Review: The Word is Murder by Anthony Horowitz

The Word is Murder by Anthony Horowitz, April 2018, 400 pages, Arrow, ISBN: 1784757233

Reviewed by Terry Halligan.
(Read more of Terry's reviews for Euro Crime here.)

I read this book for review purposes but now that I've finished it it is very difficult to describe it as it is unlike anything that I've read ever before. The author, Anthony Horowitz, is famous for writing the 'Alex Rider' books and also for the marvellous scripts and executive production of the highly recommended Foyle's War TV series, but writing a one-off murder mystery, that masquerades as a non-fiction, true story is a very different kettle of fish.

The plot is extremely unusual: an extremely wealthy woman arranges her own funeral and then some hours later, she is murdered! Did she know she was destined to die? Who killed her and why? An unemployed former detective decides to investigate her death and as he is short of money he decides to write a book about the investigation and asks the author Anthony Horowitz to do the actual writing as he has successfully written books before. The former detective, who is named Hawthorne, and Horowitz frequently argue over the investigation, but when they aren't talking about the enquiry into the woman's death and the possible perpetrators, Horowitz talks about his own writing career and his success with the Foyle's War and 'Alex Rider' books. As this book is told in the first person from the point of view of Anthony Horowitz I found this extensive discussion of the writing experience very interesting.

The actual details of the murder mystery were a bit light but what we got instead was the Anthony Horowitz writing experience which I found very entertaining but this may not be what other readers may want and I appreciate this. Perhaps a more usual plot structure with more details of the crime and investigation and then a satisfactory conclusion would be preferred, rather than these perhaps irrelevant descriptions of the author's previous books.

On the whole I was very impressed with the book because it was so unusual with this mixture of the fiction of the plot and Anthony Horowitz's real writing career. I enjoy writers talking about themselves and the problems they have, as well as reading good crime fiction and I therefore recommend this book.

Terry Halligan, July 2018.

Sherlock Holmes News x2

Following the success of The House of Silk, Anthony Horowitz has penned another authorised Sherlock Holmes-world story - Moriarty - which is published by Orion in October:

Sherlock Holmes is dead.

Days after Holmes and his arch-enemy Moriarty fall to their doom at the Reichenbach Falls, Pinkerton agent Frederick Chase arrives in Europe from New York. The death of Moriarty has created a poisonous vacuum which has been swiftly filled by a fiendish new criminal mastermind who has risen to take his place.

Ably assisted by Inspector Athelney Jones of Scotland Yard, a devoted student of Holmes's methods of investigation and deduction, Frederick Chase must forge a path through the darkest corners of the capital to shine light on this shadowy figure, a man much feared but seldom seen, a man determined to engulf London in a tide of murder and menace.

From this recent article in The Guardian:

The publisher said that Moriarty would be "very different in nature to Horowitz's previous bestseller; but fans will be delighted to see a few surprise guests from the Conan Doyle's canon making appearances in the new book".

Horowitz himself revealed on Twitter that "Sherlock Holmes does not appear (until the very end)", that "a vicious murder is investigated by Inspector Athelney Jones (from The Sign of Four)" and that "nearly all the policemen Holmes ever worked with, including Lestrade, appear in my new book".

And I've just received this press release about a Sherlock Holmes event on 23 April in London:

To celebrate World Book Night on 23 April, Park Plaza Sherlock Holmes London will host a fun filled Holmes themed event, taking guests back to 1895 with Victorian food and drink and offering a reward for those donning the most impressive Victorian costume.

Together with specialist Sherlock Holmes publisher, MX Publishing, Park Plaza Sherlock Holmes London will welcome guests to enjoy an evening celebrating all things Sherlock, with all ticket proceeds going to the National Literacy Trust, helping to raise literacy among the UK's most disadvantaged communities.

Special guests will include bestselling author, Dan Andriacco, via satellite from Cincinnati. Dan has published six Sherlock Holmes novels, including ‘No Police Like Holmes’ and will be launching the second novel in his collaboration series with equally renowned Holmes writer, Kieran McMullen, The Poisoned Penman, on 15^th May.

As well as a live Q&A with Dan, activities will include the screening of the award winning first episodes of a Sherlock Holmes web series and a Sherlock Holmes themed quiz, with prizes for the winning team.

