With the temperatures climbing, it’s the perfect time to dive into the new Shake Shop Mystery series. While readers will sample Dana Mentink’s Pint of No Return, we’ll probably return for the residents of Upper Sprocket, Oregon.

Trinidad (Trina) Jones isn’t sure she’s welcome in Upper Sprocket. She’s one of three ex-wives of Gabe Bigley, who went to prison for embezzlement and other financial crimes. His first wife, Bonnie, has his only child. He signed a downtown shop over to Trinidad, and she’s turning it into the Shimmy and Shake Shop. His third wife, Juliette, received a storage business. Since they’re all in Sprocket, the residents call them the ex-wives.

The shop’s opening is just a week away, and everything is going smoothly with the help of two fifteen-year-old twins. Everything is going smoothly until she tries to deliver nuts to Kevin Heartly, the third generation Popcorn King, and finds Kevin’s body in his large kettle. That’s when she meets Police Chief Cynthia Bigley, her ex-husband’s older sister. But, she’s in shock when Chief Bigley arrests Trinidad’s new friend, Gabe’s ex, Juliette. Trinidad isn’t a detective. She’s a former court stenographer, but she doesn’t believe Juliette is guilty. And, she has an unusual viewpoint for a fellow ex. Juliette’s past was her past too, her reputation in the town that lumps them all together. Juliette is a friend to defend, and to help.

I like the direction mysteries are taking nowadays. Trinidad’s beloved grandfather, Papa Luis, a Cuban-American, drives in from Miami, and immediately befriends the entire town, unlike his granddaughter who is “socially awkward, plain, shy, and clumsy”. Trinidad befriends Quinn and Doug Logan, brothers who are nut farmers. Quinn is a veteran of Afghanistan who returned home with PTSD. His brother, Doug, was able to help him get through it because he’s quiet, on the spectrum. Then, there’s Trinidad’s dog, Noodles. Noodles is an older dog that flunked out of school to be a therapy dog, but has some unusual talents, from opening the refrigerator and retrieving jars to understanding Doug’s needs.

As Trinidad bumbles through, looking for clues to help Juliette, she sometimes feels out of place, as if she doesn’t belong in Sprocket. Anyone who reads the entire book, though, will discover that Trinidad is right where she belongs. The best cozy mysteries are those that invite the reader back to a community where people support each other. Trinidad, and readers, will discover that community in Pint of No Return.

Dana Mentink’s website is https://www.danamentink.com/

Pint of No Return by Dana Mentink. Sourcebooks/Poisoned Pen Press, 2021. ISBN 9781728231556 (paperback), 288p.

FTC Full Disclosure – The publisher sent a copy of the book, hoping I would review it.