Friday, June 19, 2015

Book Review: Murder Freshly Baked by Vannetta Chapman

Murder Freshly Baked (An Amish Village Mystery Book 3)
By Vannetta Chapman
Publisher: Zondervan
Published: June 9, 2015
ASIN: B00PFBNZQU

Amazon Synopsis:

Don’t taste it
Don’t share it
Just throw it away
If you try my bakery pie
You won’t live to see another day.

The Amish Artisan Village of Middlebury, Indiana, might be the last place you would ever expect to find a murderer. But Amber has been managing the Village for decades and there’s nothing she hasn’t seen. Or so she thought.

When poetic notes begin appearing around the bakery, warning that some of the pies have been poisoned, Amber is as confused as she is concerned. Who poisons pies? And more to the point, who leaves poems of warning after they’ve done it? When Amber decides to help the police track down the sweet-toothed saboteur, she enlists Hannah Troyer for another round of Amish-style detective work.

Can Amber and Hannah help the police before the Poison Poet strikes? Both women will need to draw on their faith to preserve the peaceful community they’ve built in Middlebury . . . and to protect the girls who work in the Amish Artisan Village.

Book Links

 My Thoughts:

I haven’t read an Amish novel in a while and this one was different which was why I was so looking forward to reading it. I had never read an Amish murder mystery, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised.

What I found were characters with depth to them as evidenced by their interactions as they helped one another with their sometimes intensely difficult personal situations. The novel was more than just about the murder; it was about the community of people.

This was the third book in the series of Amish-style detective work that main characters Amber and Hannah were involved in trying to track down a killer. But this killer hasn’t killed anyone yet. This killer keeps leaving poetic notes and a pie warning that the pie is poisoned.

This novel is not fast-paced, but flows along at a pleasant speed for the type of read that it is. There is some romance between a few of the characters and as the author herself says, it is fiction full of grace.

While this is a novel that fits in the genre of Christian fiction, it certainly does not preach at you. Whatever you believe I think you will find this book an enjoyable read.

 I liked that the author used some of the words the Amish use and provided a glossary. The words were linked to the glossary so it made looking up the word very easy if you were not able to figure it out from context. The use of these words in the conversations between the characters helped to give a more authentic feel to their Amish heritage.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading Murder Freshly Baked. I would highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys Amish novels, or to anyone who wants to try something a little different along the lines of a murder mystery. I gave this one 5 stars out of 5.


I received this book from the publishers via Booklook Bloggers in exchange for my fair and honest review. A positive opinion was not required. All thoughts are my own.

About the Author:

The first thing you need to know about me is that I write Fiction full of GRACE.  Every plot is different. The characters change. Some of my books are mysteries, others are novellas, and some are romances. But they all are stories of light, hope, and truth. Stories that at least for a moment touch the deepest places in our heart.Tales that whisper hope. That speak of family and community. That remind us of God and His love.What do I write? If I had to reduce it to four words, I suppose I’d say I write Fiction full of GRACE.

I live and teach in the Texas hill country with my husband, cats, and a rather large herd of deer. Our four children have flown the nest; however, we are fortunate that they all live close enough to visit. I have always felt that my faith was at the very center of who and what I am, and I am thrilled beyond words to be able to now write about something that is so near to my heart. At various times I have served as a pianist, teacher, church secretary, and worship team member. While living in the Dallas area, I served as an adjunct professor of English Literature at Dallas Baptist University. When we moved to a small town in Central Texas, I continued teaching for a few years, but I now write full-time and I play the keyboard in our church’s praise band.

My grandfather was born in Albion, Pennsylvania, and I am currently researching whether I might have Amish roots.
Author Links
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1 comment :

  1. Thank you for your review, Kathryn! I'm so glad you enjoyed the story!

    ReplyDelete