July Online Book Club: Welcome to Spicetown by Sheri Richey

Welcome to Spicetown: A Spicetown Mystery

by Sheri Richey

Not every mystery needs a body count.

Cora Mae Bingham is the super-organized senior citizen mayor of Spicetown, Ohio. (One of those Women Who Gets Stuff Done!) Her big plans for town improvements like renovating the old popcorn factory building, establishing an animal shelter, and erecting a town statue are derailed by a missing truck containing fireworks for the county’s New Year’s Eve fireworks display. Conrad Harris, the local police chief, who himself is getting up there in experience, is charged with helping locate the explosives. Hints of romance are sprinkled throughout the book between them and an adorable younger couple too, but aren’t the main focus of the story.

The Spicetown Mysteries have nine books in the series, and as you can imagine, there are plenty of quirky characters and suspects throughout the town. An older gentleman who constantly makes “helpful” suggestions is acting strangely, the sheriff is a pain in the neck, and the new spice shop in town sells crystals, oils, and who knows what other woo-woo stuff is behind the counter?

I recognized the character descriptions and details about the town because the inhabitants could live anywhere. I really enjoyed Richey’s people and solving the puzzle of what happened to the truck and all the other oddities happening in Spicetown. She has set the stage for the following stories and I’m looking forward to reading more from this series.

If you like my Cassandra Sato Mysteries, or Tonya Kappes camper series, you’ll probably enjoy these too. The books are all available in Kindle Unlimited or the first one is only $2.99 if you want to try it out. Let me know what you think.

Bonus: Classic book recommendation

The last time I read The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, the KC Royals beat the StL Cardinals in the World Series, the Nebraska Cornhuskers were still in the Big 8 Conference, and the most frequently played song on my mix tape was probably Money for Nothing by Dire Straits. I got distracted before finishing the series.

This summer seemed like a great time to revisit The Chronicles of Narnia as an adult. They are recommended for kids ages 7-9, but anyone who has read Harry Potter or A Wrinkle in Time knows that there’s plenty of entertainment within the pages for adults too. I’ve read lots of C.S. Lewis’s essays and even visited the Oxford pub where he met with his author buddies, including J.R.R. Tolkien. I’m on book 5 but already they feel like seeing old friends again.

What books have you read multiple times before? Isn’t it fun to notice new things and savor the characters and descriptions more than the first time you breeze through a book? They feel like a vacation from real life without buying gas or boarding an airplane.

If you’ve never read this series before, check it out!

Kelly Brakenhoff is the author of 15 books and a seasoned ASL interpreter. She splits her writing energy between two series: cozy mysteries set on a college campus and children’s books featuring Duke the Deaf Dog.

Parents, kids, and teachers love the children’s books and activity guides because they introduce ASL and the Deaf community through fun, engaging stories. And if you enjoy a smart female sleuth, want to learn more about Deaf culture, or have ever lived in a place where livestock outnumber people, the Cassandra Sato Mystery series will have you connecting the dots faster than a group project coming together the night before it’s due.

A proud mom to four adults, head of the dog-snuggling department, and grandma to a growing brood of perfectly behaved grandkids, Kelly and her husband call Nebraska home.