Horowitz is the protagonist of Close to Death and the first-person narrator of the timeline that takes place during the present. Although he is normally Hawthorne’s “sidekick,” in this novel, Horowitz acts largely independently, conducting his own investigation as he simultaneously drafts the Riverview Close story and attempts to investigate both Hawthorne and his partner, John Dudley.

Although he doesn’t realize it, Horowitz has most of the essential qualities of a good amateur detective. He is curious, persistent, and intelligent. He is frustrated by the fact that he is usually several steps behind Hawthorne in deduction but is surprised to learn from Dudley that Hawthorne “speaks very highly” of him (406). In Close to Death, Horowitz rationalizes his investigation into Dudley by explaining that he needs to know the character better in order to write about him. However, he reveals at various points that he is at least partly driven by jealousy of Dudley and the desire to find out more about Hawthorne. Over the course of the novel, Horowitz comes to understand both his value as an investigative partner and his transgression of the personal boundaries Hawthorne set.

Horowitz’s inability to see himself or his motives clearly leads to questions about his reliability as both the narrator and author.