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1674 ratings | 42 reviews | avg rating:3.68

Denise’s Year In Books

Denise’s 2025 Year in Books

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Denise Swanson’s Followers (1,142)

Denise’s Bookshelves

to-read (321)
currently-reading (33)
read (1773)
did-not-finish (0)
apocolyptic (17)
books-i-ve-written (27)
contemporary-romance (97)
cozy-mystery (6)
erotic-romance (22)
light-paranormal (19)
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Denise’s Friends (72)

Jenny Allan

1,484 books | 147 friends

Lois Rotella

891 books | 37 friends

Readaholic Jenn

20,258 books | 1,746 friends

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1,874 books | 40 friends

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6,849 books | 64 friends

Dawn

8,667 books | 278 friends

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33,180 books | 784 friends

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103 books | 64 friends

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Denise Swanson

Goodreads Author

Born

in The United States

Website

http://www.deniseswanson.com/

Twitter

DeniseSwansonAu

Genre

Mystery, Romance

Member Since

December 2013

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Denise Swanson lives in rural Illinois with her husband, classical composer David Stybr.

After 22 years as a practicing school psychologist, she's happiest sitting in her scree porch reading. However, when the weather turns too cold, she's willing to leave the Midwest to cruise the sunny Caribbean.

Denise is an animal lover, but her home is currently furless, since her kitty of 20 years passed away in August of 2016. Instead, she enjoys watching the wildlife out her office window. ...more

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Combine Editions
Denise Swanson’s books

Average rating: 3.9 · 45,469 ratings · 4,332 reviews · 56 distinct works • Similar authors

	Murder of a Small-Town Honey (A Scumble River Mystery, #1) 3.78 avg rating — 3,500 ratings — published 2000 — 12 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Tart of Darkness (Chef-to-Go Mystery, #1) 3.60 avg rating — 3,228 ratings — published 2018 — 10 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Dead in the Water (Welcome Back to Scumble River, #1) 3.81 avg rating — 2,047 ratings — published 2017 — 10 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Murder of a Sleeping Beauty (A Scumble River Mystery, #3) 3.97 avg rating — 1,898 ratings — published 2002 — 11 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Murder of a Sweet Old Lady (A Scumble River Mystery, #2) 3.94 avg rating — 1,865 ratings — published 2001 — 11 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Leave No Scone Unturned (Chef-to-Go Mystery, #2) 3.91 avg rating — 1,849 ratings — published 2019 — 10 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Little Shop of Homicide (Devereaux Dime Store, #1) 3.76 avg rating — 1,608 ratings — published 2012 — 9 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Murder of a Barbie and Ken (A Scumble River Mystery, #5) 3.90 avg rating — 1,523 ratings — published 2003 — 7 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Murder of a Bookstore Babe (Scumble River Mystery, #13) 3.90 avg rating — 1,455 ratings — published 2011 — 11 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Murder of a Snake in the Grass (A Scumble River Mystery, #4) 3.92 avg rating — 1,417 ratings — published 2003 — 9 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Denise Swanson…

3 posts
Denise Swanson's Blog: Denise's Details

Fear

I'm afraid of a lot of things. Big cities, doctors, and the DMV all make me nervous. But I don't like feeling weak so I make myself do things that I fear. Goodreads is one of those things.

The talk among authors is that Goodreads can be a mean place for writers to hang out and I don't do mean very well. But as I said, I dislike feeling weak so here I am.

I've been sticking to my own page, but yeste Read more of this blog post »

8 likes · Like • 3 comments • flag

Published on April 28, 2015 05:59 • Tags: fear, goodreads, listopia

View all 3 posts »

Series by Denise Swanson

A Scumble River Mystery (19 books)
by

Denise Swanson (Goodreads Author)

3.91 avg rating — 27,682 ratings

Chef-to-Go Mystery (4 books)
by

Denise Swanson (Goodreads Author)

3.77 avg rating — 6,309 ratings

Devereaux's Dime Store (7 books)
by

Denise Swanson (Goodreads Author)

3.91 avg rating — 5,487 ratings

Welcome Back to Scumble River (5 books)
by

Denise Swanson (Goodreads Author)

3.97 avg rating — 5,041 ratings

Forever Charmed Mysteries (2 books)
by

Denise Swanson (Goodreads Author)

