Over His Dead Body

The much-maligned women's novel gets a new lease in "Over His Dead Body" as author Leslie Glass melds it with the classic caper for a bright, witty and sometimes even sad look at middle age and suburban angst. At age 50, Cassie Sales is bored with her life, her looks and always coming last in the lives of her husband, Mitch, and their two grown children, Marsha and Teddy. So while MItch, a jet-setting international wine dealer, is out of the country on one of his endless business trips, she decides to have a face lift, hoping it will rekindle their marriage. Mitch unexpectedly comes back early, sees her post-surgical face and promptly has a stroke. As Mitch lies in a coma at the hospital, Cassie and her bickering children find more than a million dollars' worth of chartge-card receipts in Cassie's name. The only problem is, Cassie doesn't have the costly jewelry from Tiffany's, the designer clothes or a Jaguar. Not only did Mitch have a secret life, but this vindictive man also was trying to run up credit in Cassie's name. Cassie learns that Mitch's business was often shady and sometimes illegal. In unraveling it, she will have to deal with a savvy, handsome IRS agent, a ruthless business partner and a secretive lawyer. But her greatest enemy is Mona Simpson, Mitch's manipulative and shallow mistress who is not about to give up her pampered lifestyle sasily. Glass easily makes the transition from her sturdy police procedurals about NYPD detective April Woo to this romp. The transition of Cassie from ninny to strong, capable woman is quite real. But the real star of "Over His Dead Body" is Mona, a conniver sure of her hold over men. This snappy tale is the epitome of the beach book, and that's meant as a compliment.-----reviewed by: MJS-----$23.95