Clay Edison
mystery
Series · crime
Hawthorne & Horowitz
The Hawthorne & Horowitz series by Anthony Horowitz has 6 known books (6 published) and is best read in publication order, starting with The Word Is Murder (2017). The latest book with a fully recorded publication date is A Deadly Episode.
- Books
- 6 known books (6 novels)
- Published
- 6
- First published
- 2017
- Status
- ongoing
- Shelved under
- Mystery & Crime
- Last checked
Start here: The Word Is Murder (2017) — then read straight through in publication order.
Reading order
The date order of published books and any announced future entries — the default way to read the series.
- Book 1:
The Word Is Murder
Anthony Horowitz introduced his fictionalized self alongside detective Hawthorne in The Word Is Murder, published August 24, 2017 at 400 pages -- the book that sets up the series' metafictional trick: "Horowitz" the reluctant, bumbling narrator, and Hawthorne the brilliant, prickly ex-detective he's hired to write about.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Word Is Murder - Book 2:
The Sentence Is Death
The Sentence Is Death followed on November 1, 2018, the second book at 375 pages, continuing the golden-age-style deduction of Hawthorne opposite the self-deprecating, complaining narration of "Horowitz" himself.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Sentence Is Death - Book 3:
A Line to Kill
A Line to Kill didn't arrive until August 19, 2021 -- nearly three years later -- as the third entry, running 392 pages, keeping Horowitz's series playing with the boundary between fiction and reality as Hawthorne's backstory keeps unspooling gradually.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of A Line to Kill - Book 4:
The Twist of a Knife
The Twist of a Knife came out exactly a year after A Line to Kill, on August 18, 2022, the fourth book at 384 pages, with "Horowitz" now dragged personally into a murder case in the series' continuing metafictional game.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Twist of a Knife - Book 5:
Close to Death
At 432 pages, Close to Death is the longest Hawthorne & Horowitz novel; Horowitz published it April 16, 2024 as the fifth entry, deepening Hawthorne's slowly revealed backstory as the golden-age-style investigations continue.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Close to Death - Book 6:
A Deadly Episode
A Deadly Episode, published April 23, 2026, is the shortest book in the series at 265 pages, its sixth and most recent installment, continuing Anthony Horowitz's metafictional pairing of himself as narrator with detective Hawthorne.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of A Deadly Episode
About the Hawthorne & Horowitz series
Hawthorne & Horowitz is Anthony Horowitz's adult crime series with a metafictional trick at its center: the narrator is "Anthony Horowitz" himself, a novelist reluctantly dragged into real murder investigations by Daniel Hawthorne, a brilliant, prickly ex-detective he's been hired to write a true-crime book about. Hawthorne solves the cases with classic golden-age deduction; "Horowitz" bumbles along as an unreliable, self-deprecating Watson figure, complaining about his own contracts and screenwriting deadlines even as bodies pile up around him.
The series plays with the boundary between fiction and reality throughout -- Horowitz's actual editors, actual TV work (Foyle's War, the Alex Rider adaptations), and actual publishing anxieties all become material, while Hawthorne himself remains a compelling mystery: a disgraced ex-Scotland Yard detective whose past is doled out in fragments across the books rather than explained upfront. Each entry is a fully plotted, fair-play whodunit in the classic tradition, filtered through this modern, self-aware framing device.
Beginning with The Word Is Murder in 2017 and continuing to the present, Hawthorne & Horowitz has become one of Horowitz's most acclaimed adult works, running alongside his separate Susan Ryeland (Magpie Murders) series as the two pillars of his contemporary crime-writing career.
Frequently asked questions
How many books are in the Hawthorne & Horowitz series?
6 books have been published as of this entry, from The Word Is Murder (2017) through A Deadly Episode (2026).
What order should I read Hawthorne & Horowitz in?
Publication order, used here. Detective Daniel Hawthorne's past and his relationship with narrator "Horowitz" build gradually across the series, so reading in order is recommended.
Is the narrator really Anthony Horowitz?
The narrator is a fictionalized version of the real author, sharing his name, career and biographical details, but the murder investigations and the character Hawthorne are invented -- it's a deliberate metafictional device, not a memoir.
Is Hawthorne & Horowitz connected to Anthony Horowitz's other series?
No -- it's a standalone adult crime series, separate from his YA Alex Rider and Power of Five series and from his other adult crime series, Susan Ryeland / Magpie Murders.
Is Hawthorne & Horowitz finished?
No, it's ongoing -- Anthony Horowitz has said he plans to write ten books in the series, with 6 published so far.
If you like the Hawthorne & Horowitz series
Reading order last verified .