German crime series with 'feisty' state prosecutor to Orenda

Orenda Books has signed a new German crime series featuring a "feisty, straight-talking protagonist".

Karen Sullivan, publisher of Orenda Books, acquired World English Language rights for two books -Blue Night (Blaue Nacht) and Beton Rouge  - by German crime writer Simone Buchholz, in a deal negotiated with Nora Mercurio of Suhrkamp Verlag in Berlin.

Sullivan said: "This is a fabulous signing for Orenda Books. Blue Night (Blaue Nacht) and Beton Rouge mark the beginning of an exciting new series featuring Hamburg state prosecutor Chastity Riley, who has been transferred to work on witness protection after convicting a superior for corruption, and shooting a gangster. She’s a feisty, straight-talking protagonist – a female Philip Marlow in 21st-century Hamburg – and Simone definitely provides a fresh new take on the Chandleresque thriller.

The series will be translated by Rachel Ward. Blue Night, which has been optioned for the screen, and topped the German bestseller list for months, will be published in 2018, with Beton Rouge following a year later.