Abacus unveils new Chris Brookmyre novel to celebrate 30th anniversary of his debut

Abacus, an imprint of Little, Brown Book Group, has unveiled the title of Chris Brookmyre’s upcoming novel – Quite Ugly One Evening, featuring journalist Jack Parlabane – to be published in 2026, 30 years after the character’s first appearance in Brookmyre’s debut novel Quite Ugly One Morning.

UK and Commonwealth rights including Canada and Europe, excluding audio, were acquired from Caroline Dawnay and Sophie Scard at United Agents by Ed Wood and the book will be published in hardback by publishing director Jack Butler in May 2026.

Publication will be accompanied by a “major” campaign to celebrate the anniversary. Brookmyre’s latest novel The Cracked Mirror, published in 2024, won the McIlvanney Prize for Best Scottish Crime Book of the Year and has been shortlisted for the 2025 Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year award.

Quite Ugly One Evening is a “zeitgesty locked-room mystery” set onboard a transatlantic cruise liner, in which rogue journalist Jack Parlabane finds himself embroiled in a cut-throat plot of sabotage and murder surrounding a high-profile media family at the heart of the culture wars.

Butler said: “As timely as it is page-turning, Quite Ugly One Evening is an exquisitely layered murder mystery from one of the UK’s most acclaimed crime writers. We are absolutely delighted to announce the return of fan-favourite Jack Parlabane in 2026 – his first appearance since 2017 – to celebrate this incredible achievement, 30 years on from Chris’ debut novel, and can’t wait for his readers to discover his most gripping and perplexing case yet.”

Brookmyre said: “This is by far the most fun and energetic Parlabane outing since he made his debut in 1996. It’s a return to the irreverent and satirical tone of my earlier work, but it deploys all the literary tricks I’ve picked up in the three decades since, allowing me to tell an emotional story that shows Jack at his most human.”