Hannah is learning to let others help her which includes teaching Andrea how to bake! Norman has Hannah living at his home because it is too hard for Moishe to go back to the condo and Hannah doesn't want to leave her cat! As usual, there are some incredible recipes shared and the whole Lake Eden gang awaits!

Hannah's sister Andrea gets into a verbal argument with Mayor Richard Bascomb that ends with her slapping him so hard he fell out of his chair. Later that evening, he is found dead in his office, and Andrea is one of the prime suspects. Hannah has to do everything she can to assist the investigation, clear her sister, and find the real murderer.
I am usually a fan of these books. They are a light, quick read with a lot of delicious sounding recipes sprinkled throughout. This book was definitely a miss for me. Hannah and Andrea both seemed to have been given personality transplants since the previous books. Where Andrea was a capable wife, mother and career woman before, now she needed coddling and praise just to do something as simple as filling a cupcake paper. Hannah..... well, she now hears voices in her head...two to be exact, and they argue all the time. And I do mean ALL the time. If that wasn't annoying enough, sometimes the voices were in third person, but not always. I just really wanted to get Hannah back on her meds, pronto. I am not sure what is going on with the author's writing style, but I wish she would go back to the old way, otherwise I have no interest in reading more of the books in the series. I can not in good conscience recommend this book.

Thank you so very much to NetGalley and Kensington books for my wonderful copy of Triple Chocolate Cheesecake Murder by Joanne Fluke. It publishes February 23, 2021.
As you may guess, I may be one of Hannah Swensen's biggest fans! During 2020 I read the entire series including the half-series, (although I did read book 1 in 2019). I just adore this series, I love the characters, the relationships, and all the recipes! This book really packs a punch with so many recipes, and so mouth-watering!
I appreciated that this one takes place in the current timeline, after everything that happened before, having a Christmas flashback made the cliffhanger that much harder! I won't give spoilers, but I will tell you, the ending was really nice in this one.
If you're a Hannah fan, this is definitely worth the read! Now to wait for the next installment!

Hannah Swensen is back in Joanne Fluke’s Triple Chocolate Cheesecake Murder. I enjoyed this lightweight read but am frustrated by the series, which I think needs to move forward on a different path. There had been a three way romance in past books between Hannah, Norman and Mike before Hannah unexpectedly and suddenly married the bad egg Ross, which took the series off course. I am glad that the romance with Mike seems to have reached a dead end, but I think it’s time Hannah marries Norman and they begin a new, more normal life together rather than sharing his house as (temporary?) roommates, a move which doesn’t seem to make a lot of sense. Hannah has devolved from a strong independent woman to one who shows some of her previous spunk but has lost much of her independence. Over the years, different people have been Hannah’s sidekick and now it was Andrea’s turn. It’s nice that Andrea is learning to cook—but what happened to her successful real estate career, which made far more sense in today’s world. In many ways, the book reads like it was written in 1955, not 2020. There are many recipes in the book and several sound delicious, but I do think the book would be a more fluid read if the recipes were located in the back of the book. I read on a Kindle and sometimes the recipes required flipping through several pages to get to the next chapter.

I give the book three stars because I enjoyed this lightweight read, but I still think the series, though always a light and easy read, was much stronger in the past, and I’d like it to be that way again.

I was given a copy of this book by NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I was not required to positive review nor was I compensated in any way.

Thank you for this advanced copy. I have read all of the books in this series because they are simple and easy to read. However this one wasn’t as good as the previous ones. One thing that really bugged me is Joanne is from MN. I’m from MN. You do not pay out of state college tuition in Wisconsin if you are a MN resident. You have reciprocity. This irritated me as she really pushed the subject of having to pay out of state tuition. I will continue to read her books as they are very simple and light hearted but this one just didn’t seem to have much suspense.

The mystery aspect to the book was good. I don't think I figured it out much before Hannah did.

I've read all of this series and things have definitely changed. There were many conversations between Hannah's suspicious and rational minds. Andrea is in this book more than Michelle for a change, but Hannah seems to talk down to her like she's talking to one of her nieces (or her "suspicious" mind makes snarky comments). One part of the book makes it sound like she made two pots of coffee before breakfast at Norman's, but another part he had a Keurig and they made individual cups. At the bakery, they now print a copy of the recipe each time they make a batch of cookies and check things off as they go so they don't miss ingredients.

While I've always enjoyed this series, the weird changes and inconsistencies kept taking me out of the book. This one definitely isn't my favorite, but I will keep reading the series.

Thank you NetGalley, Joanne Fluke and Kensington Books for the ARC of Triple Chocolate Cheesecake Murder. This is personal review.
Triple Chocolate Cheesecake Murder is the 27th book in the Hannah Swensen series by Joanne Fluke.
I have read every one of the series and I love them all. Those few hours of escape into the world of Hannah and everyone in Lake Eden, Minnesota is time well spent for me.
In this book her sister Andrea and Mayor Bascomb are pivotal in the story.
I could go into details on the plot but that would take the fun out of reading this book for others.
I look forward to the 28th book in this series.
I enjoy all the recipes in each book.

