Guilty by Definition by Susie Dent
Publication Date: September 30, 2025 (US)
Summary from Netgalley:
She knew there’d be ghosts in Oxford, she just didn’t think they’d make their way to the dictionary.
Oxford, England. After a decade abroad, Martha Thornhill has returned home to the city whose ancient institutions have long defined her family. But the ghosts she had thought to be at rest seem to have been waiting for her to return. When an anonymous letter is delivered to the Clarendon English Dictionary, where Martha is a newly hired senior editor, it’s rapidly clear that this is not the usual lexicographical enquiry. Instead, the coded letter hints at secrets and lies linked to a particular year.
The date can mean only one thing: the summer Martha’s brilliant older sister Charlie went missing.
When more letters arrive, Martha and her team pull apart the complex clues within them, and soon, the mystery becomes ever more insistent and troubling. Because it seems Charlie had been keeping a powerful secret, and someone may be trying to lead the lexicographers towards the truth that will unravel the mystery of her disappearance. But other forces are no less desperate to keep their secrets well and truly buried, and Martha and her team must crack the codes before it’s too late.
ARC provided by Sourcebooks via Netgalley for an honest review.
Confession:
I quite enjoyed this very different mystery. I did figure out what had happened to Charlie rather early on, but it was still fun watching all of the characters get there too. I did struggle with the pacing in the first half of the book, but the second half was quite thrilling.
The story is told from several points of view. Martha, basically the main character, was a bit hard to like at first, but she did grow on me as the story progressed. She is a well written character, and I liked how her sister’s disappearance shaped her life. Her whole family’s dynamic was kind of messed up, but it was easy to see how much she loved her sister. Alex and Safi were both very fun characters that I really enjoyed. I loved learning about them both. Safi especially warmed up the story quite a bit with her enthusiasm and intelligence. All of the characters were well written and well fleshed out. They all seemed like real people.
The story itself was very well done. I enjoyed watching the characters figure out all of the clues that the mysterious Chorus was sending them. I kind of wish that the clues were a little more approachable to anyone though. I am not a Shakespeare expert, so didn’t recognize any of the quotes. The clues hidden inside the letters were also too hard to find on my own, but once revealed were interesting. If I had been reading a physical book I probably would have flipped back to the letters and worked out the clues along with the characters.
I also enjoyed the lexicology aspect of the story. I learned a lot of new words from this book, although I probably won’t remember any of them. I also really enjoyed the setting. Oxford is someplace I would love to visit someday and the author really brought it to life for me. I have added a few more places that I want to visit if I ever make it there.
This is a book I have been wanting to read ever since it was published in the UK last year. I am really glad it finally made its way to the US. I think there will be a solid audience for this one here. This story is full of complex puzzles and characters that you can relate to. It also explores the ideas of truth, guilt and the perceptions people make about other people’s lives.
Confessions of a Serial Reader 
I’m glad that you enjoyed this. I read it as a physical book and it was nice being able to go back and look at the letters again which is so much harder on an ebook. I didn’t bother trying to work them out though, I just enjoyed watching the characters do it.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I did that too after the first letter. They were just too hard! 😂
LikeLiked by 1 person