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The Erotica Book Club for Nice Ladies
Lily, a librarian with a bookmobile, arrives in the small California town of Nolan to help start a book club. Across the ocean in an Alsatian chateau, an ancient Book of Cures is stolen and surreptitiously travels to a California coast library, then on to Nolan. Suspicion swirls around the three lonely club members. Unaware of the theft, they secretly pursue their curiosity about classical erotica, while sipping a strange tea infused with herbs grown in a gypsy garden. Mysterious events collide. A crime wave and a murder shake up the town, as the women are entangled deeper and deeper into a baffling puzzle of danger and death.
2016 Eudora Welty Memorial Fiction Award
2016 The Wishing Shelf Book Awards
Lily, a librarian with a bookmobile, arrives in the small California town of Nolan to help start a book club. Across the ocean in an Alsatian chateau, an ancient Book of Cures is stolen and surreptitiously travels to a California coast library, then on to Nolan. Suspicion swirls around the three lonely club members. Unaware of the theft, they secretly pursue their curiosity about classical erotica, while sipping a strange tea infused with herbs grown in a gypsy garden. Mysterious events collide. A crime wave and a murder shake up the town, as the women are entangled deeper and deeper into a baffling puzzle of danger and death.
2016 Eudora Welty Memorial Fiction Award
2016 The Wishing Shelf Book Awards
Lily, a librarian with a bookmobile, arrives in the small California town of Nolan to help start a book club. Across the ocean in an Alsatian chateau, an ancient Book of Cures is stolen and surreptitiously travels to a California coast library, then on to Nolan. Suspicion swirls around the three lonely club members. Unaware of the theft, they secretly pursue their curiosity about classical erotica, while sipping a strange tea infused with herbs grown in a gypsy garden. Mysterious events collide. A crime wave and a murder shake up the town, as the women are entangled deeper and deeper into a baffling puzzle of danger and death.
320 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 2015
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960 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
April 2, 2015
The marvelous title of this book may mislead some, so let me say right off the bat that if you're looking for titillating details to enhance your intimate life, this is not another guide to the joys of sex. Remember the "Nice Ladies" of the title. This novel is much more than that—a book that combines women's fiction and cozy mystery, a book for those who treasure the look and feel of an old and revered book, one for those concerned with women's health and longings, and those interested in ancient herbal remedies...and poisons. Even goat farms, if your taste runs that way—or the Chaos Theory.
Before I opened the book, I expected a book club of at least a dozen or more. Not so. Three women comprise the Erotica Book Club for Nice Ladies: Lily, newly fired from the rare book collection of the Groverly (CA) library in an economic cutback, recently underwent a double mastectomy, beautifully masked by gorgeous tattoos, but she feels she will no longer be attractive to men; Aggie, a widowed elderly gypsy woman who fiercely misses her lifetime mate and their nights of passion; and Piper, who has moved out of the conjugal bedroom lest husband Freddy find the breast lump she has discovered. Each has her reason for choosing erotic titles, when Lily sudden appears in the small town of Nolan, California with the bookmobile she impulsively bought and loaded with her personal library. Her intent is to travel from town to town: she never makes it beyond Nolan, where she becomes enmeshed in the life of the community and in the book club.
The Chaos Theory runs like a thread through this story—a dust storm in Mozambique kicks up winds that head for California; a Monarch butterfly swarm spawns an event elsewhere on the globe. The incident that starts the story occurs in sixteenth-century Alsace when the Duchess of Jardin pens a note to her son making him keeper of the legendary Book of Cures, which contains both cures and poisons.
Fast forward to contemporary times when Lily McFae's last act as archival librarian at the Groverly library is to arrange an exhibit of twenty rare books from the Global Antiquarian Society. The Jardin book, kept safely locked away, is NOT part of the exhibit. Yet it is included and then stolen, with accusatory fingers pointed at Lily, who is no longer with the library. Several people in Nolan know of the book's estimated value of one million dollars. But who murdered the current Duke of Jardin, grabbed the book, and slipped it into the exhibit? By various means—some accidental, some deliberate—the reader ends up playing the game of "Book, book, who's got the book?" as it changes hands several times.
