Best Selling Books by Anthony Horowitz

From the New York Times bestselling author of the Alex Rider series! A teen gang leader taken for a deadly ride by a car with a mind of its own. . . . A boy haunted by a phantom cobra. . . . A reality TV show pitting teens against grown ups, with only one survivor . . . From whose twisted mind can such gruesome stories unfold? Only Anthony Horowitz. From the internationally bestselling author of the Alex Rider missions, this collection of harrowing tales is sure to have you smiling in terrified pleasure. But whatever you do, don''t turn out the lights!

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. Author of the global bestseller THE HOUSE OF SILK, Anthony Horowitz once more breathes life into the world created by Arthur Conan Doyle. With pitch-perfect characterisation and breath-taking pace, Horowitz weaves a relentlessly thrilling tale which teases and delights by the turn of each page. The game is afoot...

Alex Rider is now an IMDb TV/Amazon Original Series! Meet the orphan turned teen superspy who''s saving the world one mission at a time—from #1 New York Times bestselling author! They said his uncle Ian died in a car accident. But Alex Rider knows that’s a lie, and the bullet holes in the windshield prove it. Yet he never suspected the truth: his uncle was really a spy for Britain’s top secret intelligence agency. And now Alex has been recruited to find his uncle’s killers . . . Alex Rider''s is debut mission is packed with bonus material - including an extra Alex Rider short story, a letter from Anthony Horowitz, and much more! From the author of Magpie Murders and Moriarty. “Slam-bang action, spying and high-tech gadgets . . . a non-stop thriller!”—Kirkus Reviews

When wealthy, spoiled, thirteen-year-old Tad Spencer wishes he were someone else, he awakens as Bob Snarby, the uncouth, impoverished son of carnival workers, and as he is drawn into a life of crime he begins to discover truths about himself and his family.

Alex Rider is now a Freevee original series! From internationally bestselling author Anthony Horowitz comes the twelfth thrilling installment of the Alex Rider series! Follow the world''s greatest teen spy as he sets off to Gibraltar after the death of Scorpia, and enters into a battle against a new criminal organization: Nightshade. Following the shocking events of Never Say Die, Alex Rider''s world has changed: his biggest enemy, the evil organization Scorpia, has been destroyed. Alex is hoping his life can finally go back to normal, that he can go to school and spend time with his friends--but very quickly everything changes. A new and dangerous criminal organization--Nightshade--is rising. When Alex discovers they''ve planned a mysterious attack on London, he will stop at nothing to take them down. But protecting his home city means facing off a ruthless new enemy and putting his life at stake, again. And this time, there''s no one to save him if he makes a mistake. The #1 New York Times and internationally bestselling Alex Rider series is back with a vengeance in this edge-of-your-seat adventure. Perfect for fans of James Bond and Jason Bourne!

"One of the most entertaining mysteries of the year. It’s also one of the most stimulating, as it ponders such questions as: Which is of greater interest to the reader, the crime or the detective? And: Is the pencil truly mightier than the butcher knife?” — Wall Street Journal New York Times bestselling author of Magpie Murders and Moriarty, Anthony Horowitz has yet again brilliantly reinvented the classic crime novel, this time writing a fictional version of himself as the Watson to a modern-day Holmes. A woman crosses a London street. It is just after 11 a.m. on a bright spring morning, and she is going into a funeral parlor to plan her own service. Six hours later the woman is dead, strangled with a crimson curtain cord in her own home. Enter disgraced police detective Daniel Hawthorne, a brilliant, eccentric man as quick with an insult as he is to crack a case. And Hawthorne has a partner, the celebrated novelist Anthony Horowitz, curious about the case and looking for new material. As brusque, impatient, and annoying as Hawthorne can be, Horowitz—a seasoned hand when it comes to crime stories—suspects the detective may be on to something, and is irresistibly drawn into the mystery. But as the case unfolds, Horowitz realizes that he’s at the center of a story he can’t control, and his brilliant partner may be hiding dark and mysterious secrets of his own.

