Sleuthers are awaiting the latest movie in Alison Sweeney’s popular Hannah Swensen Mystery series. This new movie is called Best Served Cold: A Hannah Swensen Mystery.
This Hallmark mystery series, originally called Murder She Baked, are based on the Joanne Fluke mystery series. Which book is Best Served Cold based on?
Here is that answer and more!
Which Joanne Fluke Mystery Is Best Served Cold: A Hannah Swensen Mystery Based On?
There is a new Hannah Swensen mystery premiering on the the Hallmark Channel on Saturday, May 16 starring Alison Sweeney and Victor Webster. This series is based on the Murder She Baked book series. Which book is this new movie based on?
The new Best Served Cold: A Hannah Swensen Murder is based on the Joanne Fluke mystery, Triple Chocolate Cheesecake Murder.
This is what the Hallmark mystery is about:
Hannah is drawn into a new mystery when a high-profile forgery case takes a deadly turn, leaving a key suspect murdered and the lead prosecutor missing.
As Chad faces mounting pressure ahead of trial, Hannah works to uncover how the disappearance and murder are connected, following a trail that leads to a complex pawnshop scam.
With time running out, Hannah, Chad, and their trusted circle must piece together the truth before the killer strikes again and justice is lost.
As for the Joanne Fluke novel, this is what the book is about:
Hannah’s up to her ears with Easter orders rushing in at The Cookie Jar, plus a festive meal to prepare for a dinner party at her mother’s penthouse. But everything comes crashing to a halt when Hannah receives a panicked call from her sister Andrea—Mayor Richard Bascomb has been murdered . . . and Andrea is the prime suspect.
Even with his reputation for being a bully, Mayor Bascomb had been unusually testy in the days leading up to his death, leaving Hannah to wonder if he knew he was in danger.
There are plenty of suspects to sift through for sure. And as orders pile up at The Cookie Jar—and children line up for Easter egg hunts—Hannah must spring into investigation mode and identify the real killer . . . before another murder happens!
Clearly, these two stories are not the same. First, this is not an Easter story. Next, there is no Mayor Bascomb in this movie.
However, Sweeney, who wrote this movie, has previously explained how she may use a scene or other Easter eggs from the book for those Joanne Fluke mystery fans.
However, these movies are their own creation and adapted for the Hallmark Channel. For example, in the books Hannah has had a messy love life. Although there was a long-running love triangle between Hannah, Mike (Cameron Mathison), and Norman on the Hallmark series, Hannah’s love life was far more complicated in the books.
What Allison Sweeney Says About Hannah Swenson Books VS Movies
As someone who has been lucky enough to interview Alison Sweeney on several occasions, I have been able to ask about the books versus the movies. This is what she told me in early 2025.
It’s really fun to have the books to work from and to use. Joanne Fluke is fantastic! She has so many great crime scenes, villains and really fun characters. I love her character names. I always start with her character names because she is so great. When I re-read these books again and again, there are certain things that stick out that I include for the lovers of her books. A little nod to the classic ‘if you know you know’ kind of moment.
I am also aware I have much less time to tell these stories. She has as many pages as she wants. I have to kinda condense it to an 83-minute story. Also, updating it. A lot of these books were written a long time ago. You have to keep in mind of Google, smartphones. Everyone has a recording device on their phone. This modern stuff takes a lot of the clues from the older mystery.
Like if you watched a Columbo now, there’s not even a mystery now. You just have the answer in your pocket. You have to really mix things up to keep those mysteries alive today. Also, no one wants to go online Googlng stuff. Keeping the clues things around for Hannah to solve makes things fun.
Also I keep an eye on the movies we just finished and what people have just seen. How can I strengthen Chad’s role in this town? How to get the audience and Hannah to learn a little more about him. That’s what prompted me to tell his story with the trial and mixing it with the murder mystery. It was really fun thing to develop. I spend a lot of time thinking about it.
I feel like you want to answer the questions that the fans are going to wonder about. But you also don’t want to spend a lot of time dwelling, you want to get to the good stuff. It is a balance. There are also some fun moments and dialogue. Maybe you need to watch it all again? You may have missed something? I really try to have multiple layers for people to discover, one more fun thing.
When Is The Hallmark Channel Premiere Of Best Served Cold?
The premiere of Best Served Cold: A Hannah Swensen Mystery is on Saturday, May 16, at 8 p.m. Eastern, on the Hallmark Channel.
This movie will be available to stream the next day on Hallmark+.
The Hallmark Mystery Channel premiere is on Friday, May 22, at 8 p.m. Eastern. There is a Hannah Swensen mini-marathon on the Mystery Channel that day starting at 2 p.m. Eastern.
Readers, how many of the Joanne Fluke books have you read?
