Cinnamon Roll Murder

January 9, 2012
At the start of bestseller Fluke’s savory 15th Hannah Swensen mystery set in Lake Eden, Minn. (after 2011’s Devil’s Food Cake Murder), Hannah and her sister, Michelle, are en route to deliver cinnamon rolls to the Lake Eden Inn. When they come to a multicar pileup on a slick roadway, the sisters hurry to check on the passengers of an overturned bus in a ditch. What they find is a dead driver and minor injuries among members of the Cinnamon Roll Six, a jazz band booked to perform at the inn. At the local hospital, the keyboard player’s relatively minor injury lands him in an ER exam room, where a short time later he’s found stabbed to death. Hannah flips open her murder book and launches into action, with scarcely a police presence. Recipes and passages devoted to cooking and eating overshadow the sleuthing. The basic plot wraps to a satisfying conclusion, but the overall feel is overdone foodie and underdone characters. Author tour.

May 28, 2012
Fluke’s 16th installment in her bestselling Hannah Swensen series finds the smalltown baker turned sleuth investigating the murder of a member of a jazz band called Cinnamon Roll Six. As the investigation proceeds, Hannah discovers that her own life and relationships are somehow tied to the case. Narrator Suzanne Toren turns in a fun, engaging performance that captures both the essence of Fluke’s characters and the spirit of this cozy mystery. Additionally, Toren ably reads the book’s corresponding recipes after the novel’s conclusion—which will please fans of the series—leaving listeners entertained, but feeling as if they’ve just gained five pounds. A Kensington hardcover.