Being a writer – a harmless profession? After this book, everyone will agree: reading is safer! Sydney Bartleby has murdered his wife Alicia a dozen times over. Of course he has – after all, he is a scriptwriter and author of crime thrillers, a profession in which he has achieved as little success as he has in his marriage. When Alicia unexpectedly goes on a journey, her husband exploits her absence to perfect his artistic methods. But when Alicia fails to return, Sydney's behaviour – in strict accordance with the script – becomes highly suspicious. Patricia Highsmith recounts Sydney's (un)-stoppable descent into the deceitful world of his dreams and fantasies. Initially, he believes that he can simply go on dreaming and inventing, but soon he finds himself writing not for his novel, but for his life.