Sales Rise For Q.R. Markham's Plagiarized Book 'Assassin Of Secrets'

NEW YORK — Here's an unusual way to boost sales: Have the publisher withdraw a novel because it contained passages lifted from other authors.

A day after Q.R. Markham's "Assassin of Secrets" was pulled by Little, Brown and Co., readers are apparently hurrying to snap up remaining copies. The book's ranking jumped on Amazon.com from 62,924 on Tuesday afternoon to 174 on Wednesday afternoon, making it the online retailer's No. 2 "Mover & Shaker."

The book was released Nov. 3 with an initial printing of 6,500, but within days Little, Brown learned that Markham had lifted material from James Bond novels and other sources. A planned second book from Markham also has been canceled.

Markham's real name is Quentin Rowan, a 35-year-old resident of New York's Brooklyn borough and an investor in the Brooklyn-based Spoonbill & Sugartown Booksellers.

Markham and his agent, David Peak of Vigliano Associates, haven't returned phone messages from The Associated Press seeking comment.

Comments

[rayinprague]

04:27 AM on 11/10/2011

It sounds a bit like sampling in music. He should have gotten clearances for the passages. I like the idea of a novel made of borrowed pieces. It is sort of hard to do because of overly strict copyright laws though.

[Yates]

10:53 PM on 11/09/2011

are we sure he wasn't spinning elements of popular culture into a story of his own, like making a quilt from quilts?
there was a time when literature, art, music, etc., was a communal process, and not just a means of making an extension of one's ego for profit. unless he ripped off whole characters or major plot points, I don't have a problem with it. but i don't know the whole story, maybe he did...