When I purchased this book I thought I was buying a full-sized pocket book with which I could fill a lovely afternoon. It turns out the 'story part' of the book is only 200 pages long. (And it has the most lackluster idiotic ending you could imagine.)Half of the book (pp 203 to 380) is the cookbook talked about in the story itself. The author tries to make this section cute by adding in the characters' comments and etc, but it isn't a part of the story.What a colossally rotten way to fill-out a short story into novel length. If I want a cookbook I will buy a cookbook! ( )

As always, a fun great, light read. Perfect for those days when you can't really read for more than a few moments at a time! LOL!

I really like Hannan and her family and friends and the food always sounds sooooooo yummy! LOL! ( )

As enjoyable as this Hannah Swenson mystery was, it was all about the food. The book has the recipes from the Lake Eden cookbook in it, so there are a lot more than cookies. The recipes look great, and I want to try some. The mystery was pretty good too. It's a holiday mystery, so Christmas is the theme. All the citizens of Lake Eden are caught at the Community Centre for a pot luck that is supposed to be a trial for the cookbook, and they get caught in a snowstorm. So we have all our favourite characters under one roof. And, of course, Hannah discovers another body, so her and her sisters are "helping" Mike try to solve the crime. The mystery isn't that difficult, but the story is still fun, and there are over 50 recipes to enjoy with the book! What more could you want? ( )

While I was thinking about this book after I finished reading it, I had two distinct opinions about it. First and most prominent was the idea that this book was very disappointing. The murder was more boring than the previous entries. I did like the idea of all the suspects being together in a building during a blizzard where no one could leave. That felt all Agatha Christie to me. However Hannah felt more forced and less personable then usual. Even the secondary characters felt like caricatures of themselves. I didn't care about the victim or the suspects. Wow, this series is going downhill I thought. Half the book is recipes so it reads more like a short story or entry into an anthology then it did a regular Hannah Swenson murder mystery. Joanne Fluke for a fact, gets tons of comments and complements on her novels. It's almost like for some of her readers, the recipes are the best part. Everyone's always wanting more. I think Joanne wrote this book to do something different for her faithful readers. I think this is a Christmas gift to them, in a way. I refuse to make any judgements about this book not being up to par or going downhill until I read the next full volume in the series. Two stars given because the story is too short, too many recipes for my taste, and a plot that could have been planned out a little better. I'm also about sick of Mike snapping at Hannah and then being forgiven because his kisses are so "hot". Its time for Hannah to settle down with Norman, who would NEVER snap at her. I think together the two of them could make for some great future adventures. Hannah wouldn't suffer as a character at all for her marriage. All of Fluke's characters need to be evolved a little bit. Thanks for the gift here, but I think I'd prefer another full book any time. ( )

http://hollybooknotes.blogspot.com/20... ( )