by Joanne Fluke
Part of Hannah Swensen, book 14
First published 2011
Hannah Swensen's life in Lake Eden, Minnesota feels almost perfect. Her bakery thrives, her love life flourishes, and her friend Claire glows with newlywed happiness to Reverend Bob Knudson. When Bob's old friend Matthew Walters arrives to cover pastoral duties during the honeymoon, the arrangement seems ideal. Matthew shares Bob's weakness for sweets and agrees to fill the pulpit while the couple finally escapes for their delayed trip. The plan crumbles when Hannah discovers Matthew dead in the rectory, his face planted in Devil's Food Cake with a bullet through his skull. Hannah digs into Matthew's background and uncovers a man far different from the holy image he projected. Gold Sacagawea coins turn up in the collection plate, and connections emerge to a major jewelry theft in Minneapolis. Hannah wonders if Matthew's chocolate obsession somehow triggered his murder. She pursues leads through Lake Eden's tight community, determined to expose the killer who turned her friend's sanctuary into a crime scene.
Genres: mystery, crime, contemporary, cozy-mystery
Vibes: cozy, emotional, suspenseful
Tropes: amateur-sleuth, found-family
Setting: Lake Eden, Minnesota, Minneapolis
Period: Contemporary
322 pages · Hardcover · Kensington