Canelo bags three-book deal for Howard Linskey's Shakespearean mystery series

Canelo has bagged a three-book deal for a historical mystery series following the life of William Shakespeare from Howard Linskey.

Commissioning editor Kit Nevile acquired world English-language rights from Philip Patterson at Marjacq. A Serpent in the Garden, the first book in the deal, will be published in hardback and e-book in January 2025. The second book, Muse of Fire, and the third untitled novel will following in 2026 and 2027, respectively. 

"I am thrilled that Howard and Kit will be working together on this fantastic series", said Patterson. "Howard has given us a fresh and vibrant look at what the young Will Shakespeare might have been up to in those lost years." 

A Serpent in the Garden, set in London, 1592, follows Shakespeare while he is trying to write "Richard III". The synopsis continues: "Via association with the outspoken Christopher Marlowe, Will is drawn into the shadowy world of Elizabethan espionage. Caught between two of the most powerful men in the country, he’s tasked with uncovering the truth behind the mysterious death of a high-ranking lady and rooting out a suspected Popish plot."

Nevile said: "Everyone is familiar with Shakespeare and his superlative body of work, but relatively little is known about his personal life, in comparison. Howard creates an enrapturing new portrait of our greatest writer, deeply personal and intricately researched, and couples that with the framework for a brilliant mystery plot to run in parallel."

Linskey added: "I am delighted to be writing this new series for Canelo. Kit really understood what I was trying to say and has some great ideas. I’m excited to be working with him on the Shakespeare mysteries. Will’s ‘lost years’ give an author huge scope to create a world filled with courtiers and traitors, assassins and spies, which he has to survive, while writing the finest plays in the English language, as well as attempting to solve an intriguing Elizabethan mystery along the way."