by Joanne Fluke
Part of Hannah Swensen, book 19
First published 2016
Hannah Swensen finally walks down the aisle in Lake Eden, Minnesota, marrying her college sweetheart Ross Barton. The newlyweds head to New York City where Hannah competes in the Food Channel's dessert chef contest. She wins the Hometown Challenge, bringing the entire production back to her small town to film the remaining episodes. The celebrity judge Alain Duquesne arrives with his famously cruel reputation, ready to tear apart the contestants' creations. But someone stops him first. Hannah discovers Duquesne's body in the Lake Eden Inn's walk-in cooler, stabbed to death before he can even sample her Butterscotch Sugar Cookies. The murder destroys Hannah's competitive advantage and throws the production into chaos. She must navigate her new marriage while untangling a complex mystery that threatens everything she holds dear in her tight-knit community.
Genres: romance, mystery, cozy-mystery, culinary
Vibes: cozy, emotional, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family
Setting: Lake Eden, Minnesota, New York City
Period: 21st-century
356 pages · Hardcover · Kensington