Review, MURDER BY MAGIC, Bruce Beckham

• 
  This edition available as an e-book on Kindle (Amazon)
  
• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00YF6HR9M
• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Lucius; 1st edition (May 27, 2015)
• Print length ‏ : ‎ 301 pages
• #5 in the Inspector Skelgill Investigates series 

Synopsis (Amazon)

A SPATE OF VICIOUS ATTACKS upon valuable Herdwick sheep, the sudden disappearance of a foreign hiker, and the unexplained drowning of a woodland hermit – a series of apparently unconnected events – draw Detective Inspector Daniel Skelgill to the white-knuckle passes and isolated dales of deepest Lakeland.

Straws in the wind suggest there is sorcery afoot – and a connection to an equally sinister trade in human traffic – Skelgill and his team risk dire consequences as they strive to infiltrate the secretive ring and expose its evil perpetrators.

In the fifth Inspector Skelgill novel, the maverick British detective faces what is his greatest challenge yet, as he wrestles with an error of judgement that could leave his career – and his life – in tatters.

My Take

I'm enjoying the fact that there are so many in this series (apparently 21 now) to dip into. I am reading them in order as I believe that will give me the best view of character and plot development. 

The action in this one takes Skelgill and his Sergeant Jones travelling to the Ukraine to try to work out why people from there appear to be turning up in Cumbria. That seemed to be a little stretch in credibility but it resulted in some interesting plot lines. 

My rating: 4.4

I've also read

• 4.4, MURDER IN ADLAND- Skelgill #1
• 4.5, MURDER IN SCHOOL - Skelgill #2
• 4.5, MURDER ON THE EDGE  - Skelgill #3
• 4.5, MURDER ON THE LAKE - Skelgill #4