Nolan has close to the strangest oddball citizens of any small town in fictional history: Boris, who runs the Emporium, is expert with swords and does tattoos on the side; Maxine and Sax, twins who run the Used Stuff Store and are at odds with each other more than not; Llewelyn Blanding, the drug salesman who offers to pay a million for the book so he can show his brother he can improve Neubland Pharmaceuticals; Aggie's nephew, Griffo, who is among other things a failed sword swallower and who steals precious belongings from his aunt, robbing her of the opportunity to carry out Gypsy traditional grieving rituals. Most of the above covet the Book of Cures, and each for a time possesses it. Minnesota Fiddler, an apparently homeless woman, wants to recover not the book but a stash of coins hidden in Lila's bookmobile. Everyone has nefarious intentions, except perhaps Jeremy, who tends bar at the Hopper, local hangout, and Freddy, Piper's husband who is utterly confused by the sudden change in his wife.
And then there's Hugh Jamison, that luscious detective from Groverly who only wants to return the book to the Jardin estate in Alsace and who finds Lily as attractive as she find him. Suffice it to say, the night the two finally confess their attractions, the power in Nolan goes out several times. The Chaos theory.
You have to pay close attention in this book, not only to find out where the Book of Cures is now but to keep track of who's who. Various shifts in point of view, usually at the end of the chapter, keep you alert. It all means something—a cosmic world view, if you will—but you have to keep on top of it.
For those who are still interested in erotica, here are some of the classics Lily refers to over and over: Emily Dickinson's poem, "Wild night—wild nights"; Boccaccio's The Decameron; Venus in India, by Charles Devereaux; and George Sands' Lelia. A helpful list in the back of the book suggests more titles.
Writers of women's fiction, especially cozy mysteries, are constantly urged to "think outside the box" but when they do, agents and editors are often quick to admire the work but protest that they cannot sell it. Kudos to Connie Spittler for creating a work that is truly original and delightful but not, as too many mysteries are, a quick, casual read with the villain obvious half way through; and kudos to River Junction Press of Omaha for taking a chance on this novel. With a title like The Erotica Book Club for Nice Ladies, how can they lose?
by Judy Alter
for Story Circle Book Reviews
reviewing books by, for, and about women
Before I opened the book, I expected a book club of at least a dozen or more. Not so. Three women comprise the Erotica Book Club for Nice Ladies: Lily, newly fired from the rare book collection of the Groverly (CA) library in an economic cutback, recently underwent a double mastectomy, beautifully masked by gorgeous tattoos, but she feels she will no longer be attractive to men; Aggie, a widowed elderly gypsy woman who fiercely misses her lifetime mate and their nights of passion; and Piper, who has moved out of the conjugal bedroom lest husband Freddy find the breast lump she has discovered. Each has her reason for choosing erotic titles, when Lily sudden appears in the small town of Nolan, California with the bookmobile she impulsively bought and loaded with her personal library. Her intent is to travel from town to town: she never makes it beyond Nolan, where she becomes enmeshed in the life of the community and in the book club.
The Chaos Theory runs like a thread through this story—a dust storm in Mozambique kicks up winds that head for California; a Monarch butterfly swarm spawns an event elsewhere on the globe. The incident that starts the story occurs in sixteenth-century Alsace when the Duchess of Jardin pens a note to her son making him keeper of the legendary Book of Cures, which contains both cures and poisons.
Fast forward to contemporary times when Lily McFae's last act as archival librarian at the Groverly library is to arrange an exhibit of twenty rare books from the Global Antiquarian Society. The Jardin book, kept safely locked away, is NOT part of the exhibit. Yet it is included and then stolen, with accusatory fingers pointed at Lily, who is no longer with the library. Several people in Nolan know of the book's estimated value of one million dollars. But who murdered the current Duke of Jardin, grabbed the book, and slipped it into the exhibit? By various means—some accidental, some deliberate—the reader ends up playing the game of "Book, book, who's got the book?" as it changes hands several times.
