'Gripping' thriller from Paul Howarth to Pushkin

Pushkin Press imprint One is to publish Dust off the Bones, the latest thriller by Paul Howarth, next summer. 

Deputy publisher Laura Macaulay acquired British Commonwealth rights from Lucy Luck at C&W ,while Terry Karten at HarperCollins has acquired North American rights.

The novel's synopsis explains: [Dust off the Bones] "tells the gripping and moving story of two brothers in colonial Australia who as boys were complicit in a state-sanctioned massacre and now as men must live with that horror and attempt to make amends. They are confronted with a nationwide cover-up and a young country in denial about its past."

The novel is a follow up to Howarth’s debut Only Killers and Thieves, which was a Book of the Year in the Times, BBC History Magazine, and Crime Time Magazine in 2018. 

Macaulay said: "I was blown away by this novel, in which Paul develops the story he started with Only Killers and Thieves into new, more complex territory. As well as being an exhilarating read, Dust Off the Bones has important things to say about white privilege and accountability that are very relevant to our times."

Howarth (pictured) said he hoped the new book would "give readers a thrilling conclusion to the story of Tommy and Billy McBride, while at the same time shining a light on a dark and often overlooked period of Australian and British history whose legacy is sadly still all too evident today."