'Assassin of Secrets' plagiarism charges: Was Q.R. Markham hiding some secrets of his own?
The hot new mystery novel 鈥淎ssassin of Secrets鈥� by Q.R. Markham may include one secret too many: sections of the spy thriller are now said to have been plagiarized from other novels, and Mulholland Books, the book鈥檚 publisher, has pulled it from bookstore shelves.
Similarities between the new novel and passages in James Bond thrillers were discovered by fans of the British superspy, who posted comparisons on an online forum devoted to James Bond. The US version of the novel was released on Nov. 3 and it had a planned release date of Nov. 10 in Britain., but now the British version鈥檚 status is unclear.
鈥淲e take great pride in the writers and books we publish and tremendous care in every aspect of our publishing process, so it is with deep regret that we have published a book that we can no longer stand behind,鈥� 鈥淥ur goal is to never have this happen, but when it does, it is important to us to communicate with and compensate readers and retailers as quickly as possible.鈥澛�
The novel also includes sections that are said to be the same or very similar to sections of books by Robert Ludlum and Charles McCarry.
The publisher is offering a full refund to anyone who has bought the book, and bookstores have been asked by the publisher to return all copies of 鈥淎ssassin of Secrets."
鈥淎ssassin of Secrets鈥� was the first novel for author Q.R. Markham, which is the pen name of Quentin Rowan. Rowan has referred to himself as a co-owner of Brooklyn bookstore Spoonbill & Sugartown (although the store's majority owner Miles Bellamy calls Rowan a "small investor" in the store).
Markham had previously published a fiction piece titled 鈥淏ethune Road鈥� under the name Quentin Rowan in The Paris Review. Edward Champion, managing editor of the cultural critique website Reluctant Habits, in 鈥淏ethune Road鈥� to Graham Greene鈥檚 鈥淥ur Man in Havana.鈥�
鈥淎ssassin of Secrets鈥� had received several positive reviews so far, including one from Kirkus Reviews that said it was 鈥渁 dazzling, deftly controlled debut that moves through familiar territory with wry sophistication.鈥� Publishers Weekly said in a review that the novel 鈥渟trays far enough into James Bond territory to border on parody, but the fine writing keeps the enterprise firmly on track, and the obvious Ian Fleming influence just adds to the appeal.鈥�
Jim Milliot, co-director of Publishers Weekly, that the reviewer had not seen any suspicious passages in the book at the time.
Molly Driscoll is a Monitor contributor.
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