The Bookseller.com

4th July 2009

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Crichton-esque thriller to HC

10.06.08 Graeme Neill

A reality show gone devastatingly wrong is the premise for a début novel signed by HarperCollins. Fragment by Warren Fahy will be published as a paperback original in 2010.

It was signed as part of a two book deal by Sarah Hodgson, editorial director for HarperFiction, who bought UK and Commonwealth rights (excluding Canada) from Caspian Dennis at Abner Stein for an undisclosed sum.

The publisher describes the novel as a “high concept thriller in the vein of Michael Crichton”. Instead of the Big Brother house, the location is unexplored Henders Island in the South Pacific, the setting for the reality TV show Sealife. However, cast and crew soon discover the island is full of the most vicious and exotic predators known to mankind.

“Fragment is a brilliantly fast-paced, hugely entertaining read, and the quality of the scientific research underpinning the story gives it a scarily realistic feel,” said Hodgson.

Fahy is lead writer for robotic toys company Wowwee, where he generates creative content. He also wrote the article "Ancient History of the Mullet", for the Beastie Boys’ magazine Grand Royal in the 1990s.

HarperCollins Rights deal Graeme Neill Michael Crichton