Guilty By Definition by Susie Dent

 

Martha Thornhill has returned to her family home in Oxford after working in Berlin for ten years. Martha and her family have never come to terms with the disappearance of her sister, Charlie, over a decade ago. When cryptic letters begin to arrive, Martha and her colleagues believe they are clues to Charlie's disappearance.

Initially, I was drawn to Guilty By Definition by Susie Dent thinking it would fit easily into the genre of cozy crime. Having finished the book I've decided there's nothing "cozy" about it, this is an absorbing and expertly plotted mystery. I was a little unsure as I started the book that I might be out of my depth, there are lots of literary references and cryptic clues. Cryptic crosswords baffle me, thankfully the solutions to the clues are clearly explained throughout the story. I wasn't far into the book before I realised I was completely gripped.

Martha has returned to her home city of Oxford to work as senior editor at the Clarendon English Dictionary (CED), working alongside three other editors, Simon, Alex and Zoe. Both Simon and Alex are aware of what happened to Martha's sister back in 2010 as she had a part-time job at the CED working alongside them.  When a mysterious letter arrives addressed to "The Editors" the team quickly realise it's about Martha's sister and sets about solving the clues.

The team work well together, they all have different specialties that complement each other. At times, the team needs to consult other people, either because they are directed by the letters, or because they knew Charlie. The widening of the pool of people involved keeps the reader guessing, particularly as no one knows what happened to Charlie, she simply disappeared and hasn't been heard from since. It also means that a wide variety of locations around Oxford are visited. Oxford is described beautifully, seeming to be from a different universe, and enticing anyone who reads the depiction of the city to want to visit immediately.

As a child Martha adored her older sister, Charlie was beautiful and highly intelligent, everyone loved her. Over time we realise that as Martha got older she began to resent her sister, fed up with always being in the wings. Working alongside Simon and Alex she learns that not everyone was completely smitten by Charlie as she looked down on people she considered to be intellectually below her. As the quest for answers continues Martha also discovers that her sister could be devious.

When all of the clues are solved and the whereabouts of Charlie are uncovered, the author still has a few final twists in store for the reader.

Guilty By Definition by Susie Dent will be published on 15th August 2024 in hardback, ebook and audio format. My thanks to NetGalley and Bonnier Books for a review copy.