Bones in the Belfry

Suzette Hill's mystery series is a hilarious caper set in 1950s Sussex, England. The hapless, harried vicar Francis Oughterard wishes for nothing more than a peaceful life. Unfortunately, he accidentally murdered one of his parishioners - a demanding woman dead set on marrying him - after she shattered his last nerve by popping up during a walk in the woods.
The vicar would not have been able to elude the police on his own, but he has a wily cat and a faithful dog who work together to keep him out of the hangman's noose. In Bones in the Belfry, the second book in the series, Francis is further driven to drink (and piano playing) when a shady art dealer who helped him with his alibi asks him to store a few ill-gotten paintings for him.

E. F. Benson (Mapp and Lucia), P.G. Wodehouse (Jeeves) and Jerome K. Jerome are similar authors recommended by reviewers.