Baskerville signs two books in ‘outstanding' new series by debut author Marlow

Baskerville has signed two titles in a new series by debut author Natalie Marlowe, with the first, Needless Alley, to be published in January 2023. 

Publishing director Jade Chandler acquired world rights to the two books from Abi Fellows at the Good Literary Agency. 

Needless Alley, “a highly atmospheric piece of literary noir” set in 1930s Birmingham, is the first in a series following private detective William Garrett as he moves between the shadowy world of the working canals where he grew up, to the hidden speakeasys that provide a safe haven for Birmingham’s queer women. 

Chandler said: “In Needless Alley, Natalie Marlow has drawn on the noir tradition and combined it with her own distinctive lyrical style, creating a captivating, page-turning debut with a fantastically fallible detective at its heart.”

Marlow, who was inspired to write Needless Alley by her great grandmother, who was one of 13 children and lived and worked on the Birmingham canals, added: “I am thrilled to be working with Jade and the rest of the team at Baskerville. William Garrett has been my own private detective for quite some while now, and it feels momentous to send him out into the world. 

“My work draws on the history of detective fiction to speak on contemporary issues, and I can therefore think of no better home for Needless Alley than Baskerville, John Murray. A publisher with both a remarkable literary heritage and a superb eye for the very best in contemporary fiction.”