Strawberry Shortcake Murder - JoAnne Fluke - 2.5 stars

I chose to read this book for the March Mystery Madness challenge that is going on. I am not at all familiar with cozy mysteries so it was a good idea for me to choose one for this challenge to kind of get an idea of what they are like. This one was for a cozy mystery involving cooking or crafting. I have not had the chance to read the first book since I do not own that one, but since this series has different cases with each book, it was fine to start with book 2. I did discover that with reading this book, it pretty much let me know that cozy mysteries are not really for me.
Synopsis
Joanne Fluke introduced small-town Minnesota bakery owner Hannah Swensen in Chocolate Chip Cooke Murder. Now, this intrepid amateur sleuth returns in another dangerously delicious mystery.

I thought that the plot of the story was pretty good. Mixing cooking with murder with an amateur sleuth is always fun, but I did not find it as exciting as the normal mysteries I am used to reading. I am sure that is because this is how cozy mysteries are supposed to be. I the writing was fine, it was pretty fluid and easy to follow and there were even some pretty funny 'laugh out loud' parts as well. I just found the mystery itself to be pretty unrealistic, again, that could be a trait of a cozy mystery.

I did not really care all that much for the main character, not because she evil or mean but because it seemed like all her answers to questions were just handed to her and clues were found way too easy. I also felt like she did not make the smartest choices while she was sleuthing around, and this made her feel pretty unrealistic. I really could not relate to her very well. Again this could be the way the characters are in cozy mysteries.

Overall there were parts of the book that were entertaining, I did like the humorous parts of the book and the way it flowed, but I really thought there would be more adventure and excitement, so in that area it was a little disappointing. I can recommend this book if you do like cozy mysteries. If you want to read this but it is a first time read of a cozy mystery, like it was for me, just don't expect a lot of bone chilling excitement. I am rating this 2.5 stars