The rights to three new crime titles by debut novelist Heather Critchlow have been bought by Canelo Crime. Critchlow grew up in rural Aberdeenshire and studied history and social science at the University of Cambridge before training as a business journalist. Her short stories have appeared in crime fiction anthologies Afraid of the Light, Afraid of the Christmas Lights and Afraid of the Shadows.
The series focuses on Cal Lovett, a true crime podcaster whose own experience of violent crime gives him a unique insight into the cases he covers. In the first novel, Unsolved, Cal comes face to face with a serial killer in Broadmoor, and a chain of events unfolds that tears his past to shreds. The novel sees Cal travel from his home near Birmingham to Aberdeenshire in order to seek answers about the disappearance of a young woman named Layla thirty-five years earlier, all the while battling turbulence in his personal life.
Canelo Publishing Director Louise Cullen said: ‘As a true crime fan, the concept for Heather’s series immediately appealed to me. I had come across her writing previously, and the exceptional quality of her debut novel did not disappoint. Unsolved is a thrilling, immersive novel that swept me away to rural Aberdeenshire and events of more than three decades ago, while also delivering bags of grit and drama in the present day for Cal. I could not be more excited about the potential for this series and the prospect of working with Heather on multiple novels.’
‘I am thrilled to be bringing Cal and Layla’s story to readers with Lousie Cullen and the brilliant team at Canelo,’ said Heather Critchlow. ‘Unsolved is a tribute to true crime podcasters and their desire to find answers for families of long-missing loved ones, as well as the chance to write about the beautiful Aberdeenshire countryside where I grew up. I’m so grateful to my wonderful agent, Charlotte Seymour, who has championed this series from the start and found the perfect home for Cal at Canelo.’
Unsolved is due to be published in paperback and ebook in February 2023. Book two in the series will follow in Autumn 2023, and a third novel featuring Cal Lovett is planned for the following year. World English audio rights for the series have been sold to Dreamscape.