A hyperbole is an intentional exaggeration or adding emphasis to an action. It is used to make a point bigger or better than it actually is and makes it more dramatic.
In this scenario the statement - 'I was on Today (a morning TV show) accused of killing the novel . . .'
Conveys that the writer was criticised for doing a bad job with the novel.
Using the word killing adds emphasis to the how bad the work on the novel was.
In this instance the writer does not mean he actually killed the book, but he said it to give a picture of the extent to which the book was negatively impacted by Jame's action.
Personification is a figurative language in which in animate objects are given the attributes of a human being. Writers use personification to make non living thing as if they have life.
The speaker in the quotation said he was accused of killing the novel. The novel has been given the characteristic of a human being, which is that it can be killed. This novel (an object) is given the ability to die.
