World English rights 'Scorpio' (The Scorpion's Head) sold to Pushkin Press (UK)

NEWS: 22/04/2022: longlisted for the CWA Dagger for Crime Fiction in Translation

Arabic Rights sold to Al-Arabi

Translation Laura Watkinson

Pubhlised october 2021

Na een gezinsweekend ontwaakt Gaelle in een psychiatrisch ziekenhuis in Berlijn. Ze is gewond en herinnert zich niet wat daaraan is voorafgegaan. De politie verdenkt haar van poging tot moord op haar zevenjarig zoontje. Ze weigert dat te geloven, slaagt erin te ontsnappen en gaat op zoek naar de waarheid. Daarbij overschrijdt ze steeds meer grenzen en wordt opgejaagd wild.

Michael is een huurmoordenaar in dienst van Scorpio. De organisatie ontziet niemand, wie tegen haar regels ingaat tekent zijn eigen doodsvonnis. Een onomkeerbare beslissing verandert Michaels leven.

De een leeft door te doden, de ander doodt om te overleven. Wat als hun wegen elkaar kruisen?

"Een vakkundig uitgewerkte misdaadroman met een mooie internationale dimensie. Vandermeeren is een van onze grote talenten in het genre." De Standaard

"Dank zij de strakke regie en de onopgesmukte stijl weet Vandermeeren in deze vierde thriller van haar hand de aandacht wel tot het einde vast te houden." VN Detective & Thrillergids

"Scorpio is een heuse pageturner." De Weekbode Torhout

"Met Scorpio zet Vandermeeren weer een stap voorwaarts." **** Knack

"Een goed geplotte en vakkundig uitgewerkte misdaadroman. Vandermeeren kan uitgroeien tot een van de eerste grote vrouwelijke misdaadauteurs van Vlaanderen. Want daar hebben we er nu nog niet genoeg van." De Gentenaar/Het Nieuwsblad

"Scorpio is een pakkende thriller." **** HMC-kranten

Something bad happened to that child.
And it was because of you.

When Gaelle wakes up, the nightmare begins. She is lying injured in a psychiatric hospital in Berlin, with no memory of the tense holiday weekend she has just spent with her family. Her son is in a coma in a different hospital – and the police think she tried to kill him. Gaelle is sure she is innocent. But can she prove it?

Michael is a contract killer working for Scorpio, a shadowy organisation of hitmen led by the ruthless Dolores. Any agent who breaks the rules signs their own death warrant. When his latest assignment stirs up old memories, Michael refuses to do the job – and starts to run for his life.

Soon, both Gaelle and Michael will discover exactly what they are capable of doing to survive.

Translator: Laura Watkinson

Sample translation: https://www.flandersliterature.be

Q and A: "I like writing about secrets."  https://pushkinpress.com/

Review quotes 'The Scorpion's Head' 

"When I encountered the Scorpion's Head, I knew I found my gem." Walter Iuzzolino (Walter Presents) https://www.youtube.com/

"This intriguing story by the Flemish crime writer Hilde Vandermeeren is a reminder that there is a whole continent of thrills to discover beyond Scandinavia." The Times  https://www.thetimes.co.uk

"Hilde Vandermeeren, who also happens to be a trained psychologist, has produced a small masterpiece packed with tension, menace and truly original characters. Everything in the story bears the hallmark of first-class writing, from vivid cinematic scenes to gritty plot." Daily Mail https://www.dailymail.co.uk

"This is classic crime at its very best, with a plot that takes the reader on a twisted journey and characters who are both enigmatic and compelling." (by Anne Cater: judge for the CWA Dagger Awards and reviewer for the Daily Express) https://randomthingsthroughmyletterbox.blogspot.com/

"Crime writer Hilde Vandermeeren weaves a smart tale, switching between Gaelle, who wakes up in a psychiatric hospital in Berlin, and Michael, a hitman working for the sinister Scorpio organisation who was supposed to murder her. Even assassins sometimes have a heart, but that flash of conscience can exact a high cost, as Michael soon learns." Financial Times https://www.ft.com/content

"Exactly who is guilty of what isn’t clear until the very last page. It’s written by a psychologist who is also a truly gifted storyteller. Worth reading for the character of Dolores alone. " (Chosen by reviewers in the Daily Mail) https://www.dailymail.co.uk

"A rare but welcome appearance of a contemporary Flemish mystery novel in translation (a sterling job by Laura Watkinson) again ably demonstrates that crime has no frontiers and neither do sleuths. (...) The scene is set for a race in overdrive that takes the conflicted characters through the Paris catacombs, Germany, the forests of rural Poland and Tuscany without ever faltering and becomes a compelling psychological page-turner and action-full yarn of great efficiency. More Vandermeeren, please." Maxim Jakubowski, Chair of the Crime Writers' Association (CWA) https://www.crimetime.co.uk