This Old Souse
By Mary Daheim

      I have read quite a few of Mary Daheim’s Bed & Breakfast Mysteries, and This Old Souse lives up to her well-deserved reputation. If you have not read any of her mysteries, you can get a good laugh just by reading her titles.

     Judith McMonigle Flynn is the owner of a bed & breakfast, and she manages to come up with more dead bodies than the police morgue. As usual, she is joined by her cousin Renie on her escapades.

     In This Old Souse, Renie is fascinated by an old mansion, known as Moonfleet. It doesn’t take much to persuade Judith to accompany her on an exploratory mission. They no sooner arrive (parked in obscurity in an alley) when the milkman puts in an appearance, the mailman (who just happens to be a former “enemy” of the women) brings a delivery, and the UPS delivers a very mysterious package from Austria.

     Shortly, when Judith goes to the supermarket, she returns to the car and opens the trunk to have the groceries put in, the milkman’s body is tucked away inside.

     As is always the case in Daheim’s books, nothing is ever as it appears. Judith has to persuade her husband Joe, who is out of town, that everything is “just fine” on the homefront. She also has to deal with her son’s separation from his wife. Her mother, who lives in the “shed out back” adds spice to the picture, as does the vicious cat, who suddenly disappears.

     This is an absolute delight. The end is typical “surprise” Daheim style, and all the loose ends are very nicely tied together—even the reason for Joe’s trip. This book comes very highly recommended.