Evil at the Root

to him and yet is on his feet the next day, just a little sore. I've read quite a few in the Sheriff Rhodes series (and other Crider mysteries) and enjoy them all. That having been said, they are formulaic -- but perhaps that's part of their cozy charm. Rhodes tries to get information out of two employees who delight in making him pull it out of them (like who called while he was out and what they wanted); his girlfriend & then wife gets upset about the danger he puts himself in and wants him to quit law enforcement; the endless search for Dr. Pepper in a bottle and made with real sugar; getting attacked in various ways in the course of his investigation; and the endless characters in a small Texas town. Typically, however, the actual mysteries are well plotted, and this book was no exception. This mystery involves a man who disappears from the nursing home; he is connected to the disappearance of a man decades ago, and there may be some connection. The situation quickly deteriorates, and Rhodes gets attacked several times before finally solving both cases.

Christmas has come and gone, but there is still a wedding coming. Sheriff Dan Rhodes is finally going to marry Ivy Daniel in just a few days. And he hasn't even thought about where to take her for the honeymoon. Of course, he has had other things on his mind. For one, he and just about everyone in the department as well in county government is being sued for a million dollars piece. A former inmate has gotten himself a hotshot lawyer and is claiming neglect and bad jailhouse conditions. The neglect charge is ridiculous. The jail is very old and not in the best of shape so the conditions allegation might have some merit before the right jury. The lawsuit will stir up the politicians and Rhodes knows that as sheriff, he will be blamed no matter what he did. The sheriff also gets blamed for all crime. Especially murder. Weird things have happened before at the Sunny Dale Nursing home, but nothing like this. Somebody stole Lloyd Bobbit's false teeth. Sheriff Rhodes first clue that they were missing was when he met the man on the porch at the home who kept shrieking "ain't got no teef" (p.1) Initially amusing the case quickly becomes deadly as Lloyd Bobbit is silenced once and for all. This fifth novel in the Sheriff Dan Rhodes series released in hardback back in 1990 is another comfortable read. Rhodes, Ivy, Hank, Lawton and all the rest have become old friends and folks one looks forward to. The mysteries are always complex and not obvious and that certainly is the case here. The action and dialog are always realistic and then there are the traces of humor that bring a chuckle here and there. Much like what Philip R. Craig did for the Vineyard, author Bill Crider has done for east Texas. There is that same straight story telling style with a cast of recurring characters that are as real as your family and plenty of mystery in each and every book. If you haven't read his work, you are missing a real treat. Kevin R. Tipple (copyright) 2008

Dan Rhodes (sheriff of Blacklin County, Texas) has been called to the Sunny Dale Nursing Home on at least one previous occasion. This time, it's because someone seems to have stolen Lloyd Bobbit's false teeth. Could it have been Maurice Kennedy, fellow Sunny Dale resident? And could the theft have something to do with a crime committed long ago, when Louis Horn disappeared, and Kennedy was thought to have killed him? What begins as a trivial matter turns serious soon enough when Bobbit is found dead in his room and Kennedy is missing. Rhodes must do all he can to figure out exactly what is going on at Sunny Dale and in the community of Clearview. But he's also distracted by personal matters. A former prisoner is suing the county, including the sheriff and his colleagues, for neglect during his brief incarceration (detailed in a previous episode) and for having inadequate jail facilities. While Rhodes doesn't totally disagree with the charges, he certainly doesn't have a million dollars to pay the plaintiff. And then there's the fact that Rhodes is supposed to marry Ivy Daniels very soon. Will he wrap up the murder investigation and stay in one piece in time to stand with Ivy before the local judge? Crider's series is a worthy one to spend time with, and Dan Rhodes is an interesting character. Now if he'd just learn to stay out of harm's way and call one of his deputies for back-up every once in a while ...