HarperFiction buys K Anis Ahmed's culinary thriller Carnivore

HarperFiction has secured Carnivore, a thriller from publisher and journalist K Anis Ahmed about an American high-end restaurateur who struggles after the financial crash.

Morgan Springett, editor, bought world English rights from Charlie Campbell at Greyhound Literary. Carnivore is scheduled for hardback publication in June 2025.

Carnivore is the story of Kash, a high-end restaurateur in New York City whose fortunes take a dive after the financial crash.

“Owing a lot of money to a very violent loan shark named Boris, Kash is running out of options, and fingers,” the blurb reads. “But he has a plan. There’s a rumour of a dinner club, hosted in turns by five billionaires. Lots of ego, and lots of money. If Kash can get the gig, it would pay off Boris and then some. But he needs to wow them with dishes they’ll have never tasted before. Luckily, Boris’s violent ministrations have given him just the exotic meat he needs.”

Ahmed lives in Dhaka, Bangladesh. He is the Publisher of the Dhaka Tribune, a national daily, co-director of the Dhaka Lit Festival, co-founder of the University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh, and the current president of PEN Bangladesh.  

He said: “I am truly excited that HarperCollins will publish Carnivore. It’s a story of boundless greed and desperate schemes. I hope the plight and pluck of the characters will intrigue and delight readers.”

Campbell said: “Carnivore is such an original book, with its dark humour and incredible setting. I am thrilled that Morgan Springett and HarperCollins will be publishing it.”

Springett said: “Anis is a superb storyteller, and this intelligent and witty book had me from the first page. He expertly weaves the high-end restaurant world with that of billionaires, migrants and mobsters, while asking the reader what their morals are really worth—at what point would they cross that line? It’s ‘The Bear’ meets ‘The Menu’ but taking everything a step further.”