Page 63 - You - South Africa (February 2020)

After
writing 24 well of you. You don’t want to OTHER FAMILY
Jack Reacher
novels, Lee stick around for an embar­ COLLABORATIONS
Child is ready rassing year or so too long,” he
to call it told us.
quits. But recently after releasing
Blue Moon, the 24th novel in
the series, the writer had an
epiphany – he realised that just
because he no longer wants to
write the books doesn’t mean
Reacher can’t live on. STEPHEN KING & SONS
In what’s believed to be a The horror mastermind part-
world literary first, the Brit­ nered with his son Owen (42),
ish­born novelist has an­ to write Sleeping Beauties, a
nounced he intends on hand­ novel set in a women’s prison.
ing over the reins of the popular While the 2017 collaboration
series to his younger brother, received positive reviews,
Andrew Grant, who with three the reception to Owen’s stan-
thriller series to his name is al­ dalone works has been mixed.
ready an established author in Stephen (72) has also written
his own right. two novellas with his eldest
“It’s not as if I twisted his arm son, Joe (47). Unlike his broth-
into doing it,” says Lee (65), er, Joe wisely chose to write
whose real name is James using the surname Hill to
Grant. “And he didn’t twist mine avoid being compared with
either. his famous father.
“It feels like a natural devel­
BLUE MOON opment. My brother is a good
By LEE CHILD writer. Now he has a hero.”
Bantam The only condition he had

about signing over the rights
CHILL OUT | BOOKS CHILD’S was that his sibling use the surname Child –
Family ties PLAY andwiththepotentialtorakeinmillions,An­ JODI PICOULT & DAUGHTER

drew (51) was happy to oblige.
But fans will be happy to know that before The 53-year-old bestselling
Lee Child has come up with bowingoutentirely,Leeintendsco­authoring author teamed up with her
four books in the series – the first of which,
daughter, Samantha van
a novel solution to ensure The Sentinel, will be released in October – to Leer (18), to write the young
his much­loved Jack Reacher show his brother the ropes. adult novel Between the
“I love my readers and know they want
character lives on . . . many, many more Reacher stories in the fu­ Lines (2012) and its sequel
Off the Page (2015).
ture,” Lee says. “I’d love to make that promise,
COMPILED BY JANE VORSTER butrealisticallyI’mageingoutofbeingableto
keep it. A few more, maybe, but not many,
T’S a question he’s been pondering for many more.
years. After writing so many Jack Reacher “So I’ve decided to pass the baton to some­
novels, how do you wind it up in a way one who can keep that promise. I chose the
best tough­guy writer I’ve read in years – my
that’s fair to the character and the readers?
GALLO IMAGES/GETTY IMAGES I When we spoke to bestselling author Lee brother Andrew Grant. We share the same ANNE RICE & SON For more
than two decades Christo-
DNA, the same background, the same up­
Child back in 2018 it was clear he was toying
with the idea of retiring the character.
bringing. He’s me, 15 years ago, full of energy
pher (41) watched fans com-
“It’s a bit like anything – an actor, athlete or
and ideas.”
ing up to his 78-year-old mom
footballer, you want to leave people thinking
at book signings and asking
SOURCES: THETIMES.CO.UK, THEBOOKSELLER.COM
when she planned to write a
JACKREACHER:THENUMBERS sequel to her 1989 bestseller
The Mummy, or Ramses the
The SECONDS MIL- MILLION The number Damned. Finally he ran out of
24number 13 Approxi- £40 LION 200 of Lee Child books sold patience and offered to help
of Reacher novels mately how often (R760 million) his worldwide in 78 countries. her.The result wasThe Pas-
Lee Child has one of his books is estimated wealth. sion of Cleopatra, which hit
written. sold.
book stores in 2017.

you.co.za 6 FEBRUARY 2020 | 61