3.91 avg rating — 575 ratings

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Denise is Currently Reading

Denise Swanson is currently reading

Tex (Burnout, #2)

by Dahlia West

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Jul 27, 2026 07:48PM

Denise Swanson is currently reading

Invoked (Infected #4)

by Jessica Gomez (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: currently-reading

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Jul 26, 2026 03:30PM

Denise Swanson is currently reading

Unprepared: The Next Chapter

by Norita Sieffert PhD

bookshelves: currently-reading

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Apr 25, 2026 07:41PM

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Denise’s Recent Updates

Denise Swanson rated a book liked it Darkness Over Lancaster: An EMP Post Apocalypse Prepper Survival Thriller (EMP Survival in a Powerless World Book 160) by Joey Wells	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Aug 11, 2026 03:52PM · 2 likes · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Darkness Over Lancaster by Joey Wells. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Darkness Over Lancaster by Joey Wells <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Denise Swanson rated a book liked it THE WALK: A novel of system failure (The Hollow Series Book 1) by Deron Wilkes	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Aug 08, 2026 08:03AM · 2 likes · like
Denise Swanson rated a book liked it Zombie Virus LYRV-27 — Escape: A Post-Apocalyptic Survival Thriller by Ben Friedhof (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Aug 06, 2026 12:13PM · 2 likes · like
Denise Swanson rated a book liked it Red Runs the River (Life of the Dead, #5) by Tony Urban (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Aug 03, 2026 04:16PM · 3 likes · like
Denise Swanson rated a book liked it I Kill the Dead (Life of the Dead #4) by Tony Urban (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Aug 02, 2026 06:00PM · 2 likes · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of I Kill the Dead by Tony Urban. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — I Kill the Dead by Tony Urban <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Denise Swanson rated a book liked it The Ark (Life of the Dead #3) by Tony Urban (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Aug 01, 2026 07:30PM · 1 like · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Ark by Tony Urban. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Ark by Tony Urban <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Denise Swanson rated a book it was amazing Hell on Earth (Life of the Dead, #1) by Tony Urban (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jul 29, 2026 08:26PM · 2 likes · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Hell on Earth by Tony Urban. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Hell on Earth by Tony Urban <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Denise Swanson is currently reading Tex (Burnout, #2) by Dahlia West	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jul 27, 2026 07:48PM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Tex by Dahlia West. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Tex by Dahlia West <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Denise Swanson rated a book it was amazing Falling for the Forward (Love on the Line, #1) by Brenda Rothert (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jul 27, 2026 07:36PM · 1 like · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Falling for the Forward by Brenda Rothert. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Falling for the Forward by Brenda Rothert <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Denise Swanson is currently reading Invoked (Infected #4) by Jessica Gomez (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jul 26, 2026 03:30PM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Invoked by Jessica Gomez. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Invoked by Jessica Gomez <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">

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Quotes by Denise Swanson (?)

“If you don't see it with your own eyes or hear it with your own ears, don't invent it with your small mind and share it with your big mouth.”
― Denise Swanson

9 likes

“Men are like horoscopes,” Trixie cut Skye off. “They always tell you what to do and are usually wrong.”
― Denise Swanson, Murder of a Royal Pain

tags: relationships

4 likes

“Try not to let your mind wander ... it's too small and fragile to be out by itself.”
― Denise Swanson, Murder of a Pink Elephant

3 likes

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Polls

2020 Series Read-Along

I placed all of the suggestions into a randomizer and have listed the top five series. Please vote on a series you would like for the group to read this year.

Denise Swanson Scumble River series

10 votes, 35.7%

Laura Childs Tea Shop series

7 votes, 25.0%

Victoria Laurie Abby Cooper series

5 votes, 17.9%

Joanne Fluke Hannah Swensen series

3 votes, 10.7%

Susan Wittig Albert China Bayles series

3 votes, 10.7%

28 total votes

11 comments

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Topics Mentioning This Author

topics	posts	views	last activity
Cozy Mysteries : Theme Read - July 2010	109	211	Jul 28, 2010 10:11AM
Cover to Cover Ch...: CindyAnn's 2010 List	12	40	Dec 05, 2010 04:44PM

Denise’s Friend Comments

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message 1: by Donna

Sep 02, 2017 07:31PM

Denise, I am happy to be your friend of Good Reads. I have entered the giveaway for your new book.
I love cozy books.
Donna

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Denise Swanson’s Followers (1,142)

Denise Swanson

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