Head of Zeus buys four from Sullivan

Head of Zeus has acquired four police procedurals by Tim Sullivan, two of which have previously been self-published. 

Laura Palmer, publishing director for fiction, bought UK and Commonwealth rights (excluding Canada) from Jason Bartholomew at the Bks Agency. 

The series follows Bristol detective George Cross. The synopsis reads: "DS Cross can be rude, difficult, and awkward with people, yet his unfailing logic and dogged pursuit of the truth gives him the best conviction rate on the force. An outsider himself, having been diagnosed with Autism spectrum disorder, DS Cross is especially drawn to cases concerning the voiceless and the dispossessed."

The Dentist and The Cyclist were self-published in e-book in 2019 and 2020 respectively through Amazon’s KDP programme, and gained over 200,000 downloads and 5,000 reviews on Amazon, says Head of Zeus. They will be republished in e-book and paperback in autumn 2021. A third title, The Patient, will be published in March 2022, with a fourth book to follow later in the year. 

Palmer said: "I love police procedurals but hadn’t discovered a new author who brings something fresh to the genre in a long time. Tim Sullivan is the first crime-writer I've signed in over a year. He has already reached over 200,000 readers, and I can't wait to bring his unusual hero and tightly plotted mysteries to the attention of the wider world."

Sullivan commented: "I am hugely pleased to be working with Laura and Head of Zeus. It’s a great honour to be included in such an exciting list as theirs. I think they’re a vibrant, energetic and innovative publishing group and I look forward to them bringing George Cross to a wider audience. I can’t wait for us to get started and look forward to a long and happy collaborative partnership."