The event will take place between 6.30pm and 9.30pm in Park Plaza Sherlock Holmes London’s Watson’s Lounge and guests purchasing tickets will also benefit from discounted drinks throughout the evening, an exclusive offer for overnight stays at the hotel, and an exclusive lifetime discount on purchases from the newly launched Watson's Lounge bookshop; a dedicated online Sherlock Holmes themed bookstore.

Tickets cost £5 per person and include:

• Sherlock Holmes themed cocktail and canapés
• Live author Q&A
• Prizes for the best Victorian Dress
• Entry to the Sherlock Holmes Quiz
• Screening of the first episodes of a Sherlock Holmes Web Series
• £5 donation to  the National Literacy Trust
• 20% discount on drinks at the bar throughout the evening
• 20% off best available rate for a future overnight stays at Park Plaza Sherlock Holmes Hotel (subject to availability)
• Lifetime discount on purchases from the Watson’s Lounge Bookshop

To book your place: http://bit.ly/1mOTI3h

Sherlock Holmes Revival

I was a bit surprised to see A Study in Scarlet listed in the charts at WH Smiths and Tesco this week. I wonder what viewers of Sherlock who haven't read it before, will make of the original source material.

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes will be published on 27 October:

In this new edition of Conan Doyle's first collection of short stories, Sherlock co-creator Mark Gatiss explains how these gripping tales inspired and influenced the new series.

Sherlock: The Adventures contains twelve short stories first published in The Strand magazine between 1891 and 1892 and then published as a collection in October 1892. It includes some of Conan Doyle's best tales of murder and mystery, such as 'The Adventures of the Speckled Band', in which the strange last words of a dying woman 'It was the band, the speckled band!' and a inexplicable whistling in the night are the only clues Sherlock Holmes has to prevent another murder; and 'The Five Orange Pips', in which an untimely death and the discovery of the letter containing five orange pips lead to a cross-Atlantic conspiracy.

Anthony Horowitz's official Sherlock Holmes novel, The House of Silk will be published on 1 November:

THE GAME'S AFOOT...It is November 1890 and London is gripped by a merciless winter. Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson are enjoying tea by the fire when an agitated gentleman arrives unannounced at 221b Baker Street. He begs Holmes for help, telling the unnerving story of a scar-faced man with piercing eyes who has stalked him in recent weeks. Intrigued by the man's tale, Holmes and Watson find themselves swiftly drawn into a series of puzzling and sinister events, stretching from the gas-lit streets of London to the teeming criminal underworld of Boston. As the pair delve deeper into the case, they stumble across a whispered phrase 'the House of Silk': a mysterious entity and foe more deadly than any Holmes has encountered, and a conspiracy that threatens to tear apart the very fabric of society itself...With devilish plotting and excellent characterisation, bestselling author Anthony Horowitz delivers a first-rate Sherlock Holmes mystery for a modern readership whilst remaining utterly true to the spirit of the original Conan Doyle books. Sherlock Holmes is back with all the nuance, pace and powers of deduction that make him the world's greatest and most celebrated detective.

Pirate King is the eleventh in Laurie R King's Mary Russell and her husband Sherlock Holmes series and has just been published in the UK. The series began in 1994 with The Beekeeper's Apprentice in which Mary and Sherlock meet.

An e-novella, Beekeeping for Beginners, was released in July, showing that fateful meeting from Sherlock Holmes's point of view. It's available on Kindle in the UK though there are two editions listed on amazon.co.uk: the left hand one is 71p (US edition?) and the right hand one, which is the UK edition is £1.35. It can also be bought as an epub eg Kobo for £1.55.

Anthony Horowitz to pen Sherlock Holmes Novel

Read the whole article at the Bookseller.

Orion is to publish a new full-length Sherlock Holmes novel, written by Alex Rider author Anthony Horowitz, after he was selected by the Conan Doyle Estate.

Further details about the title, to be published in September, are still to be revealed, though it will be "a brilliant mystery novel, stripped back to the original style of Conan Doyle", according to the publisher.

Horowitz said: "I fell in love with the Sherlock Holmes stories when I was 16 and I've read them many times since. I simply couldn't resist this opportunity to write a brand new adventure for this iconic figure and my aim is to produce a first rate mystery for a modern audience while remaining absolutely true to the spirit of the original."