The Sentence is Death, by Anthony Horowitz

I’m not usually a reader of detective fiction, but this was from Cancer Research and I like Horowitz’s stuff generally. Here we have the not atypical pairing of misanthropic detective and faithful amanuensis, set in the present day. The detective is Daniel Hawthorne, ex-Met whose career came to an end when he threw a paedophile down the stairs; Sherlock Holmes without the charm. But what really makes it work is that the amanuensis is a fictionalised version of Horowitz himself, creator of Foyle’s War and Alex Rider and all that. (Even in the middle of being beaten up he can’t help correcting people who get Alex’s name wrong.) It’s an engaging and self-deprecating way to draw the reader in, and you get genuine insights into the ups and downs and politics of creating a TV series as well.