Alex Rider is now an IMDb TV/Amazon Original Series! The world’s greatest teen spy is back in action in a thrilling new mission: destroy once and for all the terrorist organization SCORPIA. Americans may have purchased more than 6 million copies of Alex''s adventures, but now, more than ever, we all need his heroics. Following the events of Scorpia Rising, Alex relocates to San Francisco as he slowly recovers from the tragic death of his best friend and caregiver, Jack Starbright, at the hands of terrorists working for SCORPIA. With Jack gone, Alex feels lost and alone, but then, out of the blue, he receives a cryptic email--just three words long, but enough to make Alex believe that Jack may be alive. Armed with this shred of hope, Alex boards a flight bound for Egypt and embarks on a dubious quest to track Jack down. Yet SCORPIA knows Alex''s weakness. And the question of whether Jack is alive soon takes a backseat to a chilling new terrorist plot--one that will play with Alex’s mind as he grasps the magnitude of what is at stake. From Egypt to France to Wales, from luxury yachts to abandoned coal mines, Alex traverses a minefield of dangers and cryptic clues as he fights to discover the truth. The #1 New York Times bestselling series, perfect for fans of James Bond and Jason Bourne, is back with a vengeance! Praise for Never Say Die: "Once again amid races, chases, hails of bullets, and increasingly spectacular explosions, the teenage James Bond pulls off one awesome feat of derring-do after another. [This] fresh caper . . . roars along to a (naturally) explosive climax."—Booklist "In his usual breakneck fashion, Horowitz whisks Alex from one improbable situation to another . . . this installment is sure to please Alex''s legions of fans."—Kirkus Reviews

From the # 1 New York Times bestselling author of the Alex Rider series. It looks like Tim, the world’s worst private detective, and Nick, his brainy kid brother, are in trouble again. They’re dead broke. But money is the least of their worries when a mysterious man bursts into their office and offers Tim a wad of cash for his coat. Minutes later, the stranger is dead and Nick and Tim are left to puzzle over his final words. What could he have meant by "suff bee suff-iss"? Or was it "south by southeast"? Neither one seems to make much sense, but the Diamond brothers will have to figure it out, and fast! Whoever killed the stranger is now after Nick and Tim!

In London, England, twelve-year-old Joe discovers that his grandmother is not just physically repulsive and horribly mean, she is also involved in an evil plot against him, but the adults around them fail to see behind her mask.

The final, thrilling conclusion to #1 NEW YORK TIMES bestselling author Anthony Horowitz''s masterful series! Matt. Pedro. Scott. Jamie. Scar. Five Gatekeepers have finally found one another. And only the five of them can fight the evil force that is on the rise, threatening the destruction of the world. In the penultimate volume of The Gatekeepers series, a massive storm arose that signalled the beginning of the end. Now the five Gatekeepers must battle the evil power the storm has unleashed -- and strive to stop the world from ending.

Alex Rider will soon be a star in his very own TV series! The final book in the #1 bestselling Alex Rider series with over 6 million copies sold in the U.S. alone! Alex Rider’s life changed forever with the silent pull of a trigger. When Ian Rider died at the hands of the assassin Yassen Gregorovich, Alex, ready or not, was thrust into the world of international espionage—the world’s only teenage spy. Alex vowed revenge against Yassen and the two have battled ever since. Yet, years ago, it was none other than Alex’s own father who trained and mentored Yassen, turning him into the killer he would eventually become. What makes us choose evil? Why did one boy choose to kill while another chose to risk his life to save others? In some ways, Alex Rider and Yassen Gregorovich are mirror images of each other. Yet the paths they traveled turned them into mortal enemies. This is Yassen’s story. A journey down a darkened path. International #1 bestseller Anthony Horowitz delivers a blockbuster thrill ride in this, his final Alex Rider novel. Perfect for young fans of James Bond.

Alex Rider is now an IMDb TV/Amazon Original Series! Alex Rider is an orphan turned teen superspy who''s saving the world one mission at a time—from #1 New York Times bestselling author! Alex Rider has been through a lot for his fourteen years. He''s been shot at by international terrorists, chased down a mountainside on a makeshift snowboard, and has stood face-to-face with pure evil. Twice, young Alex has managed to save the world. And twice, he has almost been killed doing it. But now Alex faces something even more dangerous. The desperation of a man who has lost everything he cared for: his country and his only son. A man who just happens to have a nuclear weapon and a serious grudge against the free world. To see his beloved Russia once again be a dominant power, he will stop at nothing. Unless Alex can stop him first. Uniting forces with the CIA for the first time, teen spy Alex Rider battles terror from the sun-baked beaches of Miami all the way to the barren ice fields of northernmost Russia.