Nolan has close to the strangest oddball citizens of any small town in fictional history: Boris, who runs the Emporium, is expert with swords and does tattoos on the side; Maxine and Sax, twins who run the Used Stuff Store and are at odds with each other more than not; Llewelyn Blanding, the drug salesman who offers to pay a million for the book so he can show his brother he can improve Neubland Pharmaceuticals; Aggie's nephew, Griffo, who is among other things a failed sword swallower and who steals precious belongings from his aunt, robbing her of the opportunity to carry out Gypsy traditional grieving rituals. Most of the above covet the Book of Cures, and each for a time possesses it. Minnesota Fiddler, an apparently homeless woman, wants to recover not the book but a stash of coins hidden in Lila's bookmobile. Everyone has nefarious intentions, except perhaps Jeremy, who tends bar at the Hopper, local hangout, and Freddy, Piper's husband who is utterly confused by the sudden change in his wife.
And then there's Hugh Jamison, that luscious detective from Groverly who only wants to return the book to the Jardin estate in Alsace and who finds Lily as attractive as she find him. Suffice it to say, the night the two finally confess their attractions, the power in Nolan goes out several times. The Chaos theory.
You have to pay close attention in this book, not only to find out where the Book of Cures is now but to keep track of who's who. Various shifts in point of view, usually at the end of the chapter, keep you alert. It all means something—a cosmic world view, if you will—but you have to keep on top of it.
For those who are still interested in erotica, here are some of the classics Lily refers to over and over: Emily Dickinson's poem, "Wild night—wild nights"; Boccaccio's The Decameron; Venus in India, by Charles Devereaux; and George Sands' Lelia. A helpful list in the back of the book suggests more titles.
Writers of women's fiction, especially cozy mysteries, are constantly urged to "think outside the box" but when they do, agents and editors are often quick to admire the work but protest that they cannot sell it. Kudos to Connie Spittler for creating a work that is truly original and delightful but not, as too many mysteries are, a quick, casual read with the villain obvious half way through; and kudos to River Junction Press of Omaha for taking a chance on this novel. With a title like The Erotica Book Club for Nice Ladies, how can they lose?
by Judy Alter
for Story Circle Book Reviews
reviewing books by, for, and about women
Want to read
September 6, 2017I didn't even read the blurb. Just saw the title and went "Yup."
November 14, 2022
Toto byla slabota asi i v rámci žánru. Jako četlo se to rychle a dobře, ale ten příběh byl neskutečně debilní a postavy taky.
June 23, 2016
This book was entered in The Wishing Shelf Book Awards. This is what our readers thought:
Title: The Erotica Book Club for Nice Ladies
Author: Connie Spittler
Star Rating: 5 Stars
Number of Readers: 24
Stats
Editing: 8/10
Style: 8/10
Content: 9/10
Cover: 8/10
Of the 24 readers:
23 would read another book by this author.
16 thought the cover was good or excellent.
19 thought the blurb was well written.
23 felt the writing style was simple: easy to follow and, often, very entertaining.
Readers’ Comments
‘A fun mystery with plenty of twists and turns.’ Female reader, aged 45
‘The characterization was fab as was the mystery. The ending was unpredictable and the style of writing was light. All in all, a very enjoyable story. Excellent cover and blurb too.’ Male reader, aged 42
‘I loved the erotica book club angle. It turned a run of the mill mystery into a story of much greater depth. The three women were well developed with plenty of backstory to help the reader get to know and sympathise with them.’ Male reader, aged 66
‘What I enjoyed the most was the love the three women had for old books. It was wonderful.’ Female reader, aged 34
‘Sweet, whimsical with a brow-scratching mystery. A FINALIST and highly recommended.’ The Wishing Shelf Book Awards
Title: The Erotica Book Club for Nice Ladies
Author: Connie Spittler
Star Rating: 5 Stars
Number of Readers: 24
Stats
Editing: 8/10
Style: 8/10
Content: 9/10
Cover: 8/10
Of the 24 readers:
23 would read another book by this author.
