Fudge Cupcake Murder

Author: Joanne Fluke
Genre: Fiction / Cozy Mystery
Publisher: Kensington Publishing Corporation, 2011
Pages: 320
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: Bakery owner Hannah Swensen just can't keep her hands out of the batter when murder stirs things up in Lake Eden, Minnesota, leaving the sheriff dead, a deputy accused, and a killer on the loose. . .

For Hannah, life seems to be lacking a certain flavor lately. Maybe it's the local sheriff's election that's got her down. For years, Sheriff Grant's been the iron hand in town. But now, Hannah's brother-in-law Bill is giving the old blowhard the fight of his long, dubious career--and Grant's not taking it well, especially once the polls show Bill pulling ahead.

But before anyone can taste victory, things go sour. While Hannah's emptying the trash, she makes a very unappetizing discovery: Sheriff Grant's body in the Dumpster behind the high school where she's teaching her cooking class. And as if that weren't bad enough, the poor man still has fudge frosting on his shirt from one of her cupcakes.

The number one--and only--suspect is Bill, but Hannah's not swallowing it. Plenty of people had reason to hate Sheriff Grant. Soon, Hannah's dishing up scandalous secrets, steaming hot betrayals, and enough intrigue to keep the gossip mill at The Cookie Jar going through several pots of decaf. And the closer Hannah gets to the truth, the closer she gets to smoking out a murderer with a very nasty recipe for silencing people. . .

Review: This was probably the most boring of Hannah Swensen mysteries simply because the author didn't stay on task. And, if Hannah doesn't figure out soon that she's meant to be with Norman, I might give up on this series. A love triangle is only cute for so long.

The Phantom of Fifth Avenue

Author: Meryl Gordon
Genre: Biography
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing, 2014
Pages: 400
Rating: Highly Recommend

Synopsis: Born in 1906, Huguette Clark grew up in her family's 121-room Beaux Arts mansion in New York and was one of the leading celebrities of her day. Her father William Andrews Clark, was a copper magnate, the second richest man in American, and not above bribing his way into the Senate. 

Huguette attended the coronation of King George V. And at twenty-two with a personal fortune of $50 million to her name, she married a Princeton man and childhood friend William MacDonald Gower. Two-years later the couple divorced. After a series of failed romances, Huguette began to withdraw from society--first living with her mother in a kind of Grey Gardens isolation then as a modern-day Miss Havisham, spending her days in a vast apartment overlooking Central Park, eating crackers and watching The Flintstones with only servants for company.

All her money and all her real estate could not protect her in her later life from being manipulated by shady hangers-on and hospitals that were only too happy to admit (and bill) a healthy woman. But what happened to Huguette that turned a vivacious, young socialite into a recluse? And what was her life like inside that gilded, copper cage?

Review: Empty Mansions was a fantastic read, and when I saw there was another book published about Huguette Clark I put it on my must-read list. It wasn't until I actually had the book in hand that I realized that the same author wrote Mrs. Astor Regrets, another very good read.

Empty Mansions and The Phantom of Fifth Avenue took different approaches to telling the Huguette Clark story and I can't say that one was better than the other. By reading both, I feel as though I got a more comprehensive look at the life and times of the Clark family.

The Phantom of Fifth Avenue was a fast, satisfying read, and I loved it.