Catalogue

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Title:	Guilty by Definition
Authors:	Dent, Susie
Genre:	Fiction
Pages:	383
Year:	2024
Publisher:	Zaffre
Language:	English
Description:	No one is better placed to decipher the cryptic language contained in a series of anonymous letters, than their recipient, the editing team at Oxford's Clarendon English Dictionary. The letters focus on the year - a decade earlier - when Charlie, sister of the now senior editor Martha Thornhill, disappeared... With excellent pacing and sustained tension, this clever and stimulating mystery is woven through with literary allusions, snippets of history and unashamed delight in the joys and challenges of lexicography.
Categories:	Fiction, Contemporary, Grief/loss, Mystery, England, Just Added, 2026 Titles

Reviews

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By: TAUR 062		2026-05-26 10:20:27

Everyone appreciated the many new words, and enjoyed the mystery side of it. Some found it a little slow initially.

By: UPHU 010		2026-05-20 10:14:06

"If you liked words you would love it". Some of our group gave it a 5, but others struggled to get into the story. We all enjoyed finding out more about the origins of words. The story itself was well constructed and intriguing.

By: ALEXA 004		2026-05-04 14:00:43

Everyone enjoyed the combination of a "mystery" with an exploration of our language that this book provided.

By: CHCH 364		2026-03-31 15:00:59

Best ever average score! Everyone enjoyed and remarked on the chapter heading words, gaining insight into our own language heritage, and understanding some favourite sayings eg. "dead ringer".

By: AUCK 285		2025-12-22 15:50:13

Our second best book of the calendar year. Loved the playing with language - the puzzles were too hard for us to uncover but we read many fascinating and obscure words and could imagine the OED ( or Clarendon, in the book's world) editors carrying out their word investigations.