16 thought the cover was good or excellent.
19 thought the blurb was well written.
23 felt the writing style was simple: easy to follow and, often, very entertaining.
Readers’ Comments
‘A fun mystery with plenty of twists and turns.’ Female reader, aged 45
‘The characterization was fab as was the mystery. The ending was unpredictable and the style of writing was light. All in all, a very enjoyable story. Excellent cover and blurb too.’ Male reader, aged 42
‘I loved the erotica book club angle. It turned a run of the mill mystery into a story of much greater depth. The three women were well developed with plenty of backstory to help the reader get to know and sympathise with them.’ Male reader, aged 66
‘What I enjoyed the most was the love the three women had for old books. It was wonderful.’ Female reader, aged 34
‘Sweet, whimsical with a brow-scratching mystery. A FINALIST and highly recommended.’ The Wishing Shelf Book Awards
May 16, 2016
Super Bummer!! I figured I couldn't NOT read a book with the title: "The Erotica Book Club for Nice Ladies" But I only made it almost 1/3 thru. SO slow paced, slow character development, just boring. PS - (just in case anyone was wondering) so far zero erotica. or romance. or even really friendship yet. This is the sum-up so far: a young woman finds a lump in her breast and is afraid to tell her hubby (don't know why) So she decides to shut him out, move to the guest room, etc etc. She thinks if she reads erotic novels it will "fill the void" so to speak. But she doesn't have any such books, and her small town doesn't even have a library, so she decides to form a book club. She gets one follower, an old widowed gypsy woman with no will to live and nothing else to do. Enter the poor pathetic librarian (with a secret and/or sad past YET to be revealed) who has lost her job and brings a "book mobile" to the small town. The End. they aren't friends yet, haven't really formed their club yet, and as much as I love the title, I think that is absolutely THE ONLY good thing going for this book :(
November 17, 2015
“Oooo-ooo-oo,” my librarian friend said, her voice slowly raising, then falling, as she gazed down at the title of my latest book: “The Erotica Book Club for Nice Ladies.” I chuckled, “It’s not quite what you think, Claire. It’s a cozy little mystery with a bunch of wonderful, quirky characters about an erotica book club for nice ladies, and much more.” She looked at me with a raised eyebrow, doubt painted across her blue eyes as if to say, right!
Lily McFae is a librarian who had arranged a prestigious book exhibit for her library in Groverly, California. Then, suddenly and unjustly, she was released from her job before the exhibit arrived. Deeply dispirited, as Lily pondered how to begin a new life, she saw an old, parked bookmobile for sale. She knew right then what she would do: buy the bookmobile and travel around to share with others her unfathomable love of books. Shortly before she started her journey, she re-visited her library and noticed an extra book tucked in a back corner of the exhibit, a rare book of herbs and cures, centuries old, lay there.
The unfolding story is rich with charming twists and turns between the numerous fascinating characters in the new town where Lily settles and forms a book club based on the members’ interests. The women, the eclectic townspeople, the rare book, the natural world, and more than a touch of the spiritual world intersect time and again in ways that keep the reader completely engrossed. The Erotica Book Club for Nice Ladies is a story for anyone who loves books, herbs, cozy mysteries, deeper insights into classic books, serendipitous encounters, and the remarkable synergy between circles of women with shared passions.
Lily McFae is a librarian who had arranged a prestigious book exhibit for her library in Groverly, California. Then, suddenly and unjustly, she was released from her job before the exhibit arrived. Deeply dispirited, as Lily pondered how to begin a new life, she saw an old, parked bookmobile for sale. She knew right then what she would do: buy the bookmobile and travel around to share with others her unfathomable love of books. Shortly before she started her journey, she re-visited her library and noticed an extra book tucked in a back corner of the exhibit, a rare book of herbs and cures, centuries old, lay there.
