Book excerpt: I could see the beach robe Zazu had been wearing, but couldn't see her. Then the pool's surface rippled and tossed darts of sunlight at my eyes, and I could see Zazu quite well. She was wearing either the latest thing in jazzy bathing suits or nothing at all. She reached the ladder and started to climb up it, nonchalant as a bird--a jaybird. "Hi," I said brightly, "you can see I'm working." She started down the ladder until the water was almost up to her waist. "Do you always swim in the nude, dear?" I said. "It feels good. Probably I won't do it when I'm older." "I thought that was when girls did it." The Meandering Corpse is the 31st book in the Shell Scott Mysteries, but you may enjoy reading the series in any order.