A Line to Kill

Bestseller Horowitz’s superior third mystery features former detective inspector Daniel Hawthorne and a fictionalized Horowitz (after 2019’s The Sentence Is Death)in an effortless blend of humor and fair play. At a literary festival on the English island of Alderney, the pair plan to promote the series of books Horowitz has been writing about Hawthorne’s homicide investigations. On Alderney, they become acquainted with the five other festival guests: “an unhealthy chef, a blind psychic, a war historian, a children’s author, a French performance poet.” One night, they all attend a party hosted by wealthy Charles le Mesurier, who gained his fortune from internet gambling and is the prime advocate for a controversial proposal to route a new electric power line linking the U.K. and France through the island. When a partygoer is found stabbed to death the next morning in an outbuilding near le Mesurier’s main house, Hawthorne helps the sparse local police force investigate. The often prickly relationship between the Watson-like Horowitz and the Holmes-like Hawthorne complements the intricate detective work worthy of a classic golden age whodunit. The author’s fans will hope this series has a long run. Agent: Jonathan Lloyd, Curtis Brown (U.K.). (Oct.)