A typical and enjoyable entry in this long running and quite fine series. A Clearview recluse comes to life and invests in refurbishing the town theater. His death, apparently, from a fall looks like an accident, but is it? Sheriff Dan patiently collects all the pieces to the puzzle but his, all the suspects, in a room finale provides startling information; but not a solution. His harassing and whiny jail staff continue to fulfill their role as irritants, rather than stimulants, but he persevers.

This is quite possibly the last Sheriff Rhodes book because of Bill's recent and untimely death. He, Clearview and even his jailhouse tormentors will be missed but not, Seepy. ( )

Dead,to Begin With by Bill Crider is a 2017 Minotaur Books publication.

Jake Marley, the town recluse, falls to his death in the old movie theatre he was having restored. After many years of living in wealthy solitude, Jake had begun living his life again, mingling with the town’s residents and even bought the old movie theatre, hoping to restore it for future live performances.

Something about the way the body was found, makes Sheriff Dan Rhodes wonder if Jake’s fall was really an accident. Could Jake have been murdered? If so, why would anyone want to kill Jake, a man most people barely even knew?

I am a late comer to this series, having stumbled across it a few years ago, quite by accident. I remember feeling cheated because it took me so long to discover it.

For the life of me, I don’t know how I missed it, since I am partial to Texas authors and Texas settings. But, better late than never! (I have a long, rambling personal story I’ll share at the end of this review about Bill and his penchant for Dr. Pepper, which endeared me to him all the more)

This series is so funny, and the mysteries are always compelling and imaginative. The characters are quirky, with witty dialogue, which always paints a sly portrait of human nature, combined within a charming, cozy, small town atmosphere.

As always, the mystery is very puzzling, as the victim was virtually a stranger within the community making it difficult for Dan to settle on a motive, until he learns the victim had a sister who died in a mysterious one vehicle crash many years ago. Could there be a connection?

Meanwhile, the ghost hunters are still out in full force, convinced the old theatre is haunted, while Dan does his level best to convince himself he doesn’t believe in ghosts.

The play Jake was planning on sponsoring, once the theatre was fully restored, was ‘A Christmas Carol’, which made for a few thought provoking comparisons between the ghost ‘Jacob Marley’ and Jake Marley, the murder victim. Weaving the Dickens tale around the mystery and the suspects was quite clever and very well done.

I was also thankful that Dan finally gave in and succumbed to his Dr. Pepper urges, and rediscovered his enjoyment of it, even though it wasn’t made with pure cane sugar.

You can’t go wrong with small town mysteries combined with small town secrets- which are always the most enlightening.

This is yet another very well written, laugh out loud funny, immensely entertaining Dan Rhodes mystery!!

*Personal note:

As I said, I only discovered this series a few years ago, and no, I haven’t gotten around to reading all the installments, although I do want to someday. After I read one of Bill’s Dan Rhodes mysteries,, I was so surprised to see that Dan was a huge fan of Dublin Dr. Pepper. For those not from Texas, who are not aware of the lore surrounding the infamous Dublin Dr. Pepper, it was the oldest Dr. Pepper bottling company, located in a very small town, eleven miles down the road from me. They bottled Dr. Pepper made with pure cane sugar, using a special secret recipe. It was so wildly popular people drove from all over to tour the bottling plant, and would ‘bootleg’ entire cases of it to take back home with them.

As, it so happens, when my son was in high school, he worked for the bottling company, which only had about ten employees. He loved his job, and the people he worked with were like family. Unfortunately, there was a big war between the small town independent bottler and the big, bad corporate Dr. Pepper Company who wanted to buy them out. Most people never really knew the whole story, but at the end of the day, the plant closed, and my son lost his job- (although he was one of the only employees who has continued to work for Dr. Pepper/Snapple, and has moved up the ladder while putting himself through college.)

Still, it was hilarious when I saw that Dan was boycotting Dr. Pepper because they closed the Dublin plant. I secretly cheered him on, understanding his outrage over the corporate bullying.

In the meantime, I hopped over to Bill’s Facebook page, hoping to keep apprised of all his book releases and what not. I ended up following his posts religiously, especially after he adopted three abandoned kittens, he dubbed the VBK’s – Very Bad Kitties. He posted pictures of them almost daily, so his friends, family and fans were able to watch them grow up. When Bill announced he had cancer, those sweet angels were obviously a great comfort to him and brightened his days, as they did mine.