Y cyntaf yn y gyfres o nofelau am Alecs Rider, bachgen 14 oed sy''n cael ei ricriwtio''n ysbïwr yn erbyn ei ewyllys. Mae cyfrifiaduron y Tarandon yn cael eu dosbarthu i bob ysgol ym Mhrydain - ond a oes yna reswm sinistr y tu ôl i rodd hael Herod? Mae''r cloc yn tician, mae''r Tarandon ar fin dod ar-lein - ac mae Alecs yn darganfod gwirionedd enbyd. Addas i ddarllenwyr 9-14 oed. -- Cyngor Llyfrau Cymru

In New York Times bestselling author Anthony Horowitz’s ingenious fifth literary whodunnit in the Hawthorne and Horowitz series, Detective Hawthorne is once again called upon to solve an unsolvable case—a gruesome murder in an idyllic gated community in which suspects abound. Riverside Close is a picture-perfect community. The six exclusive and attractive houses are tucked far away from the noise and grime of city life, allowing the residents to enjoy beautiful gardens, pleasant birdsong, and tranquility from behind the security of a locked gate. It is the perfect idyll, until the Kentworthy family arrives, with their four giant, gas-guzzling cars, gaggle of shrieking children, and plans for a garish swimming pool in the backyard. Obvious outsiders, the Kentworthys do not belong in Riverside Close, and quickly offend every last one of the neighbors. When Giles Kentworthy is found dead on his own doorstep, a crossbow bolt sticking out of his chest, Detective Hawthorne is the only investigator they can call to solve the case. Because how do you solve a murder when everyone is a suspect?

Alex Rider is now an IMDb TV/Amazon Original Series! Alex Rider is an orphan turned teen superspy who''s saving the world one mission at a time—from #1 New York Times bestselling author! Alex Rider, teen spy, has always been told he is the spitting image of the father he never knew. But when Alex learns that his father may have been an assassin for the most lethal and powerful terrorist organization in the world, Scorpia, his world shatters. Now Scorpia wants Alex on their side, and Alex no longer has the strength to fight them. That is, until he learns of Scorpia’s latest plot: an operation known only as “Invisible Sword” that will result in the death of thousands of people. Can Alex prevent the slaughter, or will Scorpia prove once and for all that the terror will not be stopped? From the author of Magpie Murders and Moriarty.

From the # 1 New York Times bestselling author of the Alex Rider series Thirteen-year-old Nick Diamond is in prison! Framed for a jewel heist, quick-thinking Nick finds himself sharing a cell with public enemy number one: Johnny Powers. Nick’s only chance of clearing his name is to nail the Fence, the country’s master criminal. But to do that, he needs to break out—which is where his bumbling older brother, Tim, comes in. Nick’s not so sure he’ll make it to his fourteenth birthday!

Death, deception, and a detective with quite a lot to hide stalk the pages of Anthony Horowitz’s brilliant murder mystery, the second in the bestselling series starring Private Investigator Daniel Hawthorne. “You shouldn’t be here. It’s too late . . . “ These, heard over the phone, were the last recorded words of successful celebrity-divorce lawyer Richard Pryce, found bludgeoned to death in his bachelor pad with a bottle of wine—a 1982 Chateau Lafite worth £3,000, to be precise. Odd, considering he didn’t drink. Why this bottle? And why those words? And why was a three-digit number painted on the wall by the killer? And, most importantly, which of the man’s many, many enemies did the deed? Baffled, the police are forced to bring in Private Investigator Daniel Hawthorne and his sidekick, the author Anthony, who’s really getting rather good at this murder investigation business. But as Hawthorne takes on the case with characteristic relish, it becomes clear that he, too, has secrets to hide. As our reluctant narrator becomes ever more embroiled in the case, he realizes that these secrets must be exposed—even at the risk of death . . .

