About the Book

Book: The Silver Lode Author: Suzanne J. Bratcher Genre: Mystery Release Date: 2020 JEROME, ARIZONA: Billion-dollar copper camp alive with rags-to-riches tales Beneath the ghost town that clings to the side of Cleopatra Hill, a maze of abandoned mine tunnels conceals a vein of silver ore mixed with pure gold. Seventy years ago, the discovery of that silver lode caused a murder. Are more coming? Historian Paul Russell is about to lose his job and the woman he loves. He doesn’t have time to search for the legendary silver lode. But when a student drops a seventy-year-old unsolved cold case on his desk, a murder connected to the silver lode, the mystery offers Paul the perfect opportunity to work with Marty Greenlaw and win her back. As Paul and Marty search for the silver lode, suspicious deaths begin to happen. When Paul’s son disappears, the stakes become personal.

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About the Author

Suzanne J. Bratcher, Ph.D., delights in writing contemporary mysteries sprinkled with history. Her award-winning novels are set in the very real ghost town of Jerome, Arizona as well as the Four Corners states: New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, and Utah. Bratcher lives in Phoenix, Arizona. When she’s not writing, she enjoys reading with her granddaughter, laughing at her rescue cat, and piecing colorful quilt scraps.

More from Suzanne

When readers ask me where I get my ideas, I sometimes wonder if they expect me to reveal a secret process for starting a book. I only wish I could. But far from proceeding along the steps of a process, each of my books begins with nothing more than a spark that catches my imagination like a match catches a piece of kindling. I pile ideas on the spark and when I have enough for a blaze, I start to write. The spark for The Silver Lode was a 3-D display of the myriad abandoned mining tunnels that crisscross the hill beneath the ghost town of Jerome, Arizona.

The idea for The Silver Lode came to me while I was still an English teacher. So, what was I doing studying a model of a long defunct copper mine when I should have been reading William Faulkner or e.e. cummings? The reality was-at the time, I had no idea I was studying a copper mine. I thought I was visiting an old house.

The first time I turned off Arizona Highway 89A to visit Jerome State Historic Park, I wanted to tour to the Douglas mansion, the park headquarters. I love old houses. I’ve visited Thomas Jefferson’s home, George Washington’s, numerous antebellum mansions scattered throughout the South, and the family homes of many famous American writers. The Douglas Mansion, then, was a natural stop. But besides old houses, I also love research-learning simply for the sake of learning. I don’t have to have a specific goal in mind to enjoy adding bits of information to my hodgepodge of knowledge.

So…as I strolled through the high-ceilinged rooms in the Douglas mansion, I found myself drawn into the history of copper mining in Jerome. In addition to the three-dimensional display of the mine tunnels, I saw shelves of rocks and minerals bathed in ultraviolet light, a wall of photographs of the Douglas family that included one of Winston Churchill’s sisters, and a video that told the story of the ghosts of Cleopatra Hill. My interest piqued, I plunged more deeply into research. I bought books and read firsthand accounts of life in the billion-dollar copper camp. I visited the Jerome Historical Society and read yellowing newspapers. I ventured into the Mining Museum and wandered through a reconstructed mineshaft. I searched the internet for information about mining in the late 1800s and early 1900s, whether for copper, silver, or gold.

By now I was actively working on a plot that would revolve around mining for silver in Jerome. Because The Silver Lode was the second book in my trilogy of Jerome mysteries, I already had the main characters for the story. In my head I could see Scott, a young teenager, exploring those interlocking tunnels under the town. But I didn’t know what he was looking for. I needed another spark to start that fire.

I ran across it quite accidentally as I was reading about a large deposit of silver mixed with gold discovered in Virginia City, Nevada in 1859. Dubbed a silver lode, it was one of the richest deposits of its kind ever discovered. Of course, the Comstock Lode had nothing to do with mining in Jerome between the two World Wars. Nor did the history of Nevada influence the history of Arizona in the 1920s. Still, as I read about a large deposit of silver mixed with gold called a silver lode, I knew I had found both the treasure and the title for the story I was working on.

The next big story question was “Who else is looking for the silver lode?” In other words, “Who is the villain?” It was clear I needed secondary characters to drive the search for my imaginary silver lode buried deep in Cleopatra Hill. These characters came from my research into the families who built the town of Jerome and spread down the hill to build Clarkdale. I had my ideas.

Now…back to the question my readers sometimes ask: where do I get the ideas for my mysteries? The answer is as simple as it is complicated: I get my ideas from research. As I write, I use these ideas as a springboard so that they appear in camouflage. When you read The Silver Lode, I hope you find these nuggets of fact buried deep in the imaginary story of the long ago murder of a college student’s grandfather, a contemporary search for a legendary silver lode, and a desperate rush to save a child’s life.

Interview with the Author

Do you read books in this genre? If so, who do you like to read?

I absolutely read mysteries. It’s not the only genre I read in, but I read more mysteries than anything else. I read Christian mystery writers like Dee Henderson, Teri Blackstock, and Colleen Coble. I also read emerging authors like Deborah Sorinkle. I also like to go back and read the classic authors like Agatha Christie and Dorothy Sayers. I recently discovered Patricia Wentworth, an author from the Golden Era of Mysteries I had never run across. I’m not sure how I had missed her, but I’m certainly enjoying her books.

What helps you to write? Do you eat snacks, listen to music?

I love to eat snacks, but I avoid that as much as I can! The thing that helps me most is music. Over the last few years, I’ve developed the habit of looking for music that matches the mood of the manuscript. For example, when I was writing “Kokopelli’s Song,” I listened to Native American Flute music, especially Carlos Nakai. The main character of the book I’m writing now is an Irish step dancer who has broken her ankle. I found lots of Irish music to listen to, but I particularly like the music from “Riverdance.” When I’m listening to it, the music fades out of my consciousness, but the rhythm keeps me writing. I tend to listen to the same album many times.

What is your favorite hymn and why?

“This is the Day the Lord has Made” isn’t exactly a hymn, but it has become my favorite Christian song in the last couple of years. I had known that song, of course, but when I discovered that my always happy stepmother sang that song every morning when she got up, I decided to give her habit a try. That little chorus has changed my mornings! When I first get up, my MS makes me stiff, and sometimes I experience a good bit of pain in my legs. Shifting my focus from my aches and pains by singing “Good Morning” to the Lord lifts my spirits and helps me greet the day with a smile instead of a frown.

What inspired you to write this book?

A display in the Jerome State Historic Park inspired the story that became “The Silver Lode.” I was touring that house for the first time when I discovered a 3-D map of the mine tunnels that crisscross the hill underneath Jerome. The display is quite large, taking up the entire center of the room. As I stood looking at the hidden maze, I imagined myself exploring in the dark. After a moment, I realized Scott Russell, a teenager from the first Jerome mystery, was there with me. I couldn’t be sure what he was looking for, but I knew it was a treasure worth finding. I knew I had the germ of the plot and my main character. I was off and running.

Share with me a few of your favorite things.

For starters, I love Julie Andrews in “The Sound of Music”! I also love wildflowers, particularly the white bloom of the saguaro cactus. I love birdwatching and the hummingbirds that come to my feeder. I love a day when I can sit in my recliner and read a mystery for hours on end. But my favorite thing of all is my granddaughter’s giggle.