I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest, independent review.

Martha is the Senior Editor at Clarendon English Dictionary in Oxford. Letters start mysteriously arriving at the office, filled with clever wordplay. These letters hint at secrets and lies, leading Martha to suspect they may be clues related to the disappearance of her sister, Charlie.

As more letters arrive, Martha and her team carefully analyse them, uncovering layers of mystery that deepen with each revelation. It becomes clear that Charlie had a significant secret, and it’s up to the lexicographers to uncover the truth and find out what happened to her.

Susie Dent is the Linguistic Queen and has written several non-fiction books on language and lexicography. She makes a captivating venture into the world of fiction with her debut novel, Guilty By Definition.

From the very first page, Dent’s skill with language shines through. The narrative is rich with clever wordplay that not only enhances the unfolding mystery, but also showcases her talent for language. The plot is tightly woven around a central riddle that keeps readers engaged, with brisk pacing that drives the story forward and maintains a sense of urgency.

There are multiple POVs, enhancing the reader’s understanding of the characters and their motivations. I particularly enjoyed the chapters narrated by Zoe, who is a strong and determined female ready to face the challenge of deciphering the letters head-on.

The characters are vivid, each with their own unique voice that reflects Dent's deep understanding of how language shapes our perceptions and interactions. Martha, in particular, emerges as a complex character burdened by her own secrets, which gradually surface as the plot unfolds.

The book is a celebration of words and their power, with many unusual words weaved into the story: my new favourite is ‘wool-gathering’ which is the indulgence in aimless thought or absent-mindedness.

Guilty By Definition is an impressive debut that highlights Susie Dent's abilities beyond her linguistic expertise. It is a must-read for anyone who enjoys a well-crafted mystery and has a love for language.

If you love words and etymology alongside working out crime clues to solve a mystery, then Guilty by Definition is the book for you. Each chapter gives us a dictionary word, its meaning, and etymology, and there are lots of literary and syntactical riddles throughout all cleverly worked through by the protagonists who work on a version of the dictionary. Martha is one of the team members, and her sister Charlie, who was on the team years before, went missing without a trace. Now, all the team gave received letters with literary riddles, and each one appears to be a clue alluding to the disappearance and possibly the truth. As they desperate pursue the truth, someone is desperately trying to thwart them. A slow paced, intelligent, and immersive read. #guiltybydefinition #susiedent #netgalley

Wow! Crime thrillers aren’t my usual cup of tea but I was drawn to this as I LOVE etymology and I’m a huge word nerd (I discovered lexicography too late in life, but this would be a dream job!). Maybe this makes me biased, but having Shakespeare based clues and riddles to solve was so cool! Plus, 5 stars anyways for introducing me to my new favourite word: apricity.
I got confused between some of the characters at times but they eventually became well developed and distinguished. I enjoyed the red herrings and how key clues were swept away, to be revealed at the end…I also loved the way each chapter was named after a rare, unknowable word. I would buy a physical copy of this book just to refer back to them!
Great narrative, great twists and turns, great vocabulary…eager to read more from the beloved Susie Dent.

Thanks to NetGalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Martha’s sister Charlie went missing. For ten years she blames herself. She works at the Oxford Dictionary . Soon her team get letters that hint at her sister’s disappearance . Her team solve the riddles sent anonymously and eventually the truth about her sister comes to light. An excellent book.

This is the first fiction book by Suzie Dent. I enjoy her on countdown and have a few books of hers on the meaning of words which I really enjoy. Sadly I am not an English Scholar. I found this very hard to read and in the end I gave up.

Susie Dent is the Queen of dictionary corner and a whizz with words and who better to write a murder mystery based around dictionaries and words.

This is a cosy but complex mystery.

Martha is a editor at the world renown Clarendon English Dictionary based in Oxford. Her team of lexicographers receive a mysterious anonymous letter which leads them into an investigation into the disappearance of Martha’s sister, Charlie.

The clues are complex and cryptic and the perfect use of their skills. To unravel the mystery of Charlie’s disappearance they need to figure out what she was working on that made her so excited.

This is a complex and multi-layered mystery with lots of red-herrings that kept me guessing all the way through.

Each chapter begins with a arcane and interesting word that is relevant to the chapter.

This is a smart and clever mystery that I found a great read.

Thank you to Bonnier Books and NetGalley for my gifted advanced copy of Guilty by Definition.

Not for the weak…

Firstly - I did enjoy the mystery and plot.

Secondly - as was expected, this book is crammed full of big words which were both interesting and educational but very much heavy-handed.

I liked the array of characters and felt they were all quite relatable - I just felt the pace was so slow, it was sometimes a struggle to motivate myself to pick it up and I found myself rereading pages as I wasn’t absorbing the information.

The ending, I didn’t predict it so was happily surprised but felt the reveal was a little lacking.

Thanks to NetGalley for this arc in return for my honest review.

Thanks to #NetGalley, publishers and author for an #ARC of #GuiltybyDefinition.

This book conflicted me, in the one hand I really enjoyed the storyline and the characters. However I found there were moments in the book where the text went over my head. Altogether it's a good book, great story and whodunit. Nothing less than you would expect from Susie Dent, littered with origins and meaning of words.

Highly recommend

I don’t frequently read thrillers and mysteries unless I know the author’s other work, and I’m glad I picked this one up as I had previously enjoyed Susie Dent’s other books focusing on etymology and origins of phrases. This book had enough of that to grip me from the start, which I found a little bit slow but it really picked up a few chapters in. I loved the setting of a dictionary office, and the mysteries of books and publishing, and think this would be a fantastic book for any thriller fans to read, but also would recommend any fans of language check it out as well, as it was really well-written and I loved seeing the different chapter headings with word definitions.

