Sheriff Dan Rhodes begins THAT OLD SCOUNDREL DEATH with a
case of road rage but the next time he sees the victim he
rescued, Cal Stinson, he is dead. The victim was visiting a
nearby old school building that would soon be torn down.
Then it gets burned to the ground in an "accidental" fire
and adds to Sheriff Dan's woes.
Thus begins what will be the sheriff's final murder case.
The Dr. Pepper loving, good food sneaking sheriff who talks
things over with his level headed wife Ivy, (who has taken
to feeding him healthy foods for his own good), and deals
with the crazies of a small town is wondering if he should
run again.
The characters in this book from the mayor who is upset with
being called a nincompoop on a blog on the internet and
wants Dan to fix that, to the deputies who seem to want to
do things their own way; there is a lot of laughter, head
shaking and downright confusion. A fantastic read that
delves into family, lies, and cover-ups along with everyday
life and the chaos the living can cause for a small town cop.
On a personal note ... the first time I read one of Bill
Crider's "Dan Rhodes Mystery" books it was out of curiosity.
(His name and my maiden name are the same). Once I read the
first one I was hooked. Mr. Crider had a way of taking
people home to this small town and keeping the characters
real and simple in a way we might wish the world today
really was. Sadly, a note in this book by Angela Crider
Neary tells readers that this is the final Rhodes book, Bill
Crider died on Feb. 12, 2018. So it seems the title THAT OLD
SCOUNDREL DEATH has a double meaning for this series. I for
one will be looking for the books I missed and missing a
fun, relatable series and author ... and drinking a Dr.
Pepper in his honor on occasion.
Beloved Texas Sheriff Dan Rhodes is back with his final
murder case in That Old Scoundrel Death.
When a man is run off the road by a thug with a snake
tattooed around his neck, Sheriff Dan Rhodes knows it's his
duty to stop and help out. The grateful victim gives his
name as Cal Stinson, on his way to the nearby town of
Thurston to take a look at the old school building before
the city tears it down.
The next day, Cal Stinson turns up again. Only this time,
he's dead.
His body is found in the dilapidated school that's about to
be razed, and the woman who let Cal onto the premises claims
he gave his name as Bruce Wayne. Whoever is he is, he was
shot in the back of the head, and a piece of chalk lies
inches away from his hand, under a lone line on the
chalkboard, his last words unfinished.
Between not-so-bright hoodlums who can't seem to stay on the
right side of the law, powerful families in town who are
ready to go to battle over whether the old school should
come down, and trying futilely to get private detective
Seepy Benton to stop making mountains of mole hills, Sheriff
Rhodes is beginning to wonder if retirement might be as good
as it sounds.
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