Orion snaps up K M Lee's debut novel on 'unexpected social media fame'

Orion has signed a deal for two standalone novels by debut author K M Lee, the first of which is set to publish as a lead title for 2026. 

Publishing director Leodora Darlington acquired UK and Commonwealth rights for all formats from Madeleine Milburn, at the Madeleine Milburn Literary, Film & TV Agency. German rights went in a "significant" six-figure pre-empt by Suhrkamp with further international negotiations underway, Orion said. 

Set in modern-day Scotland, the novel follows 80-something-year-old Amos and 19-year-old social outcast Odette, whose unlikely friendship helps them to escape their crippling loneliness and heal from their losses. It is a heartwarming story that social media latches onto, propelling them both to internet fame, until the day that, in front of the world, Odette murders Amos, and refuses to speak another word.  

Kirsty Strickland, writing under the pen name K M Lee, is a columnist and political commentator based in Glasgow, Scotland.

Darlington said: "This book threw a fishhook into my heart and reeled me right in. In Odette, [Lee] gives us a simply unforgettable protagonist, in the vein of the very best fiction like Strange Sally Diamond and Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine.

"Kirsty’s journalistic experience also clearly informs the underlying message of the story, incisively looking at the way the vulnerable people—particularly women—can be vilified in the media. It’s rare to find a book so unique and yet so accessible. This is truly something special, and Orion is privileged to be launching Kirsty’s writing career."

Milburn said: "The story of Odette and Amos is one of intergenerational friendship, unexpected social media fame and the perils of loneliness... but it is also a story about murder, shining a light on the darker sections of society, particularly the dangers of the digital age, and our failure to safeguard the most vulnerable. Kirsty is an extraordinary talent; her ideas are of the zeitgeist and this novel proves that they are hitting a nerve on a global level."