Anthony Horowitz has done it again with this superb addition to the Hawthorne and Horowitz series. This is different from all the other books in the series. Horowitz is under pressure from his acerbic publisher to produce a novel quickly, yet his sidekick, Hawthorne has had nothing new to solve and is nowhere to be seen. The idea occurs that he could easily write about an old historical case of Hawthorne’s. He will be able to do this relatively easily and get the publisher off his back. This changes the style of the whole book from all the others in the series.
Of course, it doesn’t work out like that. The case chosen is 5 years prior and is before Hawthorne and Horowitz had even met. Hawthorne has a different sidekick, the enigmatic John Dudley and there is even a little green-eyed envy from Horowitz when he hears of the relationship between the pair.
We enter the private, very exclusive community of Riverside Close in Richmond, comprising only six houses. The community is very tightly-knit and more than a little parochial and then the Kentworthys move into the largest house. Giles Kentworthy is very loud and very brash erecting a flag in his garden and leaving his large cars deliberately awkwardly parked on the shared driveway. The final straw comes when he receives planning permission to put in a vulgar swimming pool. His neighbours hold a meeting. There is the celebrity dentist and his chronically ill wife, The GP and his wife, the retired barrister, the chess grandmaster and his wife, and finally, the mystery bookshop owners who are also former nuns. They all vow that something should be done. Then something is done and Giles Kentworthy is murdered with a crossbow in the hallway of his home. The crossbow belongs to one of the neighbours and the police think they have a cut-and-dried case, but Hawthorne and John Dudley think otherwise.
Close to Death is completely different from all the other books in the series, but it is fiendishly twisty and quite the masterpiece.
My sincere thanks to Netgalley, Random House Cornerstone, and Anthony Horowitz for the much-appreciated ARC in exchange for an open and honest review.

"It would be another six weeks before death came to Riverview Close and everyone who attended the party would find their lives turned upside down. And throughout the police investigation, with its mutual suspicion and alternative truths, there was one thing on which they would all agree.
Giles Kenworthy really should have been there."

Book five of the Hawthorne & Horowitz (yes the author is a character in his own novel, of this series is new to you) detective series. It sees Horowitz investigating a cold case Hawthorne solved, of a murder in a wealthy close in Richmond, Surrey.

Starting with a controversial planning application felt a little too close to home for me (I am a Town Planner by profession), but this was only one of the issues with an inconsiderate neighbour in an exclusive closed community. Yorkshireman Hawthorne is his usual opaque self, giving little away, whilst Horowitz uses his newly discovered predecessor's notes to plot the novel, all without knowing the culprit. Numerous timelines, switching between the written plot and the author researching it, but the relatively small cast of characters and locked room / closed community element made this manageable to keep track of. I love a map at the beginning of crime fiction and it helped set the scene for the site's layout and neighbours' proximity. Unexpectedly, I found this less complex and with less misdirection (or perhaps I predicted them?) than other books in the series, although I didn't guess the culprit despite once knowing it feel obvious (like it often does with Christie's novels)! Thoroughly enjoyable, character-driven British crime fiction that gently pokes fun at itself, from this reliable and experienced author.

Have read most of Anthony Horowitz's books Typically complex plot, typically unexpected denouement, typically brilliant. Not the easiest read, with jumping timelines, multiple characters plus cutting in and out between actual plot and first person commentary but well worth the effort. Thoroughly recommended, Thanks to Netgalley and Random House for a review copy.

Unfortunately I really struggled to get into this book more due to the way it was written. Not sure if others in the series are like that, or if helping read previous ones would have made my enjoyment of this one better. Nice enough characters in the book, just not a fan of how it was written.

Although the fifth book in a series it works well as a stand alone story. I found the format of this book a bit disconcerting. The switch between the story and him "researching" it felt a little strange although it did move the story along. A complicated plot, with numerous characters and suspects, but written in a way that you could understand it. No loose ends. If you like Agatha Christie you will love this.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK for the advance copy of this book.

