'Daring' thriller to Orenda in two-book deal

Orenda Books has signed Will Carver’s "dark and daring" thriller Good Samaritans in a two-book deal.

Karen Sullivan, publisher of Orenda Books, has acquired UK & Commonwealth rights (excluding Canada), in a two-book deal from Tom Witcomb at Blake Friedmann.

An "exceptionally plotted, disturbing and high-concept" thriller, Good Samaritans centres around Seth Beauman, who makes middle-of-the-night phone calls at random, in search of company … and something much more sinister. One night, a wire is crossed, and he makes a connection with suicidal Hadley Serf, who thinks she’s calling the Samaritans, and a dark, dysfunctional relationship develops – a relationship that can have only one ending. And someone is watching…

Sullivan said: "I was riveted by this book and I can’t remember the last time I read a submission in one go … nor felt such a visceral sense of anxiety as I read. It’s stunning: dark, dangerous, sexy, wildly readable, brilliantly plotted and paced and, yet, completely different to anything I’ve ever read. In a nutshell, it is exactly the kind of book I want to be publishing at Orenda, and it’s going to be huge. This is a scorching return to the crime-fiction scene for the unbelievably talented Will Carver, and I am absolutely elated to get this on my list. It’s quite simply outstanding."

Carver said he is "absolutely thrilled" with the deal.

"I know how passionate they are about the books that they publish and the writers they represent. There’s a real sense of spirit and daring to the way they work that I admire. And I believe it to be the perfect fit for my books and the way that I write. Exciting times ahead", he said.

Good Samaritans (working title) will be published in autumn 2018 by Orenda Books.