The unfolding story is rich with charming twists and turns between the numerous fascinating characters in the new town where Lily settles and forms a book club based on the members’ interests. The women, the eclectic townspeople, the rare book, the natural world, and more than a touch of the spiritual world intersect time and again in ways that keep the reader completely engrossed. The Erotica Book Club for Nice Ladies is a story for anyone who loves books, herbs, cozy mysteries, deeper insights into classic books, serendipitous encounters, and the remarkable synergy between circles of women with shared passions.
July 31, 2017
Connie Spittler’s The Erotica Book Club for Nice Ladies is a real pleasure. A blend of mystery, humor, romance, and magical realism, this story revolves around a book club of nice ladies who seek a little bit more, both in their reading material and in their love lives.
A librarian who loses her job looks for a new way to live, a hair stylist negotiates love and health issues, and an aging gypsy gardener mourns her late love while grappling with a difficult nephew. The characters spring to life with laughter and spirit, coming together as distinct, interesting women seeking connection and meaning in their lives. An interesting context of history and herbal folklore provides spice. As the ladies explore the obscure literary genre of erotica, the larger world connives and concocts cures for all manner of human maladies, and criminals scheme to profit, even reaching their small town. Meanwhile, friendships grow like herbs in a garden.
It all makes for a page-turning read, a romp with interesting information, good humor and smart writing. I love this book for its story, its dash of magic and literary savvy. Ms. Spittler has written an intelligent book worthy of book clubs and private literary adventurers.
*I received a free review copy from the author, but no other consideration.
A librarian who loses her job looks for a new way to live, a hair stylist negotiates love and health issues, and an aging gypsy gardener mourns her late love while grappling with a difficult nephew. The characters spring to life with laughter and spirit, coming together as distinct, interesting women seeking connection and meaning in their lives. An interesting context of history and herbal folklore provides spice. As the ladies explore the obscure literary genre of erotica, the larger world connives and concocts cures for all manner of human maladies, and criminals scheme to profit, even reaching their small town. Meanwhile, friendships grow like herbs in a garden.
It all makes for a page-turning read, a romp with interesting information, good humor and smart writing. I love this book for its story, its dash of magic and literary savvy. Ms. Spittler has written an intelligent book worthy of book clubs and private literary adventurers.
*I received a free review copy from the author, but no other consideration.
October 23, 2015
This was a lovely quiet read. There were gypsies, bookmobiles, stolen antique books, a hunky detective and a beautiful tattooed librarian. The erotica is very understated, such as you would find in The Decameron or Lady Chatterly's Lover, not what you find in Fifty Shades of Gray. You would not be embarrassed to discuss this book with your mother. the mystery of the stolen book is woven through the story of an out of work librarian who buys a bookmobile and travels around a small town trying to interest people in reading. I, as a still-working, librarian, loved it and have told everyone about it. You should read it and laugh and cry and want to become a librarian too or maybe just wnat to read a good book. The list of classic erotica at the back is a hoot.
July 21, 2015
I didn't realize that this was a cozy mystery and that is clearly not my genre.
The best part of the book: references to different books, which inspired a choice I made at the library yesterday.
The worst part of the book: Reminders that Aggie is a gypsy every other paragraph. She's a gypsy, got it.
The best part of the book: references to different books, which inspired a choice I made at the library yesterday.
The worst part of the book: Reminders that Aggie is a gypsy every other paragraph. She's a gypsy, got it.
January 6, 2016
Although this story was not what I was expecting, I enjoyed this book. At first the number of different characters made it hard to track who was doing what action but approximately one third of the way into the plot it began to flow seamlessly. As a fan of mystery and thrillers I always attempt to discern the culprit and was pleasantly surprised by the outcome.
May 31, 2017
I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway. I was looking forward to the book but found it slow reading. DNF. It was too slow of a pace and didn't capture my attention. I don't understand the reasons why the characters acted the way they did (i.e. not tell their husband and move to the guest room). Just made no sense.
