Pan Macmillan will publish two new standalone novels by Peter James, acquired by former Associate Publisher Wayne Brookes from Isobel Dixon at Blake Friedmann. The first, THEY THOUGHT I WAS DEAD, will be published as a lead hardback in May 2024, with the paperback to follow in October 2024.

This all-new standalone novel will finally reveal the astonishing reasons behind Sandy Grace’s sudden disappearance, first brought to life in the inaugural Roy Grace novel DEAD SIMPLE. For years Peter has teased his readers about her whereabouts, and now for the first time he will tell all about her shocking departure!

Francesca Pathak, who has taken on publishing James after Wayne Brookes’s departure last year, says: ‘As a lifelong fan of Peter’s I am thrilled to be working with him on Sandy’s story. Grace readers around the world have been desperate to learn the details of what exactly happened to Roy Grace’s wife and what her motivations were, and Peter has truly delivered in this incredible standalone novel. It’s the book all Grace fans have been waiting for, and the perfect entry point to the series for any new reader who wants the perfect thriller this Spring.’

Peter James says: ‘Sandy’s story is one I have been excited to write for a long time. So many of my fans have messaged me over the years speculating on what might have happened to her… and as a thriller author there are few things more fun than wrong-footing our readers – in the nicest possible way – and most importantly in a way that will both make them smile and go WOW!’

Isobel Dixon says: ‘In THEY THOUGHT I WAS DEAD Peter expertly delivers both twisty mystery and sensational revelation about the ever-elusive Sandy. A standalone that also deepens and complements the series story, it’s a fantastic bonus for all of Peter’s international fans, ahead of the 20th Roy Grace later in the year – another very big year for Grace in print and on-screen!’

About Peter James

Peter James is the international bestselling author of many award-winning novels, repeatedly occupying the Number One slot on the Sunday Times bestseller charts in both hardback and paperback. Peter writes both thriller standalones and the hugely popular Brighton-set GRACE series, now adapted for ITV. Peter took part in the launch podcast of the Queen’s Reading Room in January 2024, having had the Grace series featured on the Royal Reading Room previously.

Peter’s books have been translated into thirty-eight languages, with worldwide sales of over twenty-one million copies and his Detective Superintendent Roy Grace series, set in Brighton, has given him nineteen Sunday Times Number Ones. In 2015 WH Smith customers voted him the Greatest Crime Author of All Time and in 2016 he was awarded the coveted CWA Diamond Dagger, a lifetime achievement award for sustained excellence. In 2018 he received a Specsavers Honorary Platinum Bestseller Award. Peter James has also written two books based on true crime stories, with former senior detective Graham Bartlett, with a newly expanded edition of BABES IN THE WOOD re-issued in January 2024.

Successful nationwide tours of the stage plays of THE PERFECT MURDER (2014), DEAD SIMPLE (2015), NOT DEAD ENOUGH (2017), THE HOUSE ON COLD HILL (2019), LOOKING GOOD DEAD (2022), and WISH YOU WERE DEAD (2023) have packed theatres in dozens of British cities, and garnered magnificent reviews. Several other Peter James novels are optioned for film and in further development.

Praise for Peter James

‘Peter James is one of the best crime writers in the business’ – Karin Slaughter

‘Probably the closest we’ll get to a British Stephen King’ – The Financial Times

‘Meticulous research gives his prose great authenticity’ – Sunday Express

‘Peter James has penetrated the inner workings of police procedures, and the inner thoughts and attitudes of real detectives, as no English crime writer before him.’ – The Times

‘Peter James is one of the most fiendishly clever crime fiction plotters’ – Daily Mail

‘In my thirty-four years of policing, never have I come across a writer who so accurately depicts “The Job’’ – Detective Investigator Pat Lanigan, Office of the District Attorney, NYPD

‘One of the most consistently readable crime writers.’ – Daily Mail

‘A master plotter’ – The Bookseller

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