Canelo sets the stage for Shakespeare mystery series by Howard Linskey.

Commissioning Editor Kit Nevile has acquired World English language rights to a new historical mystery series following the life of William Shakespeare by Howard Linskey, from Philip Patterson at Marjacq in a three-book deal.

A Serpent in the Garden is set in London in 1592, with a young Will Shakespeare struggling to pen his newest play, Richard III, made more difficult by the closure of the theatres due to a plague outbreak. Via association with the outspoken Christopher Marlowe, Will is drawn into the shadowy world of Elizabethan espionage. Caught between two of the most powerful men in the country, he’s tasked with uncovering the truth behind the mysterious death of a high-ranking lady and rooting out a suspected Popish plot. The series will follow his rise in the world of dramatic arts, while remaining unable to escape his unwilling role as detective and spy. 

A former journalist, Howard Linskey’s works include crime series’ and standalones set in the north-east, including the DS Ian Bradshaw series published by Penguin, and two espionage novels. He has written or ghost-written a number of non-fiction titles and is an Amazon Top-Five bestselling author. 

Nevile says: ‘Everyone is familiar with Shakespeare and his superlative body of work, but relatively little is known about his personal life, in comparison. Howard creates an enrapturing new portrait of our greatest writer, deeply personal and intricately researched, and couples that with the framework for a brilliant mystery plot to run in parallel.’

Linskey says: ‘I am delighted to be writing this new series for Canelo. Kit really understood what I was trying to say and has some great ideas. I’m excited to be working with him on the Shakespeare mysteries. Will’s ‘lost years’ give an author huge scope to create a world filled with courtiers and traitors, assassins and spies, which he has to survive, while writing the finest plays in the English language, as well as attempting to solve an intriguing Elizabethan mystery along the way.’

Patterson says: ‘I am thrilled that Howard and Kit will be working together on this fantastic series. Howard has given us a fresh and vibrant look at what the young Will Shakespeare might have been up to in those lost years.’

A Serpent in the Garden will be published in January 2025 in ebook and hardback, with a paperback to follow in September 2025. Muse of Fire, and a third untitled book in the series, will be published in 2026 and 2027, following the same schedule. 

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