The Twist of a Knife: A gripping locked-room mystery from the bestselling crime writer (Hawthorne Book 4)
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The Twist of a Knife: A gripping locked-room mystery from the bestselling crime writer (Hawthorne Book 4)
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That's what reluctant author Anthony Horowitz tells ex-detective Daniel Hawthorne in an awkward meeting. The truth is that Anthony has other things on his mind.
I really enjoy this series but this one took me a little longer to get into than usual. Eventually I was hooked and once again singing the author’s praises. The next morning Harriet is found dead, stabbed through the heart with a dagger. All signs point to Anthony as the culprit, and he makes an appeal to Hawthorne to investigate and clear his name. Anthony Horowitz is in trouble. His West End debut has been panned and the scathing reviewer stabbed to death in their own hallway. That would be bad enough, but he's the one who's been arrested; two 'old friends' on the force are holding quite the grudge against him and have no intention of listening to his pleas of innocence. Good job he knows a very good detective... Except the last conversation they had consisted of Horowitz refusing to write any more books together. Now he needs Hawthorne's help - desperately - and he might not get it. All in all, this well known author is having a really bad day... In New York Times bestselling author Anthony Horowitz’s ingenious fourth literary whodunit following The Word is Murder, The Sentence is Death, and A Line to Kill, Horowitz becomes the prime suspect in a murder investigation—and only one man can prove his innocence: his newly estranged partner in solving crime, Detective Hawthorne. Like the previous books in the series, The Twist of a Knife feels like a modern take on Golden Age detective fiction, and it's a highly successful one, complete with a fiendishly clever plot, a sleuth pitting his wits against the police to solve the crime, and a classic ensemble reveal. Horowitz's novels are always masterclasses in pacing, and The Twist of a Knife is no exception, with the investigation itself becoming a race against time to find the real murderer before Anthony is charged.
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As with the previous books, the author cleverly inserts himself into the narrative, and what makes this series so enjoyable is the relationship between Hawthorne and Horowitz, with their witty dialogue and snark. Every book reveals a bit more about the secretive and elusive Hawthorne, and leaves me wanting more. This is what reluctant author Anthony Horowitz tells ex-detective Daniel Hawthorne in an awkward encounter. The truth is that Anthony has other things on his mind.
And the predictably inept police team, Detective Inspector Cara Grunshaw and her assistant, DC Mills, are circling. All hopes for Horowitz rise and fall with what Hawthorne can deduce from the original cast of seven, production team and wherever the trail leads... in about 72 hours. Real-Person Cameo: In addition to writing himself as a main character, Horowitz includes in the book his real-life agent Hilda Starke and his wife Jill. (He hesitates to tell Jill about being arrested, and at the end Starke strong-arms him into agreeing to write more Hawthorne books.) There is something about Hawthorne’s character that is secretive to Anthony, and (well as the author – he determines what he wants to write, right?) – so, if he is going to work with him, there is more to find out about him the longer he works with him…so…maybe this won’t be such a bad deal?
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Author Avatar: Once again, Anthony Horowitz writes himself into the Hawthorne series as the narrator and Hawthorne's Watson. And beyond simply being a character, Horowitz uses details from his real life: Mindgame was a real play, although it ran on the London stage in 1999 rather than 2018 like in this book. It is the fourth in his series of Daniel Hawthorne Novels, detective stories that feature Anthony Horowitz himself as The Watson. As this one starts, Anthony is categorically refusing to write a fourth book about the exploits of (fictional) private detective Daniel Hawthorne, despite Hawthorne pestering him to do so. Anthony has moved on to other things. He is writing a non-Hawthorne book, Moonflower Murders, and he has a play coming out. The play is called Mindgame and is a comedy-thriller about a reporter who goes to an insane asylum and finds that all is not as it seems.
The next morning, Harriet is found dead in her house, stabbed with one of the decorative daggers distributed as opening night gifts. Unfortunately for Horowitz, HIS dagger is the murder weapon. Anthony is soon arrested by Detective Inspector Cara Grunshaw and Detective Constable Derek Mills, who have a grudge against Anthony for making them look bad in a previous investigation. Thrown into prison and fearing for both his personal future and his writing career, Anthony is the prime suspect in Throsby's murder and when a second theatre critic is found to have died in mysterious circumstances, the net closes in. Ever more desperate, he realizes that only one man can help him. Anyway, if you like this series of Horowitz and Hawthorne (remember, Magpie Murders (now a PBS series, too – which is excellent by the way)(Review is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...) and The Word is Murder)(My review is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...) you might enjoy this one, too – or not. Mustache Vandalism: Keith, the doorman at the Vaudeville Theatre, says he once saw Harriet Throsby's picture up in the laundry room at the Lyric, with a Hitler mustache drawn on it.Horowitz continues to delight in mixing real life and fiction, as well as in juxtaposing Horowitz (the character) as nebbish against the always-three-steps ahead Hawthorne. Not to worry, their relationship isn't over quite yet. There's much more to discover, and readers will be waiting eagerly for more from one of the best mystery writers around." - Booklist (starred review)
- Fruugo ID: 258392218-563234582
- EAN: 764486781913
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