This was a mixed bag for me maybe because I'd not read any of the other books in the series I found it a strange read but even so I did read till the end,parts were very slow and the ending was an anti climax for me
Overall this just wasn'tfor me,I would give this author another try in the future and hopefully I'll connect more with his writing style.
Thanks to Netgalley and Random House UK for the ARC

My favourite murder mysteries are closed ones; that is, those mysteries with a locked room, an island, or another location where the murder must have come from a finite list of characters. I think the setting of Close To Death is one of the best things about it. Riverside Close is a gated close with a few different houses, all of which are occupied by some interesting characters. It gave the book an air of suspense that made for such a good atmosphere while I was reading.

The story itself was solid, if a tiny bit unoriginal. Wealthy man gets murdered, and the whole community wanted him dead. It didn't feel like a particularly new story, but that doesn't mean it wasn't done well. And it definitely doesn't mean it wasn't enjoyable. After so many years of reading his books, I feel safe reading a Horowitz novel - I can always be comfortable in the knowledge that no matter where the story turns, it's going to pay off.

And if we can say the plot was a little unimaginative, we have to add that the characters certainly make up for it. There's quite a lot of characters to keep track of which is often challenging in a book like this, and yet it was surprisingly easy in Close To Death. The map at the start (always a great addition) helps, but it was primarily down to the way the characters were drawn. They all have such distinct personalities, and I found it surprisingly easy to distinguish them.

Close To Death is my favourite book in the Hawthorne series so far. The closed community of Riverside Close lends itself perfectly to a murder mystery, and the characters were all so vivid. A fantastic read that I finished in no time.

Anthony Horowitz write reliably great books and this one is no different. Part of a series but could easily be read as a standalone. Very entertaining.

Close To Death is part of a series, but works well as a standalone. It was the first I had read by the author, but I will definitely go back to find the previous!

Riverside Close is a gated community, with close neighbours on the surface, but with racism, jealousy, and disputes bubbling away. When one of the inhabitants is murdered, who did it? - he was universally disliked and everyone has a motive.

Cleverly written, the author is writing as himself in the book, interviewing a detective friend to create the novel. I really enjoyed the little hints and suggestions as whodunnit, and I'll be honest enough to say I didn't solve it!

A fun read with a different style.

A very strange concept for a book. Took a while to get used to it. Mixed bunch of characters,all with their secrets, and an intriguing story.

This is a cosy, easy to read, murder mystery that I thoroughly enjoyed.

Riverside close is what appears to be an idyllic place to live. However, there lurks petty jealousy, racism and neighbour disputes under the surface. Then there’s a murder. The difficulty is, the victim was someone none of the residents liked, so, who is the murderer?

It’s written in an unusual way and it’s a clever whodunnit, locked room mystery that held my attention. Also, although this is part of a series, it can absolutely be enjoyed as a standalone.

Overall a good read and particularly if you enjoy a cosy, well written murder mystery.

I’m grateful to NetGalley and Random House UK, Cornerstone for the opportunity to preview.

This is the first Inspector Hawthorne book I have read and I loved reading this clever murder mystery. It is fabulous as a stand alone book.

What a genius move to have the author’s discussions with the investigator as part of the narrative. I enjoyed following the investigation and the interactions of all the characters.

Anthony needs to write another murder mystery but Inspector Hawthorne has none on the go but tells Anthony about an interesting case in a close in Richmond where the new unpopular neighbours is murdered by a crossbow a few years ago.

I loved following all the crumbs trying to work out who the murderer was, needless to say, I didn’t. This book gets a big thumbs up from me.

Another very clever addition to the Horowitz and Hawthorne collection. As ever the author plays with the fourth wall encouraging his readers to work out the answer for themselves while remaining a few steps ahead, and maybe smiling at their difficulty negotiating his complex but satisfying plots. May the detective author relationship continue well into the future.
Thank you to netgalley and Random House for an advance copy of this book

I think this series is getting better and better. I love the real life details and the authenticity of how a writer gets the next book in progress. A locked room murder, a murder by committee and a mastermind pulling the strings. Good stuff.

