HarperFiction launches crime imprint Hemlock Press

HarperFiction publisher Julia Wisdom is to lead a new imprint Hemlock Press, to “intrigue the mind and thrill the senses”, featuring A J Finn and Abigail Dean alongside new voices in mystery fiction. 

Hemlock will showcase espionage fiction, literary crime thrillers and historical suspense, with the logo being unveiled at the 2023 Frankfurt Book Fair this week. 

Launching in spring 2024, the list will be headed by Wisdom with a newly promoted commissioning team including senior commissioning editor Kathryn Cheshire and assistant editor Lizz Burrell. 

Next year’s launch will include hardbacks from bestsellers Finna and Dean, along with Jane Casey and Stig Abell. HarperCollins said it is also “already building exciting new talent to publish in 2025", including Nina Bhadreshwar — acquired in a hotly contested auction – and Laura McCluskey whose deal has just been announced at FBF 2023. The imprint launch will be accompanied by a variety of activities, including a celebratory party and festival partnerships. 

HarperFiction said: “Hemlock Press is a curated list for those seeking literary quality alongside intriguing plots, vividly realised worlds and characters that live with you long after the final page.The creation of Hemlock is part of HarperFiction’s aggressive ongoing growth strategy, and will sit alongside the general fiction list.” 

Other imprints within HarperFiction include HarperVoyager, Magpie and The Borough Press, the last of which will celebrate its 10th anniversary next year.  

Wisdom said: “I have had a very long love affair with crime fiction, historical suspense and thrillers of all kinds, and have published a rich list of authors as well as being hugely involved in the crime-writing community."  

She added: “It is an area of fiction that offers infinite variety and one that has fostered some remarkable talents.  To work across such a broad range of authors, from many different countries, is a privilege and a pleasure, and I am delighted to be drawing them together into a brand new, clearly defined imprint. We at Hemlock Press are hugely looking forward to this next adventure.”