Tuesday, June 27, 2017

Hallmark Mysteries Channel: Murder, She Baked Mysteries




Kerry Hammond is continuing her highlight of the Hallmark Movies and Mysteries Channel today with the Murder, She Baked mystery series.

The Murder, She Baked series is one of my favorites in the Hallmark Mysteries lineup and is based on the books and characters created by Joanne Fluke. Hannah Swenson (played by Alison Sweeney) is the owner of The Cookie Jar, a bakery and coffee shop in the fictional Eden Lake, Minnesota (Lake Eden in the books). She’s torn between two love interests: police officer Mike Kingston and local dentist Norman Rhodes. Her mother is in camp Norman but her sister Andrea, whose husband is also a police officer, is constantly cheering for Mike.


Much like Jessica Fletcher’s small town of Cabot Cove, Eden Lake has its fair share of murders and Hannah and her group of family and friends are always in the thick of it. These movies are a lot of fun to watch. The supporting characters can be just as important as the leading ones and in this series, they are played by great actors. The series follows the books pretty closely, but you’ll have to get used to the fact that physically Hannah doesn’t resemble her written counterpart. She’s not a plump with unruley hair, she’s a thin blond who probably doesn’t sample many of the great desserts her store sells. But Sweeney’s portrayal really does the character justice, so it’s easy to overlook a few changes in appearance.


Joanne Fluke has 21 books in the Hannah Swenson series, so if you love the stories there are plenty more you can read. Hannah eventually makes a decision between her love interests, but you’ll have to read and watch to see which of the men she chooses. The books are entertaining and light mysteries without a lot of sex or violence—but don’t worry, there is always a murder or two to solve. The books also come with great recipes for the desserts that Hannah bakes in each one.

See a review of the Aurora Teagarden mystery series and The Flower Shop mystery series on Mystery Playground.


No comments:

Post a Comment