Title: Down to Earth
Author: Tammy D. Walker
Genre: Cozy mystery
Book Blurb:
Stacey Hengesbach has enough to worry about with a pecan harvest, festival preparations, and a daughter who’s eager to leave their tiny hometown all needing her attention. So when a radio antenna tower falls, seriously injuring its owner, she’s willing to believe it’s an accident like everyone else in the county does, including the sheriff. But then another antenna tower falls, this time on her best friend’s cafe while they’re inside. With the help of her family, friends old and new, and the local ham radio club, Stacey races to solve the mystery of the falling antennas before another one comes crashing down.
Excerpt:
A knock on the front door echoed through the house. No one used the front door, just the one that led out the back from the kitchen. Rick called out that he’d get it. Stacey was about to argue with her daughter about school when she saw the imposing figure of Les Williams come through the door.
“Morning, sheriff,” Stacey said. “You want a cup of coffee? I was just taking Addie to school, but I’d be glad to get you a cup.”
“You still making that pecan coffee? That sounds nice, Stacey. Black with two sugars.”
One cup was left, probably bitter from sitting too long in the carafe, but Stacey didn’t care. It was the last of the plain breakfast blend she’d bought on sale, and it was going a bit off anyway. “Always.”
“If you’ve got a slice of that cake you had last time, too, that would be fine.”
Stacey probably did have a slice of peach cake from last time the sheriff had eaten some of her baked goods. He and Rick were in the local ham radio group together, a group Stacey was nominally secretary of. She had her license for emergencies and still practiced with the local storm spotting and rescue teams.
Sheriff Williams was in a good half of the social clubs in the area. Being in groups gave him an excuse to drop in on folks. And sample the cakes and cookies the women brought to the meetings.
Stacey rummaged around the freezer and found a chunk of what she hoped was peach cake wrapped in about ten layers of foil and plastic. She tore off the wrapper and tossed the cake on a plate. Bits of frost clung to the crumbling edge of the cake. Stacey put the plate in the microwave and cooked it on high for a minute.
“Mom, can I have the keys to something?”
Stacey studied her daughter. “I will take you as soon as this cake is out of the microwave.”
Rick and Sheriff Williams talked in their deep voices in the living room. Stacey poured a cup of coffee and dumped in too much sugar. The microwave dinged. The cake was rubbery, but it would do. “Here you go.” She set the plate and cup in front of the sheriff on the coffee table. Her pocket felt light, and she heard the kitchen door slamming. “If you’ll excuse me.”
Addie put the truck’s keys into the SUV’s door and turned them back and forth.
“You are in no condition to drive, young lady,” Stacey said. “Come in. Are you feeling sick?”
“I’m okay,” Addie said. “I just need to go.”
“I’ll take you.”
Addie leaned against the SUV’s door. “Why isn’t this working?”
“You’re going to bed. I’ll call the school. Tell them you’re not feeling well today.”
“No, I want to go to school, Mom.”
Gently, Stacey guided her back in through the kitchen door. Addie wobbled to her room. “Wake me up in fifteen minutes so I don’t miss school.”
“I’ll check in on you soon, baby girl,” Stacey said.
****
Stacey picked up the sheriff’s plate from the side table in the living room. She swept the crumbs around it into the plate. They stuck to her hands. She set the coffee cup, which had left a ring beneath it, onto the plate and walked them to the kitchen.
“Social call?”
Rick spun around. The freezer door closed behind him loudly. “You could say.”
Stacey set the dishes into the sink. “Addie had a hard night. Any idea what that was about?”
“I didn’t hear her up last night when I got in.” Rick tapped the freezer door. “I tried to be quiet.”
Stacey kissed her husband on the cheek. “Thank you for that. What did the sheriff want?”
Rick shook his head. “You won’t believe this. You know that new tower Harold Dutton put up not long after his momma’s place sold?”
No one in the ham club could believe it either. Harold wasn’t a regular, but he did join them now and again, particularly when he could boost his score on some contest or another. “Don’t tell me it fell over?”
“It fell over. Right over that new owner’s fence.” Rick eyed the freezer. “Smashed a number of trees going down and crashed into the building foreman’s truck.”
“Serves him right,” Stacey said. “You want some of that cake I served up?”
“Bad news is that Harold was on it.”
“Is he—?”
“He wasn’t all the way up, so he’s alive,” Rick said. “But he’s pretty banged up. He’s not conscious, so they can’t interview him. See what went wrong.”
“Harold Dutton was what went wrong on that tower,” Stacey said. “Is it true that he hadn’t put a light on top?”
“Something like that.”
“What did the sheriff want to talk to you about? Harold didn’t mention anything about his tower at the last couple meetings he was at, or at least I didn’t hear him.” Although she was a ham and secretary of the club, Stacey was often tasked with setting out refreshments.
“That,” Rick said. “He also wanted to ask about your visit with Ms. Clarke yesterday just before the tower fell down.”
“Why didn’t he ask me himself?”
Rick sighed. “Beats me. I said you were there, but he told me he didn’t want to interfere with the ladies.”
Stacey looked at the apple clock. “I need to go. Will you reschedule the shaker trucks?”
“Will do.”
Rick opened the freezer door.
“I’m sorry, honey. I gave the sheriff the last of the peach cake.”
“That’s a shame.”
“You hungry?”
“Nah.” Rick smiled. “Just wondering what exactly you did give him. Whatever it was, that was definitely not peach cake.”
Stacey felt guilty for a moment. Only a moment. She grabbed the keys to the SUV and kissed Rick again.
Buy Links (including Goodreads and BookBub):
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D8LG7HCF
B&N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/down-to-earth-tammy-d-walker/1145833583?ean=2940186145196
Google Books: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=2IseEQAAQBAJ
What makes your featured book a must-read?
What goes up sometimes comes crashing down again. Join pecan farmer Stacey Hengesbach and her family and friends as she puzzles out why someone would want to destroy antenna towers in her small Central Texas hometown. Before she can catch the culprit, she has to figure out why someone would want to stop people talking and how rumors and lies can tear a family—and a whole community—apart.
Giveaway –
Enter to win a $50 Amazon gift card:
https://kingsumo.com/g/m7gp6lm/mystery-suspense-thriller-bookish-event-giveaway
Open Internationally.
Runs August 11 – August 20, 2026.
Winner will be drawn on August 21, 2026.
Author Biography:
Tammy D. Walker writes contemporary cozy mysteries that have roots in Texas. Her most recent novel is The Wing of a Bee. The author of four poetry collections and the Daw County Sisters Mysteries series, she loves weaving clues into her books that draw on her experiences as a software developer and English teacher. When she’s not working or spending time with family and friends, she’s most likely to be found in her garden, somewhere near a radio, or at her desk writing letters. Find out more at
https://www.tammydwalker.com
Social Media Links:
Website: https://www.tammydwalker.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tdwalker_
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Tammy-D-Walker-Cozy-Mystery-Writer/100091886321062/
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