May 9, 2015
Connie Spittler's book kept me guessing til the very end. Would the nice ladies end up in jail? who really did poison the Duke? Will the real killer ever be caught--and what about that nice-looking detective?
January 26, 2016
By the time I realized the book wasn't going to get better, I was too far in and the mystery got me. The characters seemed rather one-dimensional and kind of dumb. Not as cleverly written as I would like.
June 19, 2016
I read this off and on between other books because it could not hold my attention. The story lines were all over the place. I did enjoy looking up the other books that were referenced! All in all it was interesting, but it could've been shorter.
June 21, 2017
A fun little mystery with some unusual characters. Originally selected because Ms. Spittler is a local author.
December 17, 2015
About setting up a mobile library and a book club in a small town.
November 21, 2016
Nothing special.
December 10, 2016
A wonderful ready, lots of interesting tidbits in it. A cozy, but not sugary sweet. Enjoyed the nice ladies, chaos and butterflies!
January 20, 2017
Wonderful
Great flow and wonderful characters. Enjoyed the ladies, the mystery, and the lovely, and passionate description of books presented in the book club.
Great flow and wonderful characters. Enjoyed the ladies, the mystery, and the lovely, and passionate description of books presented in the book club.
December 21, 2019
This is a book about belonging and female friendship with a bit of mystery. I liked the three main female characters who on the surface couldn't be more different. One woman is an elderly gypsy, one a hair stylist and the last one is a librarian. They bond while forming a book club.
The mystery surrounds an antique book that was stolen and some missing gold coins.
The part I didn't like was all the quotes of poetry but then again I dislike poetry.
This is not an erotic book unless you find it in the poetry which I quite frankly skipped.
The mystery surrounds an antique book that was stolen and some missing gold coins.
The part I didn't like was all the quotes of poetry but then again I dislike poetry.
This is not an erotic book unless you find it in the poetry which I quite frankly skipped.
September 1, 2018
Je to psané tak nějak jinak, než jsem zatím cokoli četla, lehká oddechová četba, jsou tam některé zajímavé odkazy na knihy, některé z nich ani u nás snad nebyly přeloženy.
Po dlouhé době jsem zas ráda za konec, který jsem čekala. Jinak mě tato skutečnost spíš naštve. Ale tady by mě naštvalo spíš, kdyby to skončilo jinak.
Po dlouhé době jsem zas ráda za konec, který jsem čekala. Jinak mě tato skutečnost spíš naštve. Ale tady by mě naštvalo spíš, kdyby to skončilo jinak.
June 12, 2021
An hour in and I don't understand the characters. There are about 10 of them so far and not a single one is interesting. They are kind of sad and pathetic. It is really boring and confusing. Stopping the madness now. I know an hour is short, but there are too many books out there that grab me in the first paragraph to keep going with this one.
December 29, 2021
Not at all like the title sounds. Book club was the key to get me to read but that didn't really make much sense in the book itself. It did show that these woman were looking for female comraderie and that's what a bookclub can be but it went off in so many tangents and mysteries that who knew what was going on at times. I still enjoyed it but it was a slow read for me.
July 17, 2019
I found this mystery novel charming. It's not a fast read, but that's because Spittler takes her time developing the characters. What I liked best is the focus on friendship between the three main characters. This is a novel about the ties between women, and I always like such novels.
May 19, 2018
I'm cheating a little here because I did not finish this book. Characters are all unflattering stereotypes.
August 14, 2019
Cute mystery with books and gypsies
October 20, 2020
* Read for the '2020 PopSugar Reading Challenge' task: A book about a book club
Read
April 23, 2024Book Club
June 5, 2024
I could not stay interested. I feel like I was intrigued by the title and let down by the execution.
Interesting premise but overall it left me bored.
Interesting premise but overall it left me bored.
April 10, 2025
I like the fact that this is a cozy mystery with very quirky characters. I like the fact that the plot "meanders" around. I like the fact that the author lives in Omaha, NE.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews