Guilty by Definition : The instant Sunday Times bestselling linguistic mystery from Britain's wordsmith, Susie Dent

Author: Susie Dent

Lexicography

Published on 10 April 2025 by Bonnier Books Ltd (Zaffre) in the United Kingdom as part of 'the Clarendon Lexicographers' series.

Paperback | 400 pages
196 x 129 x 30mm | 278g

THE BESTSELLING RICHARD AND JUDY BOOK CLUB PICKA TAKE A BREAK BOOK CLUB SELECTION A GOOD HOUSEKEEPING GOOD BOOKS READER FAVOURITE*DON'T MISS SUSIE'S NEXT LINGUISTIC MYSTERY, DEATH WRIT LARGE - AVAILABLE TO PRE-ORDER NOW!*'ONE OF THE FINEST MYSTERIES I HAVE EVER READ'Rob Rinder, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Trial'A TANTALISING MYSTERY FOR WORD SLEUTHS AND CRIME FANS ALIKE'Janice Hallett, Sunday Times bestselling author of The AppealA coded letter. A missing woman. A truth waiting to be found. When an anonymous letter is delivered to the Clarendon English Dictionary office, it becomes rapidly clear that this is not the usual word-related enquiry. Instead, the letter hints at sinister events linked to a particular year.

For editor Martha Thornhill, the date can mean only one thing: the summer her brilliant older sister Charlie went missing. Ten years on, Martha and her family are no closer to unravelling the mystery of Charlie's disappearance - until now.

As more letters arrive, Martha and her team follow the linguistic clues to a troubling truth. It seems Charlie was keeping a powerful secret, and that someone is desperate to keep it well and truly buried.

Guilty by Definition is a love letter not only to language but to the city of Oxford, wrapped within an intriguing mystery of a missing woman and considering the emotional aftershocks of her disappearance on those left behind.

Guilty by Definition was a Sunday Times bestseller in August 2024