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Guilty by Definition

The instant Sunday Times bestselling linguistic mystery from Britain's wordsmith, Susie Dent

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Guilty by Definition

By: Susie Dent
Narrated by: Jack Edwards, Louise Brealey, Susie Dent
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This audiobook features an exclusive introduction from Susie Dent, and an exclusive Q&A between Susie and Youtube's Jack Edwards.

When an anonymous letter is delivered to the Clarendon English Dictionary, it is rapidly clear that this is not the usual lexicographical enquiry. Instead, the letter hints at secrets and lies linked to a particular year.

For Martha Thornhill, the new senior editor, the date can mean only one thing: the summer her brilliant older sister Charlie went missing.

After a decade abroad, Martha has returned home to the city whose ancient institutions have long defined her family. Have the ghosts she left behind her been waiting for her return?

When more letters arrive, and Martha and her team pull apart the complex clues within them, the mystery becomes ever more insistent and troubling. It seems Charlie had been keeping a powerful secret, and someone is trying to lead the lexicographers towards the truth. But other forces are no less desperate to keep it well and truly buried. Amateur Sleuths Crime Fiction Mystery Women Sleuths Exciting Suspenseful
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Death Writ Large By: Susie Dent
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From the first moment the reader spoke I recognised the voice but felt she didn't have tremendous confidence in her ability to draw the listener in. As the story progressed, you could hear her confidence grow. That, as much as the story itself, was endearing and drew me in further.

My advice? Don't do or plan anything if listening to, or reading, this. The characters completely believable, the story bewitching (yes, I know it's genre!), and, like The Da Vinci code, leaves you wondering, "how much of this is fiction and how much fact?", but considering the author, what do you think?

To Susie Dent.....thank you for writing such a splendiferous story! It was a beautiful nod to the place, history, and the Baird. Jimmy Carr had better not criticise your penmanship ever again (even though I realise it's a bit of a jape 😉!) and Richard Osman (et al) had better watch out.

I absolutely fell in love with this entire story, and it's not romance!

Mesmerising magnificence! Thank you, Susie

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Overall, this was very well written, as might be expected from a wordsmith like Susie Dent. The narrator did an excellent job and brought the book to life unobtrusively and with a great deal of skill. I really warmed to most of the characters, who were written in a way that was convincing for the most part. Their emotional depth made me think that ‘cosy crime’ isn’t quite the right description for the book, although it is probably the most marketable genre at present, so it’s not surprising that this was the route chosen by the publishers. Oxford was presented so vividly that I wanted to visit some of the sites described. But the ending didn’t do the book justice. It was here that the novel was at its most cosy, with a confession that really wasn’t convincing, and a lengthy epilogue in which the ‘bad’ characters were roundly punished and the ‘good’ characters (even the dead ones!) were amply rewarded. Very nineteenth century. I did enjoy it though and I will be looking out for the next book in the series.

An enjoyable read

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What a wonderful wonderful novel

The perfect amount of mystery and literature
Already excited for hopefully another instalment

Incredible

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The first thing I’ll say is that it’s inconceivable that nobody who worked on this book about the intricacies of language picked up on the fact that Susie Dent keeps saying “took a screenshot” when she means to say “took a picture”.

I’ll start off with what I didn’t like, and first and foremost, that’s the narrator, Louise Brealey. I’ve listened to something she narrated before and swore I’d never listen to anything she did ever again. However, I really wanted to listen to this book, so I had no choice. At times, she has such a flat, uninspired voice. I wondered if she was trying to make her voice sound like Susie Dent, but in the epilogue, there’s a 30-minute interview with her, and I was reminded that she’s so animated when she talks. And then I remembered that I swore off Louise Brealey.

The next thing I didn’t like is that it felt like Dent was shoehorning in vocabulary. It comes in three forms. 1) Each chapter begins with the definition of an obscure word. 2) Characters keep remembering the origins of words. Sometimes, there are almost lists of them. 3) It’s like her high school teacher reminded her to pepper her project with fancy words to impress an external examiner. It really felt over the top at times.

The last thing that bothered me is the pacing. There are some parts that are genuinely gripping. But then there are tracts that serve no purpose or that could have been over in half the time, and they really slow the story down. I understand that not everything has to be done at breakneck speed, but by the same token, we don’t need to be lulled to sleep.

What I did like was the overall story. It’s a well-told mystery. Martha’s sister disappeared 13 years ago, and someone today is leaving clues to try to get to the bottom of it all. Who is the mysterious figure behind it all? Where is Charlie, the sister? What happened to her? What is Martha hiding? Which of the (MANY) characters we’re introduced to is the one whodunit. There are some red herrings that might lead you up a blind alley. I guessed who was behind the mysterious letters but didn’t guess anything else (I can’t say more without giving anything away).

In the Epilogue, there’s an interesting interview with Dent where she talks about her own history, the reason for the book, and future plans. There will be a sequel, and I’m looking forward to it, on the proviso that she leaves out half of the fancy words. They just distracted me. I kept thinking, “Who would actually say that in real life?” and that shouldn’t happen. I would also love it if they got a different narrator.

In addition to having a rather dull voice, Brealey is not that great at differentiating characters. The only truly discernable one was Bryn, who had a Welsh accent. Everyone else sounded very, very similar.

Would I buy another book written by Susie Dent? Yes.
Would I listen to another audiobook narrated by Louise Brealey? Under duress.

I liked it, but with reservations

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Loved this book from start to finish. Missing the characters and loved the chapter titles. I’ll get the dictionary out to look up some other words until the sequel is released!

Brilliant!

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