GROVE CITY - On a Thursday evening in December, seven Grove City residents met for the last of their fall book discussion group meetings.

Surrounded by sticky buns, banana bread and warm coffee, the Grove City group, which picks a new theme for readings each season, was finishing up the last of four meetings about culinary mysteries.

The books, written like many mysteries, contain murders, misunderstandings and suspicion, but with an added bonus - recipes.

Eileen Master, facilitator for the fall book club, said that each author picks a food-related theme, which they follow through in all their books.

Only recently aware of the genre, Master was surprised by the number of culinary mysteries available.

"It was something I had never really explored," she said.

The series covered in the last book club meeting, written by Tamar Myers, feature a Mennonite bed and breakfast owner in Pennsylvania Dutch Country.

Unlike other book clubs, each book club member reads a different book in the series, which leads to lively conversation about the different mishaps and mysteries revolving around Magdalena Yoder, the main character in the chosen series.

A lively discussion of "how did she get here" and "what happens next" helps the club organize the books into a timeline of the main character's life.

Though they have only met four times, the members finish each others sentences comparing the humor of Myers' books to the dark theme of books they read in earlier meetings.

"I think probably we just had a lot of fun with the books," said Master of the animated dialogue. "They weren't anything that was terribly mind-stressing"

The final meeting was held at the Old Arbor Rose Bed and Breakfast on Main Street in Grove City to coincide with the theme of their books.

Another meeting had been held at the Coffee Grove coffeehouse where the group had the opportunity to speak to a caterer, a career featured in books by Diane Mott Davidson.

Other meetings were held in the Grove City Community Library, which gave Master the opportunity to experiment with some of the recipes featured in the books.

"That was part of the fun of it," said Master of re-creating the recipes that appeared in books by Nancy Fairbanks and Lou Jane Temple.

For information about upcoming book discussion groups at the Grove City Community Library, call 724-458-7320.

½ pound scallops1 small onion, finely chopped5 sprigs parsley¼ bay leafcup white wine½ teaspoon saltDash of pepper¼ pound mushrooms¼ cup water2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon butter2 tablespoons flour¼ cup milk½ cup grated Swiss cheeseFine bread crumbsIn a saucepan, combine scallops, onion, parsley, bay leaf, wine, salt and pepper. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes.Cook mushrooms in water and 1 teaspoon butter for 12 minutes.Drain broth from mushrooms and scallops and reserve. Finely chop mushrooms and scallops.Melt 2 tablespoons butter and blend in 2 tablespoons flour. Add broth from mushrooms and scallops and ¼ cup milk. Season with salt and pepper.Cook for five minutes. Add most of grated Swiss cheese and finely chopped mushrooms and scallops.Pour into a 3 cup shallow baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining cheese and bread crumbs.Bake in a 400 degree oven for 10 minutes.Makes 4 to 6 servings.From "Chocolate Quake" by Nancy Fairbanks

Shrimp 'n Grits1½ cups peeled raw shrimp½ lemonsalt and cayenne pepper to taste1 cup chicken or vegetable broth2 tablespoons flour1 tablespoon ketchup1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce1 small onion, finely chopped2 teaspoons chopped green bell pepper3 tablespoons bacon grease4 prepared servings of boiled grits*arsenic to tasteSeason raw shrimp with lemon juice, salt and cayenne pepper and set aside. Add broth to flour in a small bowl a few drops at a time, stirring constantly until a smooth paste is formed.Continue to stir in remaining broth, ketchup and Worcestershire sauce and set aside.Sauté onion and chopped bell pepper in bacon grease until onion turns translucent. Add shrimp and cook two more minutes. Slowly add flour mixture until desired amount and consistency of sauce is reached.Immediately serve over grits.Makes four servings.*Omit the arsenic if you like your guests.From "Gruel and Unusual Punishment" by Tamar Myers.

Crumb mixture:4½ cups all-purpose flour1½ cups sugar1½ cups unsalted butter, cut into 1-tablespoon pieces, well chilledCake:1 teaspoon baking powder1 teaspoon baking soda½ teaspoon salt6 cups reserved crumb mixture2 large eggs, beaten1½ cups sour cream2 teaspoons almond extractFilling:1 pound cream cheese, softened½ cup sugar2 large eggs, beaten¼ teaspoon vanilla extract1 cup red raspberry preserves, sieved to remove seedsTopping:cup raw whole almonds2 cups reserved crumb mixturePreheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter two 9 or 10-inch springform pans and set aside.In a food processor blend the flour and sugar until well combined. With the processor running, quickly drop in the butter pieces, blending until the mixture resembles small, sandy crumbs.Measure out six cups of the mixture for the cake, Measure the last two cups of the mixture for the topping and set aside.For the cake, gently stir the baking powder, soda and salt into the six cups of reserved crumb mixture. In a separate bowl, mix the beaten eggs with the sour cream and almond extract, stirring until well combined.Pour the egg mixture over the crumb mixture and stir until smooth and thick. Spread the cake batter over the bottom and up the sides of the prepared pans.For the filling, use an electric mixer to beat the cream cheese, sugar, eggs and vanilla extract in a large bowl until smooth.Spread half of the cream cheese mixture over the cake batter in each of the prepared pans. Top each pan with ½ cup raspberry preserves.For the topping, chop the raw almonds in a food processor until chunky. Mix the almonds into the 2 cups reserved crumb mixture and spread mixture over the preserves layer in each pan.Bake the cakes for 45 to 55 minutes. Test with a toothpick for doneness.From "Catering to Nobody" by Diane Mott Davidson

Dough:¾ cup unsalted butter1 cup milk¾ cup plus 1 teaspoon sugar1¼ teaspoons salt3 ¼-ounce envelopes active dry yeast½ cup warm water5 large eggs8½ to 9½ cups all-purpose flourFilling:5 cups firmly-packed brown sugar1¼ cups unsalted butter3 tablespoons ground cinnamonFrosting:½ pound cream cheese, softened¼ cup whipping cream1 teaspoon vanilla extract3 to 4 cups confectioners' sugar siftedFor the dough, heat the butter with the milk, ¾ cup of the sugar, and the salt in a small saucepan until the butter is melted.Set aside to cool. In a large mixing bowl, sprinkle the yeast over the warm water. Add the remaining teaspoon sugar. Stir and set aside for 10 minutes until the mixture is bubbly.Add the lukewarm milk mixture and the eggs and beat until well combined.Add the flour a cup at a time, stirring and using enough flour to form a stiff dough. Turn out on a floured board and knead until smooth and satiny, approximately 10 minutes.Place the dough in a large buttered bowl and turn to butter the top. Allow to rise, covered loosely with a kitchen towel in a warm place until doubled in size, approxamitely 1 hour.Punch the dough down and roll out to a 24 by 36-inch rectangle.Butter two 9 by 13-inch glass baking dishes. For the filling, beat together the brown sugar, butter and cinnamon until well combined. Spread evenly over the surface of the dough.Roll up lengthwise and cut at 2-inch intervals to make 12 rolls. Place 6 rolls in each buttered dish. Cover loosely with a kitchen towel and allow to rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour.Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake the rolls for 20 to 30 minutes or until puffed and browned. Cool to room temperature on racks.For the frosting, beat the cream cheese, cream and vanilla until well combined. Add the confectioners' sugar and beat until smooth and soft, not stiff. Frost the rolls and serve immediately.Makes 12 servings.From "The Last Suppers" by Diane Mott Davidson