Rating: 
Summary: A good read, but Hannah is no amateur sleuth
Review: Hannah Swensen, Lake Eden resident and owner of The Cookie Jar, agrees to help her police officer brother-in-law, Bill, solve the murder of the local dairy deliveryman to help Bill achieve a promotion to detective. Bill certainly didn't have to try very hard to convince Hannah to help him. Hannah seems to be less of an amateur sleuth and more a seasoned detective. Fluke could have made this book a police procedural because Hannah uncovers clues and pursues each lead single-mindedly interrogating and eliminating suspects. Her brother-in-law begins to look slow and slightly stupid. At one point he asks Hannah if there is anything else he should be doing to investigate the crime and he's the police officer!The book includes several cookie recipes, but don't expect the preparation and cooking to take a main role in this book, as they do in other culinary mysteries, such as in Diane Mott Davidson's books. Hannah pursues the murderer with focus and determination. Her livelihood, baking cookies, fades into the background. Fluke does introduce some interesting characters with unexpected twists, which make them realistic. There are also hints of possible romantic relationships for Hannah, which Fluke will explore in the next book, one hopes!
Rating: 
Summary: Chips Ahoy for Mystery!
Review: Hannah Swenson is going to become the new "mystery detective" for the culinary set. The warmth of the recipes, the relationships in the town and the attention to detail make this an enjoyable read from beginning to end. A fantastic new series to read and re - read for a lifetime.
Rating:
Summary: Chips Ahoy for Mystery!
Review: Hannah Swenson is going to become the new "mystery detective" for the culinary set. The warmth of the recipes, the relationships in the town and the attention to detail make this an enjoyable read from beginning to end. A fantastic new series to read and re - read for a lifetime.
Rating:
Summary: A Complete Delight.
Review: Hannah Swenson's life is going well. Her cookie shop is successful, and she's content living a single life with her cat as company. But then she finds her delivery driver from the local dairy murdered behind her story. Assisting her brother-in-law, she starts investigating. But everyone seems to have an alibi and no motive. This book was a complete delight from start to finish. I loved the small town Minnesota setting. Hannah's relationship with her family had me laughing and feeling for her at the same time. The other characters were enjoyable, too, and Hannah is a very likable heroine. Her cat adds charm to the story. I was hooked on the plot from the very beginning and was as frustrated as Hannah when she hit a dead end. Her cookies sounded absolutely wonderful, and I can't wait to try the recipes. Definitely don't read this book while hungry! As soon as I can get my hands on the next book, I'm going to start reading it.
Rating: 
Summary: Fun, but a bit lackluster...
Review: I enjoyed this book, and it was a fast and easy read, but was left hoping there would be a bit 'more'. First, I found the title a bit misleading as the only tie-in the cookies have with the murder is that the victim happened to be eating them...when he was SHOT! The teaser page, of course, makes you think there was poison involved...sorry, but not true... Secondly, I was amazed how quickly Deputy Bill lets Hannah almost take over the case and practically solve it herself, making him look a tad ineffectual, especially with the fact that he's up for a promotion! Were these huge flaws? Not overly. Did it damper my enjoyment of the book? A little. Luckily, there's still enough humor to keep it going and enough secondary characters to keep the plot interesting. I'll read the second book in the series 'Strawberry Shortcake Murder' next and hopefully we'll see what happens and if these minor flaws are taken into account. One thing I'll mention in closing, Hannah drinks enough coffee in one day to put anyone into cardiac arrest. Not to mention the fact that everyone in Lake Eden should be a diabetic or 300 lbs with the amount of Hannah's cookies they consume!
Rating:
Summary: Pretty good
Review: I enjoyed this book, but have two quibbles. I agree with previous reviewers who mentioned that Hannah took too much control of the investigation away from the police detective. I found this too unrealistic, and it made the detective look stupid. The second problem is the Mike Kingston character who was introduced at the end. Hannah was extremely attracted to him, but later when they are together with the others for dinner, Mike is completely left out of the story! And then he asks Hannah out on a date. I felt like a page was missing out of the book or something. There should have been more interaction between Hannah and Mike in the epilogue, especially if the author is going to pursue this relationship in her next book.
Rating:
Summary: sweet for the sweet
Review: I have never done this before but I was so pleasantly surprised by Ms. Flukes' writing that I had to tell SOMEONE about it. This book is the literary equivalent of a hot cup of cocoa in front of a warm fire (with a batch of freshly baked "chocolate chip crunchies"). It is very easy to fall madly in love with the main character, Hannah Swensen, and her fiercely independant cat,Moishe. They are both spunky, literate and make you feel as though they have lived next door to you for years. I can only hope that this author continues to write in this manner and with these characters for many more books. Ms. Fluke has a real talent for making you care about her characters and a great "ear" for dialog. It is as though these people are really speaking to you ( you can almost here the Minnesota "you bet ya" in Hannahs voice). This mystery has a real page-turning hook to it and it is a great book for a day at the pool or a night sitting quietly at home. I myself am going to go out and get Ms. Fluke other books and see if the other books are as great as this one,( and judging by the amount of books that she has on this site alone, I would guess that this "Fluke is NO Fluke". Pick this book up, you will love it as much as I did, I am sure.
Rating:
Summary: great cookies!
Review: I just made some of those crunchy choc. chip cookies and took them to my high school students. they loved them and couldnt guess what the different ingredient was. I really enjoyed the book and hope the author keeps giving us more stories with Hannah. Its one of those books you hate to finish.
Rating:
Summary: Great Book
Review: i love this book and the series that follow it. Joanne Fluke is a great writer and I can't wait for her next book to come out next year. She keeps you interested from front to back with a series of turns and twists in the plot. Great characters that you fall in love with.
Rating:
Summary: Looking forward to the next book!
Review: I loved the Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder! It is a wonderful mystery in a cozy setting. I enjoy a surprise ending and a story filled with likeable characters. Miss Fluke also treats the reader with wonderful cookie recipes. I am adding Joanne Fluke to my "favorite" list!
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