Thriller writer Adam Hamdy moves to Pan Macmillan for three new novels ‘set to burn the espionage rulebook’
Pan Macmillan announced today that it has bought three novels by author Adam Hamdy from Hannah Sheppard at DHH Literary Agency. Vicki Mellor, Publishing Director, Fiction, negotiated World rights for the three book deal. Translation rights are controlled by Pan Macmillan with the first manuscript going out at Frankfurt 2019.
The first novel, Black Thirteen, begins a new series featuring ex-Mi6 officer Scott Pearce. In this international, adrenalin-inducing series, Scott Pearce is about to burn the espionage rulebook as he battles against the rise of sinister forces in a world where the nation state no longer reigns supreme.
Vicki Mellor said “When I acquired Adam’s first mainstream novel <em>Pendulum </em>for Headline I knew that he is destined to be a future bestseller. I couldn’t be more thrilled that he is moving to Pan Macmillan and that we are able to continue this journey together. As soon as I met Scott Pearce, I knew that we had to publish this series. We have seen a decline in sales of this kind of commercial espionage thriller series in recent years as psychological thrillers have come to the fore and we believe that this timely exploration of what it means to live in an age where the political, geographical and social world has changed beyond recognition is important and relevant if we are to understand the current global stage and the issues that we are facing. The success of shows such as Bodyguard demonstrates there’s a definite public appetite for this kind of story and it’s an exciting launch for us. The fact that Adam has also made a name for himself in the crime community, particularly with the recent the launch of Capital Crime, is an added bonus. We can’t wait to share this at Frankfurt and publish next year.”
Adam Hamdy said “All over the world we see rising extremism, social polarization and conflict, and people are struggling to make sense of it, largely because we’re only exposed to the effect, not the cause. Black Thirteen is the culmination of two years’ research into the rise of extremism. In addition to being a taut, action-packed thriller, it reveals some of the causes of the social and political challenges we’re all facing. Mixed-race, from humble beginnings, Scott Pearce is a contemporary hero inspired by real life security service operatives. His colleague, Leila Nahum, is one of the strongest characters I’ve ever had the pleasure of writing, and I can’t wait for readers to meet her. Scott and Leila are engaging and accessible and I hope readers will come to love them as much as I do. I’m absolutely delighted to be working with Vicki Mellor again and am excited to have a new home at Pan Macmillan, a publisher with such a rich history and track record of success.”
Hannah Sheppard said “One of the most satisfying things about being an agent is making the perfect match between author and editor and from the very beginning it was clear that I'd found that with Adam and Vicki - they work so brilliantly together and I'm delighted that we've been able to reunite them to publish Adam's exciting new series.”
Adam Hamdy is an author and script writer who works with studios and production companies on both sides of the Atlantic. Prior to embarking on his writing career, Hamdy was a strategy consultant for numerous sectors. He is the co-founder with David Headley of Capital Crime.
Pan Macmillan will publish Black Thirteen in trade paperback with simultaneous eBook and audio in Autumn 2019, with a mass-market paperback in Spring 2020 and publish on a yearly basis thereafter.