Anthony Horowitz has been a fav of mine for a long time & I was really exciting to get a chance to read an ARC of Close to Death! I really like this series and the modern twist on a slightly reluctant Sherlock & Watson duo. I found it a little hard to adjust to the past and present tense as it jumps between them, but once I did I really enjoyed this! Probably a 3.5 but I’m rounding up to a 4.

Having read the previous four books in the series, I was so pleased to read the new one. It is a very interesting premise, almost a double locked room mystery in a small well to do gated community. It was somewhat of a memory exercise with the different homes and individual owners, all hiding secrets - as we learn. As always, well constructed, and beautifully written in the familiar style.
This time it is not a new murder; it’s a case of Hawthorn’s from several years back with a different sidekick and although he passes over all his notes and memory sticks, he is not keen on the case being used and is absent for much of the book.
Several timelines, lots of suspects and false avenues leading to a surprising outcome. Great stuff! I’m sure it will be popular.

Not read Anthony Horowitz for some time but really enjoyed this book. I read it on holiday and read it quickly as no interruptions. The characters of Hawthorne & Horowitz in a book were new to me and although I realised other books had been written with these in it, it did not spoil the book for me as I felt it had enough content for me not to worry to much about what I missed in the previous books. On saying this I will read the other ones. The story is based on a leafy close in Richmond. The residents have all lived together for some years. One of the residents sells “the big house” to a family who cause drama. Young children, parking of cars without regard to others etc. Death happens and, of course, all the residents are in the mix. Hawthorne an ex policeman who lost his with controversy becomes involved. Horowitz is writing the story in the 3rd person using Hawthorne’s notes etc. A little strange to get my head round in the beginning but worth sticking with. It is difficult to get a handle on the crimes, who did it and why. The book twists and turns and feeds you a character you want to know more about but disappears only to be resurrected towards the end. Great story and was surprised who the “baddie was Not who I thought it could have been. The characters in the book were different and you get embroiled in their stories especially the ladies who run The Tea Cosy – who would have guessed their story

The unlikely duo of crime writer Anthony Horowitz and detective Daniel Hawthorne return for their fifth delicious murder mystery. But this time Anthony is under pressure from his publisher to produce a book and no one he knows right now has the grace to be knocked off, so he decides to try to see if he can bash our a novel based on case that Hawthorne has solved in the past.
It involves the death of wealthy but boorish businessman Giles Kenworthy who lives with his raucous family in exclusive Riverside close in leafy Richmond, near London. Hawthorne is called in when Kenworthy is found dead, a crossbow embedded in his chest. Trouble is all of his neighbours – a decidedly mixed bag including a grand chess master, a doctor, a retired barrister and a pair of old ladies – have a motive for murder.
Based on information drip-fed to him by the wily Hawthorne, Horowitz sets about trying to work out "who dunnit" and he starts some unofficial investigations of his own. Anthony Horowitz’s meta-fictional series is pure gold for lovers of crime fiction – just up your alley if you’re an Agatha Christie aficonado. Once you start you simply cannot stop.

This is the first of Horowitz's books I've read. I loved the format, him putting himself in the story made it feel more real.
I didn't like any of the suspects, they all had something that made me dislike them as people.
The switch between the story and him "researching" was so well done.

Another case for ex-detective Daniel Hawthorne to get involved in. This story centres round a small gated community of houses in a smart part of Richmond. Five sets of owners all have reason to want rid of the sixth! When this owner is murdered suspicion quickly centres on these five households. The police call in Hawthorne for a second opinion and, as usual, he sees things differently and eventually provides us with a totally unpredictable solution. Full of twists and turns the intricate plot is slowly unravelled and it is no surprise that the police are initially tricked into drawing the wrong conclusions. But not, of course, Hawthorne - he gets there in the end.
A neatly constructed novel that is guaranteed to hold the reader's attention until the last page.