The Word Is Murder: A Novel

Anthony Horowitz

Jun 2018 · A Hawthorne and Horowitz Mystery Book 1 · Sold by HarperCollins

About this ebook

"One of the most entertaining mysteries of the year. It’s also one of the most stimulating, as it ponders such questions as: Which is of greater interest to the reader, the crime or the detective? And: Is the pencil truly mightier than the butcher knife?” — Wall Street Journal

New York Times bestselling author of Magpie Murders and Moriarty, Anthony Horowitz has yet again brilliantly reinvented the classic crime novel, this time writing a fictional version of himself as the Watson to a modern-day Holmes.

A woman crosses a London street. It is just after 11 a.m. on a bright spring morning, and she is going into a funeral parlor to plan her own service. Six hours later the woman is dead, strangled with a crimson curtain cord in her own home.

Enter disgraced police detective Daniel Hawthorne, a brilliant, eccentric man as quick with an insult as he is to crack a case. And Hawthorne has a partner, the celebrated novelist Anthony Horowitz, curious about the case and looking for new material. As brusque, impatient, and annoying as Hawthorne can be, Horowitz—a seasoned hand when it comes to crime stories—suspects the detective may be on to something, and is irresistibly drawn into the mystery.

But as the case unfolds, Horowitz realizes that he’s at the center of a story he can’t control, and his brilliant partner may be hiding dark and mysterious secrets of his own.

Ratings and reviews

One bright day a woman walks into the local funeral parlor and plans her own funeral. She has a list of requirements and pays with her credit card. Six hours later she is dead .... someone strangled the life out of her. This is a uniquely written book. Anthony Horowitz has written a fictional book using himself as one of the primary characters. It's like reading a story within a story within a story. As a character, he is a writer, screenwriter, and speaks often of some of his real time books. He is Watson to a modern day Holmes ... whose name is Daniel Hawthorne. Hawthorne is a unique being, as well. He touts himself as a consultant to the police when it comes to unsolved murder cases. He has Horowitz following him around as he searches for clues and interrogates possible suspects. Their relationship is anything but easy. They each want this future book to be written a certain way ... and with two alpha males, it isn't happening. There are plenty of suspects to follow .... a theatrical producer who had lunch with the woman the same day she died.... her famous son, an actor, and some say a bully. Since everything she had has been left to him, he becomes someone to watch.... Her housecleaner, who found the body, yet lied to the police.... The number one suspect is the family of two young boys. 10 years ago the woman, driving her car without her glasses, plowed into them while they were crossing the street. One boy was killed outright .. the other boy left with massive head injuries. She was charged, but found not guilty. But the biggest question is ... dd the woman know she was going to die that day? Twists and turns, lies and secrets ... all the marvelous things that make a murder mystery a great read. I loved how the author invented a mystery with him in the center of everything. Many thanks to the author / Random House UK / Eidelweiss for the advanced digital copy of this most entertaining book. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

I loved it!

About the author

Anthony Horowitz is one of the UK’s most prolific and successful writers, unique in being active in both adult and YA fiction, TV, theater, and journalism. Several of his previous novels were instant New York Times bestsellers. His bestselling Alex Rider series for young adults has sold more than nineteen million copies worldwide and has become a hugely successful show on Amazon Prime TV. His breakthrough murder mystery Magpie Murders was adapted into a miniseries for PBS. He lives in London with his wife and dog.