Banana Cream Pie Murder (A Hannah Swensen Mystery)

Okay, I love the rest of the Hannah Swensen books so I had to get this one too. BUT, I hate the new husband, always have disliked the character so I'm hoping the author wrote him this way on purpose. Marrying someone that isn't Norman or Mike just ruined the storyline. Let's hope the next book's murder Hannah has to solve is his! If not, I'm not sure I'll keep reading. Oh, and the first Hallmark Channel movie (Chocolate Chip Cookie) was okay and they started sliding downhill from there but the last one is so different from the books I don't know if I want to keep watching....like the actors but not the same feel as the books.

Why? Why do I keep reading these God awful books. Every time I think it cannot get worse... it does. This series is a glorified cookbook at this point. The mysteries are an afterthought and the writing and character development is so bad, that it is not like you even enjoy being with these characters. This book is essentially about... nothing. About Hannah or Michelle cooking and having people over to eat at her house. Not to mention her weird marriage. I wonder if Ms. Fluke is married. Because the marriage is absurd and entirely unrealistic. Hannah is 60. But she isn't! She is in her 30's. Not that you would ever know it given her ineptness. I mean really - how hard is it to google a type of beer? And the cliffhanger... These books are ridiculous. Save your money.

Hannah returns happily married and adjusting to married life. Fortunately a mystery occurs to mother involving the whole family. The murder is solved albeit not cleanly as there are parts that are never explained. Then a disappearance happens in the last chapter sitting up a plot for the next book!

Lots of 'fluff' in this book -- but that is pretty standard. Always fun to read and to wonder who, in the next book, will find the body. I suspect it will be Andrea as she hasn't found one yet and as a realtor has a variety of opportunities!

This book was interesting, filled with suspense and romance!! The interest in the storyline was well written, that I could hardly put the book down. I liked it, I usually love her books but this had a sad ending I was disappointed!!!! I am anxiously looking forward to the upcoming books to find out what happens. I look forward to trying all the recipes.

I was very disappointed in this book, I have loved most of the books in this series, but this one seemed different somehow. Hannah came across as somewhat childish, blushing every time her husband looked at her, and not being able to turn her own cellphone on vibrate. The writing seemed simple and repetitive also, very unlike Ms Fluke's usual writing style. Another concern I had was that there were sooo many recipes that they took up over half the book, and since they were placed within the book instead of at the end, they really disrupted the flow. I got very tired of having to scan through multiple recipes to get to the next chapter. Probably not going to buy the next book in the series.

I have all on Joanne Fluke’s Hannah Swenson Mysteries except the cookbook. She is the only author whose books I still buy in hardcover. I have enjoyed the series as a whole. I like Hannah and Michelle and strongly dislike her mother and other sister. I used to love the recipes and would make several of them from each book. They are really going downhill lately. Who would go into a bakery and buy a pie made with instant pudding and Cool Whip? At least be honest and call it Banana Creme Pie!
There were flaws in this book. Do you really think that Rod would remember a character from a movie that he saw 30 years ago? That he would even remember the name of the movie. This happened at the same time when the victim did not remember this same actress who worked with her in the past.
And what kind of a marriage does Hannah have with Russ? She is walking around him on eggshells. He shares information with others and tells her little. We’ll have to wait while the author decides which way this is going. I would go the Bob Newhart way when he wakes up, finds himself in bed with the love of his life, and discovers that other show was a nightmare. (I’m hoping for a similar twist with Russ vaporizing and Hannah finds she has been married to Norman all along.

I have read all the Hannah Swenson books and always await the next one. But this one is probably my swan song. One thing that has really been bothering me is paying a premium price for a book with so many recipes. I get books on my reader, and each recipe usually takes 10 "pages," which means that a large percentage of the book is recipes instead of text. These books are premium price of $12.99, and if I wanted recipes, I would buy a recipe book. The stories have become pretty weak, and it was difficult plodding through this one. I'd like to know about Ross, but certainly would not get the book until the price goes way down.

I always enjoy Joanne Flukes. I have read all the Hannah Swensen series. I wish Hallmark had done a better job of taking Hannah from the book to the TV. They didn't keep the story true to the book.

Hannah Swenson is on her honeymoon with her new husband, Ross. At the same time in her hometown her mother, Delores hears a strange sound. Delores investigates and finds her neighbor dead. The victim, Victoria Bascomb was a renowned actress and theater director in the local community. She didn’t have a lot of friends, but being the mayor’s sister, everyone respected her work. Except the one person who hated her enough to kill.
This was a quick lighthearted cozy mystery. I love reading about these wonderful characters. The one troubling thing I felt was the lack of growth in Hannah’s character. In the first part of the series she doesn’t like technology and needs help with computers and cell phones. You would think that by the 21st novel she would’ve learned something. It seems that her technological growth is lacking. There was also something odd with how the characters related to one another. They seemed weirdly polite. I missed the banter and camaraderie between the Swenson sisters and their mother. Even with the abovementioned quirks, I can’t wait to read the next installment. An Advanced Reading Copy was received in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed the story but was extremely frustrated with the editing. In at least a quarter of the chapters there were pages out of order or the pages repeated. In some cases I found myself flipping through several pages just to follow the flow of the story.. one or two mistakes I can understand but there were just too many. My hope is that the actual book did not have this problem and it was just the e book.

I've always enjoyed reading about Hannah and her cookie shop. She and her family and friends are great characters and I've always loved seeing how they have progressed.

In this latest novel, Hannah and her new husband have returned home after a wonderful seven day honeymoon cruise. She's not even home yet when she gets word that her mother's neighbor and friend has been murdered. And her mother may have heard the murder happening. This throws Hannah head first into trying to figure out who the killer is, if for no other reason than to give her piece of mind.

Since she's gotten married, she doesn't feel like the same Hannah. But, that's not totally unexpected as people do change once they are married. And she's having to deal with being a married woman instead of a single who can do whatever she wants without asking for an opinion. I'm curious to see where things are going to go with this series.

Another great book with Hannah and her family and friends. If you've never read a Hannah Swensen mystery, pick up one and start reading. But, I'll forwarn you, once you start you'll want to read all of them. I got started after I had foot surgery; I think I read ten books while I was recuperating. Since then, I always get the next book to read and their are always a great read. Thoroughly enjoyable. Try one, if you haven't, you'll love it.