Joanne Fluke adds to her Hannah Swensen mystery series with Christmas Cupcake Murder.  Readers familiar with the series will find more of the same in terms of Hannah’s personal life and her being involved in discovering a mystery.  The thing that sets it apart is that it takes place before the time period of the previous most recent story.

The mystery has a bit of a different twist as well, but saying much more would be considered plot spoiling.  Readers might be disappointed to find that the decision that Hannah needs to make is not advanced any in this book, because it takes place in the past.

Overall, this book feels just a little bit lighter than some of the others and a bit like Joanne Fluke threw it together just to put out another book and so she did not have to address the looming end of the Mike, Norman, Hannah situation.  Don’t start this book as your first book in the Hannah Swensen series. 

Review of a Digital Advance Reading Copy

This book was sent to Compass Book Ratings for review by Kensington Publishing

Content Analysis:

Profanity/Language:  None

Violence/Gore:  Report of a person having received a blow to the head; a character confesses to intending to kill someone. 

Sex/Nudity:  A character wonders if another is a rapist.

Mature Subject Matter:

Death of a parent.

Alcohol / Drug Use:

Many mentions of characters consuming alcoholic beverages with their meals.