Close to Death, a Hawthorne and Horowitz Mystery by Anthony Horowitz BOOK 5
Anthony Horowitz novels are more sophisticated than silly, but are excellent, engrossing summer reads.
In the Hawthorne Horowitz series, DCI Hawthorne allows the fictional novelist Horowitz to tag along as he investigates a murder case. The division of labor is clear; the brilliant if taciturn Hawthorne solves the case, and Horowitz writes about it. However, Horowitz is often embroiled in the crime solving part as well, much to Hawthorne’s annoyance.
At the opening of Close to Death, the Hawthorne Horowitz partnership has produced four best-selling novels, and Horowitz’s agent is pushing for a fifth. Unfortunately, Hawthorne isn’t working a new case, so he suggests that Horowitz write about one of his old cases. For Horowitz, a closed case sounds much easier to write than an ongoing investigation, except that Hawthorne delivers the case history to Horowitz in installments, holding back the Who Done It. When Horowitz protests, Hawthorne says, “You never know the solution, mate. That’s what makes your writing so special. You don’t have a clue.”
The old case concerns the murder of Giles Kenworthy, a much-reviled resident of the posh Riverview Close community. When Kenworthy is killed in the front hall of his home, his neighbors are the principal suspects. Given the unusual murder weapon (a crossbow bolt through the neck) and the high-profile community, the local police (reluctantly) call DCI Hawthorne for assistance. As Hawthorne and Horowitz discover, beneath the solid citizen facades at Riverview Close, lies desperation, deceit, and further death.
Super clever!
Hawthorne and Horowitz Mysteries
- The Word Is Murder
- The Sentence is Death
- A Line to Kill
- The Twist of a Knife
- Close to Death