Neville moves to Zaffre in new thriller deal

Thriller author Stuart Neville is moving from Harvill Secker to Zaffre Books in a two-book deal.

Zaffre editorial director Katherine Armstrong acquired UK and Commonwealth rights, excluding Canada, and EU and audio rights, from Caspian Dennis at Abner Stein on behalf of Nat Sobel at Sobel Weber Associates.

Neville's next thriller has been described as "John Connolly meets The Whisper Man" in a story spanning six decades that explores the dark heart of rural Ireland. As yet untitled, it will be published by Zaffre in spring 2022.

On Tuesday (6th October), Zaffre Books also published Neville's first short story collection, The Traveller & Other Stories, in e-book and audio, with a paperback edition to follow next summer.

Neville's debut, The Twelve, was an international bestseller when it published in 2009. He has since published nine more books including Those We Left Behind which was a Richard & Judy Book Club pick. He is also a member of the well-known Fun Lovin’ Crime Writers band.

Neville said: "I am thrilled to join the team at Zaffre and begin a new chapter of my career in partnership with Katherine Armstrong. Katherine and I have known each other for some years now, and her deep understanding of not only crime fiction, but of Irish crime in particular, gives me great hope for the future. After more than a decade in this business, I finally feel that I’ve found my voice, and a publisher who will strive to make it heard."

Armstrong said: "Stuart is an author that I have wanted to work with since I read his debut The Twelve over a decade ago. He is a writer of heart and compassion. His characters are richly drawn and he writes with great insight into our inner and outer lives, as well as providing heart-in-mouth, page-turning storytelling. I can’t express how excited I am to be working with him on his next chapter in publishing. He is a writer that only gets better and I can’t wait to get everyone reading this stunning book."