Review: Fudge Cupcake Murder (2005)

The last of the customers had left, the front door of The Cookie Jar was locked, and Hannah and Lisa were in the kitchen, mixing up the cookie dough for the following day. Lisa tore off a strip of plastic wrap to cover a batch of Chocolate-Cherry cookies and glanced up at the clock. "Hannah?"

"Hmm?" Hannah retrieved the chocolate she'd melted for her batch of Black and Whites and added it to her mixing bowl.

"It's getting late and you've got class tonight. Why don't you go home now?"

Hannah glanced over at her petite partner and smiled. "You're still a teenager and you're trying to mother me?"

Synopsis: Yes, yes she is. Because almost everyone in Lake Eden tries to mother Hannah Swensen, owner of The Cookie Jar. In this episode, in what's to become a recurring theme in the series, a body is discovered with Cookie Jar products all over, giving Hannah an excuse to investigate and do things she should probably be thrown in jail for.

Grade: B-

In this fifth installment of the Cookie Jar series, Hannah continues to be torn between responsible Norman and hot n' sexy Mike and--

Lady? PICK A DUDE. Or just come right out and tell them you're poly, and let the cards fall where they may.

Also, the sheriff gets murdered, covered in Hannah's fudge frosting (not as sexy as it sounds -- this is after all, Lake Eden) and brother-in-law Bill falls under suspicion for the deed. So there's good news and bad news about this book. The good news is that even though you can tell whodunnit on page 150, this is a decent book, and the author's found a couple of great ways to perk up the series: developing Andrea as a likeable character, giving the mom a beau to make her seem more human and less demonic (Laura Childs take note for possibilities for Delaine), and giving Michelle intriguing deviousness. The bad news is that there are 100 pages in the middle I just didn't care about, and I cannot believe the protagonist runs her own successful business, bakeshop or no, because in 300 pages, she spent so little time there that I'm amazed no one's stealing from the registers or smashing the windows. But overall a solid entry with great recipes.

Also, I am seriously in love with the cover designs for this series. I'll freely admit I'm a cover junkie, and for awhile I thought the whole "hide skulls in the details" cozy cover fad had died out. Very glad to see it alive and well with these. Seriously. Frameable.