Sam Hepburn signs two-book deal with Bookouture

Hachette's digital imprint Bookouture will publish Gone Before as the first title in a two-book deal with Sam Hepburn. 

Associate publisher Lucy Dauman acquired world English language rights from Stephanie Thwaites at Curtis Brown. Gone Before will be published in e-book and audio in October 2020, with the second book to follow in April 2021.

Gone Before begins when Phoebe Locklear arrives on the doorstep of the woman she believes to be her real mother, having learned she was kidnapped 15 years before. Phoebe will go to any lengths to discover the truth about her identity, even if it means risking her life.

Dauman commented: "I’m over the moon to be welcoming Sam to the Bookouture family. I was hooked from the first page of Gone Before, hungrily following Phoebe’s every move in her unstoppable hunt for the truth. And, just as you think you’ve got it sussed, Sam pulls the rug from under your feet, delivering twist after mind-blowing twist."

Hepburn added: "I am thrilled to be joining the Bookouture family and look forward to working with their brilliant team on my next thriller."

Hepburn previously published Her Perfect Life with HarperCollins in 2017).