You Are the Detective: The Creeping Hand Murder

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • November 1933. London. Seven people receive mysterious letters. Someone knows their terrible secrets. They are summoned to a posh townhouse where one is stabbed right in front of the others, but somehow no one saw a thing. Can you help Scotland Yard solve the mystery?

A “delightfully witty interactive mystery packed with theatrical characters and exciting twists” (G.T. Karber, author of Murdle) from the bestselling author and illustrator of Your Guide to Not Getting Murdered in a Quaint English Village

Dear Detective,

Surely you have seen the papers and read about the dreadful murder of the American novelist—stabbed while in a room with six other people, and yet no one went near him or saw the murder occur. The crime is so devious, so logistically impossible, that it seems to have been committed not by a person but by a disembodied hand.

I must confess that we are at a loss. Who wrote the poison pen letters that lured these seven people to this deadly gathering? A poet, an earl, an actress, a cook, a telephone operator, and a lothario . . . What do they have in common? And how could a man be stabbed in a room full of suspects, even though no one went near him or saw a thing?

We have had our best people on the case, Detective, and we still can’t make heads or tails of it. We are giving this case file to you. Can you decipher the clues, decode the witness statements, and identify the murderer? You are our last hope. Can you help us crack the Creeping Hand Murder?

Yours truly,
Detective Chief Inspector of the Metropolitan Police“Compelling . . . You Are the Detective permits readers to live out their gumshoe dreams by having them identify the perpetrator of a ghastly crime among a slew of possible suspects.”— The Wall Street Journal

“Maureen Johnson and Jay Cooper have revived the dossier mystery in grand style. Accessible and appealing to aspiring sleuths and more casual genre readers alike, the book is also painstakingly plotted and presented, which becomes increasingly apparent in retrospect. Easy (and F-U-N fun) reading is often the hallmark of hard, well-honed work, and this collaboration stands as proof.”—Criminal Element

“A blast to read, filled with drawings of crime scene photos and interviews with the suspects.”—The Washington Post

“A fiendishly fun locked-room murder mystery. . . . The skillfully rendered—and appropriately over-the-top—motley crew of characters really shine. . . . Solving You Are the Detective is challenging, though certainly not impossible, and quite satisfying.”—BookPage

“Maureen Johnson’s enthralling mystery plotting and Jay Cooper’s sumptuously detailed drawings are a perfect match in You Are the Detective: The Creeping Hand Murder. This is a darkly hilarious read at times, pulling on classic staples of Golden Age mysteries but with an innovative twist.”—The Nerd Daily

“The format weaves narrative and puzzle, urging readers to become the sleuth themselves. [Will appeal to] mystery fans who love interactive stories, classic whodunits and theatrical intrigue.”—The Cullman Times

“Examine photographs, study newspaper clippings, and read through interviews to solve this delightfully witty interactive mystery packed with theatrical characters and exciting twists.”—G.T. Karber, author of MurdleMaureen Johnson is the #1 New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Your Guide to Not Getting Murdered in a Quaint English Village (illustrated by Jay Cooper) and many young adult novels, including the very murderous Shades of London series, the Stevie Bell mysteries (starting with Truly Devious), and Death at Morning House. She has also done collaborative works, such as Let It Snow with John Green and Lauren Myracle (now a movie on Netflix), and several books in the Shadowhunter universe with Cassandra Clare. For safety’s sake, she lives in New York City; the vicar cannot reach her there.

Jay Cooper’s books don’t normally include grisly murders, nefarious deeds, or corpses of any kind. He has illustrated over twenty-five books for young people, including the New York Times and USA Today bestselling graphic novel series The Last Comics On Earth. He is also a Clio award-winning creative director of theatrical advertising, and has worked on over 150 Broadway musicals and plays (which have heaps of deaths).An Interactive Mystery; National bestselling authors of Your Guide to Not Getting Murdered in a Quaint English Village