Why a Booktrail?
2000s: ‘Where the author is a character in his own book…
2000s: ‘Where the author is a character in his own book…
‘You shouldn’t be here. It’s too late…’ These, heard over the phone, were the last recorded words of successful celebrity-divorce lawyerRichard Pryce, found bludgeoned to death in his bachelor pad with a bottle of wine – a 1982 Chateau Lafite worth £3,000, to be precise.
Odd, considering he didn’t drink. Why this bottle? And why those words? And why was a three-digit number painted on the wall by the killer? And, most importantly, which of the man’s many, many enemies did the deed?
Baffled, the police are forced to bring in Private Investigator Daniel Hawthorne and his sidekick, the author Anthony, who’s really getting rather good at this murder investigation business.
But as Hawthorne takes on the case with characteristic relish, it becomes clear that he, too, has secrets to hide. As our reluctant narrator becomes ever more embroiled in the case, he realises that these secrets must be exposed – even at the risk of death…
The theatrical side of London comes to life as when the book opens, the author, as a character in the novel is working on the set of Foyle’s War with Michael Kitchen who likes a bit of a discussion about the scripts apparently.
There’s a lovely bit about how the director has to try and create war-torn London and the trouble of trying to film despite blaring sirens, cars and the other scourges of modern life. The long periods waiting around and the puffa jacketed crew to keep the cold of. Writers have nothing to do on film sets, we are told, and that’s when Hawthorne involves our author into another mystery to solve. A nice nod to Random House publishers too bringing fact and fiction together.
Hampstead Heath and the posh houses in and around that area is the setting for the novel. The tree-lined groves of the Heath, Fitzroy Park and Highgate. There’s also a nice jaunt to the Old Vic which itself plays a nice role bringing the world of film writers, and theatre to life.
Destination : London Author/Guide: Anthony Horowitz Departure Time: 2000s
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