The Word Is Murder

The Word Is Murder is a 2017 metafictional crime novel by English author Anthony Horowitz. The narrative uniquely blends a traditional whodunit plot with autobiographical elements, featuring the author himself as a central character. It is the first installment in a series centered on the enigmatic former Scotland Yard detective Daniel Hawthorne, who enlists Horowitz to document his investigations. The novel is noted for its intricate plotting, self-referential humor, and its playful deconstruction of the Golden Age mystery genre.

Plot summary

A wealthy woman, Diana Cowper, visits a funeral director to plan her own service, only to be strangled in her home hours later. The case is assigned to the brilliant but abrasive consultant Daniel Hawthorne, who forces a reluctant Anthony Horowitz to shadow him and write a book about the investigation. Their inquiry takes them through various London locales, including Charing Cross Hospital and the National Theatre, uncovering connections to a tragic car accident a decade prior that killed a young boy. The narrative is punctuated by Horowitz’s real-life professional engagements, such as writing for the television series Foyle's War and meeting with Steven Spielberg about a Tintin script. The investigation reveals a complex web of guilt and revenge, culminating in a dramatic confrontation that implicates an unexpected figure from the literary world.

Characters

The central protagonist is Anthony Horowitz, who portrays himself as a frustrated writer grappling with the demands of Hawthorne. Daniel Hawthorne is a former Detective Inspector from the Metropolitan Police Service, dismissed for assaulting a suspect, yet possessing preternatural deductive skills. The victim, Diana Cowper, is the mother of famous actor Damian Cowper, whose career is managed by agent Lydia Laing. Key figures from the past include Robert Cornwallis, the driver in the fatal accident, and his wife Carolyn. The investigation also involves police officers like DI Cara Grunshaw and DS Derek Mills, as well as a host of characters from Horowitz’s actual life, including his literary agent Hilda Starke and his wife Jill Green.

Publication history

The Word Is Murder was first published in 2017 in the United Kingdom by HarperCollins, with subsequent editions released in the United States and translated into multiple languages. The novel marked a new creative direction for Horowitz, following his successful work on the Alex Rider series and authorized continuations of Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes and Ian Fleming's James Bond. It established the Daniel Hawthorne series, which continued with *The Sentence is Death* and *A Line to Kill*. The book’s distinctive metafictional approach was noted in publishing circles, drawing comparisons to works by Jorge Luis Borges and Paul Auster.

Critical reception

Upon release, the novel received generally positive reviews from publications like The Guardian and The New York Times. Critics praised its clever, puzzle-box plot and the innovative narrative device of inserting the author into the story, with many highlighting the acerbic dynamic between Horowitz and Hawthorne. Some reviewers, however, found the self-referential elements occasionally self-indulgent. The book was commended for its homage to classic mystery traditions while simultaneously subverting them, and it solidified Horowitz’s reputation beyond children’s literature. It has been favorably compared to the metafictional mysteries of Jasper Fforde and the postmodern playfulness of Mark Z. Danielewski.

Themes and analysis

The novel extensively explores the relationship between fiction and reality, interrogating the conventions of the detective story and the role of the author. Themes of guilt, retribution, and the lingering trauma of past events are central to the plot, particularly through the lens of the fatal accident on the A12 road. The character of Hawthorne serves as a critique of the modern police procedural, while Horowitz’s persona grapples with commercial pressures from Hollywood and publishing. The book functions as both a traditional mystery and a commentary on the genre, referencing archetypes from Agatha Christie and Arthur Conan Doyle while deconstructing the infallible detective trope. The London setting, from Mayfair to the South Bank, acts as a character in itself, reflecting the story’s themes of surface glamour and hidden darkness.

Category:2017 British novels Category:British mystery novels Category:Metafictional novels