Susie Dent’s debut novel intrigued me from the start. As a language enthusiast, I was eager to see how she would weave her knowledge of words into a fictional narrative. I wasn’t disappointed! The story, set amongst the lexicographers of the Clarendon English Dictionary in Oxford, follows Martha, a senior editor, as she and her team receive cryptic messages seemingly connected to her sister’s disappearance years earlier.

Dent’s writing is as sharp and engaging as one might expect, with vivid descriptions and a vocabulary that is both rich and accessible. While some readers may find the numerous unusual words distracting, I relished the opportunity to expand my lexicon. I particularly enjoyed the way Dent incorporated word origins and definitions into the narrative. It added a unique layer to the mystery and highlighted the power of language.

The mystery itself is cleverly constructed, with twists and turns that kept me guessing. While the pacing was a little slow at times, I found myself thoroughly engrossed in the world Dent created. I especially enjoyed the academic setting and the glimpses into the inner workings of a dictionary. Overall, "Guilty by Definition" is a captivating read that will appeal to both mystery lovers and word nerds alike!

I wouldn't expect anything less than this being well written! Great read had me hooked. Will definitely read another book by Susie Dent

I find word origins and language history fascinating, so naturally I am a big fan of Susie Dent. When I heard she was writing a novel, I was eager to read it and am so glad I have. I loved this book, and cannot wait to read more by her.

I was delighted to be invited to review this debut book by Susie Dent as I have been a fan of hers and her interesting talks on words and beginnings. How ever I started to read Guilty by Definition and it be on the academic level from the start. I persisted and found that as I got further into it the formations and history of words became very absorbing. Unfortunately this caused a diversion in my reading as I delved into my own search for the origins and history of words, and how they became into everyday usage. Back to the book which by the way I found to be very absorbing,. It starts with Martha Thornhill lately returned from Berlin where she had been nursing herself from her past. She now is working with a small team, for the Clarendon English Dictionary (CED) based in Oxford. Her sister Charlie Thornhill, a PhD student has been missing for ten years. Mysteriously, the team and others outside the team start receiving cards and letters with cryptic clues and references based on Shakespear and that period. This leads the team to get together and start to investigate what they mean and their origins. Martha also involves a DS Cresswell who was part of the original investigation into Charlie’s disappearance. As the investigation progresses many aspects of life are revealed and her own researches into the Commonplace book which are observations and comments of people’s lives and times. I strongly recommend that you read this book as I may spoil it if I reveal too much. It is well written with an entirely different approach, The story also has some good twists and turns. One of the most interesting reads for me in a long time.

The first novel by Susie Dent
I was looking forward to reading this and was not disappointed

Well written (obviously I would expect nothing less)
Interesting and gripping

I will definitely read more by her

Very much enjoyed reading this but it's probably not one I'll reread. The characters and plot were decent and I'd be keen to pick up books by Susie Dent again in future, but I can't say I love it.

I don't have the words to describe how much I enjoyed this book. I feel as though I should have though, after reading this mystery; set in the office of the Clarendon English Dictionary, where Martha is the senior editor and works with a small team of etymologists and lexicographers, defining words, adding to definitions as usage changes and dating and ante-dating words in use for use in the dictionary.

I can only hope that some of the words defined at the start of each chapter have settled somewhere in my brain, ready for use some time in the future.

I loved this book so much that after only a chapter or two, I was already sorry that it would end.

Martha's older sister Charlie had disappeared without trace 14 years before and when the team receive a letter from 'Chorus', full of cryptic references, word puzzles and the assertion that Charlie's story needed to be revealed, they set about solving the clues and following Charlie's last weeks before she vanished.

It's a joy to read. There was no doubt that it would be well-written, with an extensive vocabulary, but it's also intriguing, clever and gripping.

As the mystery of Charlie's disappearance is uncovered, there's a tale of literary discovery that's incredible - the excitement was palpable - even though it was a fictional discovery.

I had to try and find a word to describe how sad I was that soon, I would have finished this book and I found ‘finifugal’, from the 19th century: avoiding the end of something (a box set, an excellent book, sleep, etc.) because you want it to go on forever and I think that might just be perfect!

Read it - it's excellent.

Dent brings her love and knowledge of words to the page in this riveting read where words really do matter as much as actions.

Educating and captivating.

A great book that easily had me hooked. A proper puzzle that was well thought out and had me fooled the whole way through.

Highly recommended, 5 stars from me.

I enjoyed this book, I did feel like it was a little slow to begin with but it picked up and became more intriguing. I think I’d have enjoyed reading a physical copy even more as I’d have been able to flick back to the messages and reread them as the characters spoke about them and decrypted them!

I have watched countdown for many years intermittently but when I listened to her podcast with Gyles Brandreth I really became a fan of this wordsmith. I was incredibly pleased when I found the Netgalley gave me the ARC and started reading as soon as I could. Susie Dent is not surprisingly a good writer, but I am not as blown away by her storytelling. I did like the interesting words at the beginning of each chapter and the people, writing style and storytelling were OK but not mind blowing. However, it flowed nicely and kept me entertained throughout and hopefully it will form the introduction to a series involving a group of wordy people who will continue to solve mysteries in Oxford.
Thank you all for the ARC