A spy is dead. A legend is born. This is how it all began. The explosive prequel to Casino Royale, from bestselling author Anthony Horowitz, Forever and a Day is the story of the birth of a legend in the brutal underworld of the French Riviera that takes the reader to the very beginning of James Bond’s illustrious career and the formation of his identity. M laid down his pipe and stared at it tetchily. “We have no choice. We’re just going to bring forward this other chap you’ve been preparing. But you didn’t tell me his name.” “It’s Bond, sir,” the Chief of Staff replied. “James Bond.” The sea keeps its secrets. But not this time. One body. Three bullets. 007 floats in the waters of Marseille, killed by an unknown hand. It’s time for a new agent to step up. Time for a new weapon in the war against organized crime. It’s time for James Bond to earn his license to kill.

Don’t miss Magpie Murders on PBS''s MASTERPIECE Mystery! "A double puzzle for puzzle fans, who don’t often get the classicism they want from contemporary thrillers." —Janet Maslin, The New York Times New York Times Bestseller | Winner of the Macavity Award for Best Novel | NPR Best Book of the Year | Washington Post Best Book of the Year | Esquire Best Book of the Year From the New York Times bestselling author of Moriarty and Trigger Mortis, this fiendishly brilliant, riveting thriller weaves a classic whodunit worthy of Agatha Christie into a chilling, ingeniously original modern-day mystery. When editor Susan Ryeland is given the manuscript of Alan Conway’s latest novel, she has no reason to think it will be much different from any of his others. After working with the bestselling crime writer for years, she’s intimately familiar with his detective, Atticus Pünd, who solves mysteries disturbing sleepy English villages. An homage to queens of classic British crime such as Agatha Christie and Dorothy Sayers, Alan’s traditional formula has proved hugely successful. So successful that Susan must continue to put up with his troubling behavior if she wants to keep her job. Conway’s latest tale has Atticus Pünd investigating a murder at Pye Hall, a local manor house. Yes, there are dead bodies and a host of intriguing suspects, but the more Susan reads, the more she’s convinced that there is another story hidden in the pages of the manuscript: one of real-life jealousy, greed, ruthless ambition, and murder. Masterful, clever, and relentlessly suspenseful, Magpie Murders is a deviously dark take on vintage English crime fiction in which the reader becomes the detective.

Alex Rider is now an IMDb TV/Amazon Original Series! Alex Rider is an orphan turned teen superspy who''s saving the world one mission at a time—from #1 New York Times bestselling author! When an investigation into a series of mysterious deaths leads agents to an elite prep school for rebellious kids, MI6 assigns Alex Rider to the case. Before he knows it, Alex is hanging out with the sons of the rich and powerful, and something feels wrong. These former juvenile delinquents have turned well-behaved, studious—and identical—overnight. It''s up to Alex to find out who is masterminding this nefarious plot, before they find him. From the author of Magpie Murders and Moriarty.

The No. 1 bestselling creator of Alex Rider gives horror a whole new look in this mischievous collection of macabre tales.Stories of ultimate revenge, from freshly sold human meat and uncontrollable robots, to life-sucking MP3 players and reality TV where death is the penalty - all told with dark humour and gruesome relish, and made even more fiendish by retro illustrations, chilling facts and a puckish message from the author. This is Anthony Horowitz at his most wicked.

Alex Rider is now an IMDb TV/Amazon Original Series! Alex Rider is an orphan turned teen superspy who''s saving the world one mission at a time—from #1 New York Times bestselling author! Sir Damian Cray is a philanthropist, peace activist, and the world''s most famous pop star. But still it''s not enough. He needs more if he is to save the world. Trouble is, only Alex Rider recognizes that it''s the world that needs saving from Sir Damian Cray. Underneath the luster of glamour and fame lies a twisted mind, ready to sacrifice the world for his beliefs. But in the past, Alex has always had the backing of the government. This time, he''s on his own. Can one teenager convince the world that the most popular man on earth is a madman bent on destruction--before time runs out?

While working with the Australian Secret Service on a dangerous mission, teenaged spy Alex Rider uncovers information about his parents.

