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Content snapshot
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Violence
Some
A serial killer communicates through literary cryptic puzzles; crimes described procedurally
Language
Some
Some strong language in police procedural context; literary quotations throughout
Sexual Content
Barely any
Brief romantic references; no explicit content
Substance Use
Barely any
Social drinking in police milieu
Emotional Intensity
Some
Intellectual tension from the puzzle-solving; some psychological weight from the killings
What this book is about
The seventeenth Dalziel and Pascoe mystery introduces a chilling premise: a series of murders accompanied by literary puzzle-pieces—called 'Dialogues'—sent to the Mid-Yorkshire reference library. Dalziel puts Pascoe on the case, and the investigation becomes a battle of wits with a killer of unusual intelligence and literary sophistication. Hill's own love of language and wordplay is fully deployed here, and the novel doubles as a meditation on the relationship between fiction, violence, and authorship. One of the most formally inventive entries in the series.
Notes for sensitive readers
Reader-flagged moments and themes that may affect your experience.
Serial killer theme
Some mature language
Cryptic literary puzzles add unusual intensity
Reader Verification
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