Triple Chocolate Cheesecake Murder by Joanne Fluke is book 27 in the Hannah Swensen series. This book begins with Hannah's sister Andrea confronting the mayor of Lake Eden and slapping him because she's so upset with him. Just a few hours later, Mayor Bascomb is found dead, and Hannah has to help prove her sister's innocence. I'm not sure why I keep reading this book series, because each book gets progressively less believable. Also, this book was more about cooking all kinds of food and desserts and included very little of the mystery. Thanks to NetGalley for the free digital review copy. All opinions are my own.

Joanne Fluke brought us back to Lake Eden, Minnesota with Hannah Swensen and the gang. While Hannah is getting ready for the Easter season at her bakery, her sister calls her when the mayor is murdered and she is a suspect. Hannah and the gang must once again get out her murder book and solve the case of the murdered mayor!

Joanne Fluke allows us to once again visit with Hannah and the gang. It is always like visiting old friends and catching up with them. I also enjoyed seeing all the different recipes so that I could also enjoy the baked goods that they get to eat. Joanne has a way to draw you into the story and see what happens next in their adventure. You want to keep turning the page while dreading the moment when you get to the last page. I look forward to going back to Lake Eden and seeing what adventure is waiting for us there.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. I would like to thank NetGalley and Kensington Books for this privilege.

3 Stars

Technically I downloaded this book for my mom to read since she has been a big fan of this series for years and she wanted something to read during our moving process. Unfortunately she was not the biggest fan of the book since it was the same as other books in this massively long series. Basically the plot is the same every time, lots of drinking coffee and too many recipes in her words. The author should maybe find a way to end the series if it’s just a copy and paste with each new story.

So good! I love addition of the yummy recipes throughout the book. The characters are old friends but I love reading new things about them. The mystery was fun and I didn’t guess the answer until the end. Highly descriptive and well written. I love this series and this author. Hannah is fun heroine and enrages the reader, especially with her inner thoughts. I cannot wait for the next book. This series manages to stay fresh despite its longevity.

I received a copy of Triple Chocolate Cheesecake Murder through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Triple Chocolate Cheesecake Murder is the 27th installment of the Hannah Swensen mystery series. In this installment, we join the characters when Andrea is having an altercation with Mayor Bascomb regarding an arrest that Bill has recently made. Their encounter turns heated and when Andrea returns later to apologize she finds Mayor Bascomb murdered. With Andrea a prime suspect in the Mayor's death, Hannah puts on her sleuthing cap in order to clear her sister.

I have read every book in this series and have been a longtime fan, so I was looking forward to diving in to this new cozy mystery. As always, I enjoyed the characters and the setting of Lake Eden and The Cookie Jar, but this time around, certain things got on my nerves more than before. Was it just me or was Hannah's internal dialogue a bit much this time around? I feel like every other paragraph contained an internal debate between Hannah's suspicious and logical mind and it was always about trivial things.

Overall, I enjoyed this cozy mystery like I also enjoy the newest Hannah Swensen book, but this was not my favorite installation. If you are looking for a cutting edge mystery, this mystery is not for you, but if you want fun characters, good recipes, the small town setting and a hint of cozy mystery, definitely check this out!

Loved this book! The Hannah Swenson books are always favorites & this was no exception! Fun twist at the end, but still a happy ending as usual...and great recipes!

I have been reading this series since the very beginning. I have developed a real love-hate relationship with this series. Some I have really loved and others not so much. This one falls into the not so much. I am really tired of Hannah’s rational and suspicious minds arguing with each other. And what makes it worse, the voices in her head refer to her in the 3rd person. Get the girl on some medication, stat. This is not normal. I am also tired of Hannah and everyone else treating Andrea like an idiot. Up until the last few books, Andrea was a very successful real estate agent. Now she is just there to be an object of condescension. I get that she may not be the greatest cook, but she is neither a child nor an idiot. Why is Hannah always so tired? She barely works; everyone else is always either running The Cookie Jar or waiting on her hand and foot. At least we didn’t have to deal with any scenes of Moishe and Cuddles running races around the house and everyone lifting up their plates and feet. Pick Norman already and end this series. Thank you to Netgalley and Kensington for the ARC. All opinions expressed are my own.

Hannah Swensen solves mysteries while operating the Cookie Jar, an eat-in bakery with strong coffee, in the small Minnesota town of Lake Eden. Joanne Fluke conducts regular visits to the comfortable community to follow Hannah and her friends as they figure out who-done-it.

Hannah’s sister, Andrea, is the main suspect in Mayor Bascomb’s murder in this stopover. The good news is that there is a list of many suspects, including his wife, due to the mayor’s highhanded way of dealing with local issues. The mystery plot is well-conceived. The community of characters is familiar and as engaging as always. However, there is more talk of food and included recipes than memory recalls from past books. In the end, a good mystery plus great, detailed recipes.