Review

Where a baking contest is as deadly as it is delicious—and love might be the sweetest thing on the menu.

In Murder, She Baked: A Plum Pudding Mystery, Alison Sweeney returns as the sharp-witted baker who somehow always finds herself caught up in a murder mystery between frosting and flour. Cameron Mathison plays the love interest (and maybe a detective?), helping her solve a case while secretly wishing he could also help her with her very tempting plum pudding. Barbara Niven is the ever-enthusiastic mom who insists on baking just a little too much and giving just a little too many unsolicited opinions.

As with all Hallmark holiday movies, this is less about the actual crime (who cares who did it?) and more about the comforting presence of a small town, the weirdly high stakes of a baking competition, and a romance so sweet you could add it to a pie. There’s a mystery, of course, but the real question is: Can these two solve it before the plum pudding gets cold—or before they accidentally bake up a little more romance than expected? Spoiler alert: Yes, they do, and it’s as cozy and predictable as every Hallmark movie. Just try not to get too caught up in the drama—or the dessert!