Guilty by Definition by Susie Dent

This contemporary mystery has a lovely setting in Oxford, with the focus on three women who work on the Clarendon English Dictionary, in their mid-20s, 30s, and 40s. Martha Thornhill has just moved back to Oxford to live with her father after working in Berlin for 10 years. Safiya is the youngest, while Alex has grown children and is always elegantly dressed.

Martha’s older sister Charlie vanished over a decade ago. Charlie also worked for the Dictionary, was writing her PhD dissertation, and worked part-time for a book dealer. The three women and their colleague Simon receive disturbing postcards at home, and their department at the Dictionary is sent cryptic letters with puzzles and Shakespearean references. Will the clues lead to information on Charlie, or possibly her research? The reader can try to solve the puzzles along with the three women, though I didn’t have any luck.

I enjoyed this clever mystery, with definitions of unusual words heading each chapter. The author is a well-known linguist, and this is an accomplished and compelling debut. More, please.

Brenda