Geras makes first acquisitions for Bookouture

Jenny Geras, who joined digital publisher Bookouture from Cornerstone in January this year, has made her first acquisitions: a new detective series by Victoria Jenkins and three psychological thrillers from SE Lynes.

Geras acquired world English rights in Jenkins' detective series from Anne Williams at the Kate Hordern Literary Agency. The first in the crime series featuring DI Alex King and her protégé DC Chloe Lane, called The Girls in the Water, will publish in August this year, with two further books to follow in November 2017 and June 2018.  

Geras said of the author "I instantly recognised in Victoria a perfect Bookouture author and a detective pairing who readers will want to follow from one fantastic page-turning book to the next."

Jenkins said: "Being signed by Bookouture has made my lifelong ambition of becoming published a reality. I am so excited to get my characters out into the world and I hope readers will enjoy spending time with them as much as I have."

World rights in three standalone psychological thrillers from Lynes were meanwhile acquired direct from the author. The first of these, Mother, was praised by Geras as a "brilliantly written, dark and disturbing psychological thriller which her fans will love". It will be published in December 2017, with two further books to follow in 2018.

Lynes is the author of psychological thriller Valentina, published by Blackbird Digital Books, which was shortlisted for the People’s Book Prize and the Good Reads Waverton Prize. She said: "I am absolutely delighted to be joining Bookouture. I can’t wait for publication of Mother later this year, and am so looking forward to getting started on the next book."

Geras, previously publishing director of Arrow at Cornerstone, was appointed to build a new commercial fiction team at Bookouture. The company said in November 2016 it signalled "significant expansion" for the company over the next 12 months.