New Megan Abbott novel to Picador

Picador is publishing a new novel from Megan Abbott, a psychological thriller called Give Me Your Hand, in spring 2018. 

UK, Commonwealth and audio rights to Give Me Your Hand were acquired by Francesca Main, editorial director at Picador, from Dan Conaway at Writers House.

The thriller, promised to be Abbott's "biggest and best yet", weaves together two time frames to tell the story of two women, Kit and Diane, brilliant scientists and former high school friends, whose professional competition is intensified by the dark secret they share.

Main said: "Megan Abbott is widely acclaimed by her peers as the undisputed master of her genre. I love her writing and have been pressing her novels into fellow readers' hands for years, so it's a great honour to become her UK editor. Give Me Your Hand promises to be her biggest and best book yet – I love that she has turned her gaze on adult women and the world of work, whilst continuing to write with such electrifying potency about femininity, murder and obsession."

Conaway, Abbott's agent, said he was impressed by Picador’s "ambitious plans" for both the paperback of You Will Know Me and its hardcover launch. According to Picador, it plans an "unmissable campaign".

Abbott said: "I am so thrilled to continue working with Picador and to embark on this exciting new stage with Francesca Main, who has been the editorial hand behind so many of my favorite novels in recent years."

Abbott, based in New York City, is the author of eight novels, including The End of Everything, Dare Me (shortlisted for the CWA Steel Dagger) and You Will Know Me (all published by Picador). She is also a staff writer on "The Deuce", a forthcoming David Simon ("The Wire") show for HBO, and is currently adapting two of her novels, Dare Me and The Fever (also Picador), for television.