Skelton’s Guide to Blazing Corpses (Skelton’s Casebook)
This novel starts with a bang—literally. As indicated by the title, the action centres around the discovery of a blazing corpse in a car. The time is 1930 and it is Bonfire Night, so an appropriately grisly death to suit the day. The man is presumed to be Harold Musgrave, a travelling salesman with a track history of success with the ladies. A usual suspect is rounded up and charged with the crime. Arthur Skelton, barrister and veteran of Stafford`s two previous novels about detection and murder, believes the man to be innocent and puts his energies into proving this, helped along by his sidekick Edgar who among other talents, has an unusual penchant for Czech cubist furniture.
The story is well-plotted and well-written with a real sense of the era. If you like Agatha Christie, Wodehouse, and Horowitz, this will become an instant favourite. It is the third in the series, the first one being Skelton`s Guide to Domestic Poisons but can also be read as a stand-alone. I have had the first one on my to-read list for a long time, but now having finally been formally introduced to the character, I have already raced out to buy the first and the second books. There is nothing better than discovering a new series of this quality. When is the fourth to be released?
