S&S UK bags duo from Evanovich

Simon & Schuster UK has acquired the 28th instalment in American author Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum bounty hunter series, alongside the first novel in a brand new series.

The first book under contract, Game On, will publish this November. The Recovery Agent, publishing in March 2022, is the first in a new series and features Gabriela Rose, a character that debuted in the 27th Stephanie Plum novel.

Deputy publishing director Katherine Armstrong acquired UK and Commonwealth rights from Nicole Bond at Simon & Schuster US.

Armstrong said: "I remember coming across Janet in the early 2000s when I picked up a copy of her sixth Plum book, Hot Six. I enjoyed it so much that I just had to go back and start the series from the beginning. No one does comedy thrillers quite like Janet and Stephanie Plum continues to delight readers across the world. I am very excited to be publishing Game On, the 28th Stephanie Plum, as well as the first in her new series about Gabriela Rose, a recovery agent who can find just about anything. Fans of Janet are going to love her!"

Over the past 25 years, Evanovich has written 24 number one New York Times bestsellers in the Stephanie Plum series. In addition, she has co-authored books including the Fox and O’Hare series, the Alexandra Barnaby novels and the graphic novel Troublemaker (Dark Horse) with her daughter, Alex Evanovich. 

Evanovich said: "I couldn’t be more excited about being published by Simon & Schuster worldwide. The Stephanie Plum series started with Simon & Schuster many years ago, and now it feels like coming home."