Sadly, we got the news a few weeks back that Bill has gone into hospice care. His VBK’s are with his Goddaughter now, who has started a FB page just for the kitties, so we will be able to follow them on to their next adventure.

I don’t know if there are any unpublished Dan Rhodes mysteries yet to be released, or if someone will pick this series up at some point, but as far as I can tell, this very well could be the last book in the series. I am glad I found this series, found Bill’s Facebook page, and met his sweet kitties, and felt like I had a personal connection to him and his novels. I do have a nice pile of backlist titles in the series to read, which will be a bittersweet treat, and I will savor every single one of them.

Bill seems like such a nice, down to earth guy. My thoughts and prayers are with his family at this difficult time, and although I know Bill won’t see this review, I do want to thank him for creating these wonderful characters and for the hours of entertainment he’s given so many people over the years. ( )

After a problem at the nearby beauty shop resolved, Sheriff Dan Rhodes learns of a far more serious problem as Dead, To Begin With begins. Jake Marley has been found dead on the stage at the Clearview Opera House. The building dates back to the oil boom days in the early 1900s and, like the rest of the former bustling downtown area, has seen hard times and disrepair. That was going to change thanks to Jake Marley.

Grandson of one of the local men that had gotten very rich during the oil boom all those decades ago, Jake Marley suddenly took an interest in the Clearview Opera House. Known as an eccentric recluse for years, he lived a life of isolation until he suddenly bought the place and started renovations. Suddenly, he was active in the community and that was a good thing, as his money would really help the town of Clearview and the surrounding area. Nobody wanted to ask him about his reasons or his plans as just about everybody was afraid he would change his mind and take his money away. All anyone has known these past few weeks is that he planned to restore the opera house to its full glory and establish some kind of community theater. The theater’s first performance was to be some sort of Texas based vision of the classic, A Christmas Carol.

What the death of Jake Marley means for the local economy is one thing and not something that Sheriff Rhodes can do anything about at all. Mr. Marley is very much dead and Sheriff Rhodes can’t change that either. What concerns Sheriff Rhodes is the fact that there are some signs that Mr. Marley had some help shuffling off this mortal coil.

Found by real estate agent Aubrey Hamilton, who had been summoned to a meeting by the deceased, she doesn’t know what happened or why he wanted her to come by this morning. She assumed it was a real estate issue of some type considering the nature of their business relationship. While the Sheriff has heard rumors about Jake and Aubrey, she denies all of it. According to her, beyond the age difference between the two of them that would be a huge hindrance, they were not even friends, and only had a business relationship.

Maybe he did just fall from the overhead grid deck above the stage. That obviously could have happened. However, if he did that, it would not explain every detail of the scene. Seepy Benton may believe the theater is haunted, but Rhodes does not think supernatural forces were involved either. Sheriff Rhodes has plenty of questions as his investigation begins in Dead, To Begin With.

The latest in the long running series featuring Sheriff Dan Rhodes and a host of characters is another good one. As usual, the secondary characters, the humor, the observations of small town life in Texas, are just part of an overarching mystery. Dead, To Begin With first and foremost is another solidly good mystery filled with plenty of misdirection, intrigue, and a few clues. Another very good read by Bill Crider who simply can’t write a weak book. If it isn’t already clear, Dead, To Begin With is a highly recommended read.

Dead, To Begin With: A Dan Rhodes Mystery
Bill Crider
http://www.billcrider.com
A Thomas Dunne Book (Minotaur Books)
http://www.thomasdunnebooks.com
August 8, 2015
ISBN #978-1250078537
Hardback (also available in e-book form)
272 Pages
$25.99

ARC was provided by the author in exchange for an objective review.

Kevin R. Tipple ©2017 ( )

I don't remember reading a Dan Rhodes Mystery before even though I have read two Bill Crider westerns from the Brash reissue collection.

Dan Rhodes is a sheriff in a small community and the book is as much about the conventions of small-town life as it is about a crime. Dan has to do his job but he also has to live where he works, and this means he juggles a lot of people's needs – personal and political.

Dan's a good guy and a smart guy and a good sheriff. The book, and probably the whole series, is a warm look at small town USA with an overlay of crime. I enjoyed it but don't rank it among the best-ever detective novels.

I received a review copy of "Dead, to Begin With: A Dan Rhodes Mystery" by Bill Crider (St. Martin's / Minotaur) through NetGalley.com. ( )