From the # 1 New York Times bestselling author of the Alex Rider series. Tom Falconer is in trouble. Pursued by the notorious criminal Ratsey, Tom soon finds himself alone and hungry on the streets of London. Luckily enough, the mysterious Dr. Mobius soon recruits Tom to play an important role in a play to be performed in front of Queen Elizabeth. Tom knows there’s something not right about Mobius, but he’s willing to take a risk in order to keep his neck out of Ratsey’s murderous hands. Little does Tom realize that Mobius’s dark secret will trap him in the middle of an international conspiracy, holding the fate of the English empire in his hands.

Ve a Venecia, busca a Scorpia, y entonces podrás encontrar tu destino...” Estas son las últimas palabras que Yessen, un peligroso asesino a sueldo, le dijo a Alex antes de morir en el Air Force One, el avión del presidente de los Estados Unidos. Ahora Alex Rider está en Venecia y ha encontrado a Scorpia, una organización criminal con un plan tan elaborado y diabólicamente perverso que parece fantástico...pero no lo es. Sin embargo, Alex va a encontrarse además con algo inesperado: respuestas sobre su pasado y del de sus padres que ahora sabe que no murieron en un accidente. Alex Rider es solo un adolescente, pero trabaja para el servicio secreto MI6. Su misión consiste en acabar con el plan de Scorpia, pero esta vez también quiere venganza y tendrá que tomar una decisión... Este libro, el quinto de las aventuras de Alex Rider, desvela los secretos del pasado del joven espía y hará las delicias de sus seguidores por su ritmo trepidante, una acción llena de suspense y el sorprendente desenlace final.

Alex Rider is now an IMDb TV/Amazon Original Series! Alex Rider is an orphan turned teen superspy who''s saving the world one mission at a time—from #1 New York Times bestselling author! The sniper’s bullet nearly killed him. But Alex Rider managed to survive . . . just in time for more trouble to come his way. When kidnappers attempt to snatch a fellow patient from the exclusive hospital where Alex is recovering, he knows he has to stop him. But the boy he saves is no ordinary patient: He is the son of Nikolai Drevin, one of the richest men in the world. The eccentric billionaire has been targeted by Force Three, a group of eco-terrorists who claim his project Ark Angel—the first luxury hotel in outer space—is a danger to the environment. Soon Alex discovers that Force Three will stop at nothing to destroy Ark Angel, even if it means sending four hundred tons of molten glass and steel hurtling down to Earth and killing millions . . . unless Alex can stop them. From the author of Magpie Murders and Moriarty.

Seventeen brilliantly chilling tales from the master of storytelling. Welcome to a strange and twisted world where the spooky, the shocking, and the positively petrifying are lurking just out of sight. A bus ride home ... turns into your worst nightmare. A quaint country cottage ... has a grisly secret. A hot bath ... swirls with blood. Horowitz Horror. It''s all around you. Alive. Waiting. Enter if you dare. Horror fans will love these twisted tales from the bestselling author of the Alex Rider books.

From the # 1 New York Times bestselling author of the Alex Rider series. When the vertically-challenged Johnny Naples entrusts Tim Diamond with a package worth over three million pounds, he’s making a big mistake. Tim Diamond is the worst detective in the world. Next day, Johnny’s dead, Tim feels the heat, and his smart younger brother, Nick, gets the package—and every crook in town on his back!

When Mark Styler, a writer of glossy ‘true crime’ paperbacks, tries to get an interview with Easterman, a notorious serial killer, he has no idea what he’s walking into. First he has to get past Dr Farquhar, the quixotic head of Fairfields – the asylum where Easterman is kept. But soon he discovers that nothing is what it seems. Who is the mysterious Borson? Where did he get the meat in the fridge? And why isn’t the skeleton in the closet? Mindgame is a puzzle-box of a play. A dazzling thriller and a jet black comedy that twists its way towards a shocking conclusion. Reading the text is the only way to uncover all the clues.

"It’s almost uncanny how well Mr. Horowitz summons Bond’s mindset . . . Yet this Bond also feels the winds of change: ''He had his licence to kill. But was it possible that in this new, more questioning age, that licence might have expired?'' A drop of retro pleasures, a pinch of things to come; shaken, not stirred." — Wall Street Journal Internationally bestselling author Anthony Horowitz’s third James Bond novel, after Forever and a Day. It is M''s funeral. One man is missing from the graveside: the traitor who pulled the trigger and who is now in custody, accused of M''s murder—James Bond. Behind the Iron Curtain, a group of former Smersh agents want to use the British spy in an operation that will change the balance of world power. Bond is smuggled into the lion''s den—but whose orders is he following, and will he obey them when the moment of truth arrives? In a mission where treachery is all around and one false move means death, Bond must grapple with the darkest questions about himself. But not even he knows what has happened to the man he used to be.

