Hannah Swenson Mysteries by Joanne Fluke

So, when something is awesome, you should share it, right? :)

This is for any of my friends looking for good books that like mysteries, specifically murder mysteries.

My mother-in-law has recently introduced me to Hannah Swenson mysteries by Joanne Fluke.

Let me share with you some of my favorite things about these books, one of which is there to the left.

These are murder mysteries, but not they're not incredibly gory or explicit. You don't feel depressed or grossed out when the murder scene is described, at least I don't. It isn't in overly necessary detail. So no worries there.

These are actually solvable mysteries. There are some authors out there that I really like, but it is impossible to get to be a detective while reading them, because they don't share all of the information with the reader. You'll make it to the grand reveal, and the detective/main character of the story will explain why it was so and so, and there will be details that you, the reader, had not previously been privy to. What fun is it if I can't sleuth along with the characters?

Haha, the main character, Hannah, has quite a background. She is the founder of The Cookie Jar, a great bakery. She is a fantastic baker and makes yummy desserts. The recipes for these desserts are included in every book! That's fantastic. You can read about them as they mentioned and then cook and try them yourself if you want!

Hannah was also an English major who finished just short of a masters in English teaching, so she's also way interested in English language and literature. So, there are references to other pieces of literature and authors as well as snarky mental comments about grammar that I just love. :) I also wonder why unnecessary prepositions are used, etc.

Hannah also took some psychology classes, so she has lots of interesting comments about things that she learned in her psychology classes. Like one of her professors said that most people can't be nervous and amused at the same time. So if people are nervous, then say something to make them amused, and while they're amused, they can't be nervous. :)

Hannah's mom is a lover of Regency romance novels, and I'll admit, I once had a day where I was too. So, she's always throwing around these old-school British phrases that I think are awesome. :)

These books make me laugh out loud every now then. I love it when books can actually get me to laugh out loud instead of just chuckle mentally.

The books are clean. There is no swearing (hallelujah!), and there is no sex. I mean, comments are made about afairs (there has to be some motives in some of these murders! haha), so sex is mentioned but it is not described, explained. Does that make sense? So you don't feel dirty while reading these books or get images in your head that you don't want or have to skip pages because there's trash on them.

And another favorite thing about these books is how much continuity is within them. Some mystery novels have new characters in each book so that a new mystery can exist. Not so with these. Of course there will be new characters, just like there are people that come in and out of lives, but there are a ton of repeating characters. So, I learn details about lives of lots of people, and they seem so real. For example, one character was introduced in one book and didn't get murdered until two or three books later. So, I already knew more about her, etc. It was great. It feels more real that way. I guess I feel less manipulated by the author, and the stories seem mor realistic.

So yeah. I'm a big fan. :)