This wicked collection of 18 macabre tales combines both "Horowitz Horror" and "More Horowitz Horror" in one volume.

New York Times Bestseller • Now a MASTERPIECE mystery series on PBS! Bestselling author Anthony Horowitz brings back his famous literary detective Atticus Pund and Susan Ryeland, hero of Magpie Murders, in an inventive, labyrinthine story that is “catnip for classic mystery lovers” (Time magazine). Retired publisher Susan Ryeland is living the good life. She is running a small hotel on a Greek island with her long-term boyfriend Andreas. It should be everything she''s always wanted. But is it? She''s exhausted with the responsibilities of making everything work on an island where nothing ever does, and truth be told she''s beginning to miss London. And then the Trehearnes come to stay. The strange and mysterious story they tell, about an unfortunate murder that took place on the same day and in the same hotel in which their daughter was married—a picturesque inn on the Suffolk coast named Farlingaye Hall—fascinates Susan and piques her editor’s instincts. One of her former writers, the late Alan Conway, author of the fictional Magpie Murders, knew the murder victim—an advertising executive named Frank Parris—and once visited Farlingaye Hall. Conway based the third book in his detective series, Atticus Pund Takes the Cake, on that very crime. The Trehearne’s, daughter, Cecily, read Conway’s mystery and believed the book proves that the man convicted of Parris’s murder—a Romanian immigrant who was the hotel’s handyman—is innocent. When the Trehearnes reveal that Cecily is now missing, Susan knows that she must return to England and find out what really happened. Brilliantly clever, relentlessly suspenseful, full of twists that will keep readers guessing with each revelation and clue, Moonflower Murders is a deviously dark take on vintage English crime fiction from one of its greatest masterminds.

Alex Rider does battle with a charity broker con artist who has invested millions of dollars in a form of genetically modified corn that can release an airborne strain of virus capable of knocking out an entire country in one day.

Alex Rider is now a Freevee original series! From internationally bestselling author Anthony Horowitz comes the fourteenth thrilling installment of the Alex Rider series! Follow the world''s greatest teen spy as he sets off to California to battle Nightshade once again—this time, for good. When Alex Rider thwarted the plans of the criminal organization Nightshade, he knew he''d made a new, blatantly evil enemy. But he hadn''t expected to get sucked back into the spy game so quickly—that is, until the Nightshade masterminds kidnap his best friend, forcing Alex to do their bidding if he ever wants to see his pal alive again. As Alex dives deep into this latest mission, his friend isn''t the only one whose life is on the line. Nightshade has entered the world of virtual reality gaming, and the lines between what''s real and what''s digital are being blurred everywhere. With a ruthless enemy fighting dirty and not caring who gets hurt along the way, the stakes have never been higher—and this time, it''s personal. The #1 New York Times and internationally bestselling Alex Rider series is back with a vengeance in this edge-of-your-seat adventure. Perfect for fans of James Bond and Jason Bourne!

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. “I’m sorry but the answer’s no.” Reluctant author, Anthony Horowitz, has had enough. He tells ex-detective Daniel Hawthorne that after three books he’s splitting and their deal is over. The truth is that Anthony has other things on his mind. His new play, a thriller called Mindgame, is about to open at the Vaudeville Theater in London’s West End. Not surprisingly, Hawthorne declines a ticket to the opening night. The play is panned by the critics. In particular, Sunday Times critic Margaret Throsby gives it a savage review, focusing particularly on the writing. The next day, Throsby is stabbed in the heart with an ornamental dagger which turns out to belong to Anthony, and has his fingerprints all over it. Anthony is arrested by an old enemy . . . Detective Inspector Cara Grunshaw. She still carries a grudge from her failure to solve the case described in the second Hawthorne adventure, The Sentence is Death, and blames Anthony. Now she’s out for revenge. 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. But will Hawthorne take the call?