Executive Publisher Louise Cullen at Canelo Crime has acquired World English language rights to two crime thrillers by Alice Leigh from Joanna Swainson.

What I Told My Friends will be published in February 2026 in mass market paperback and ebook. The dark academia thriller opens with former High Hill Manor prodigy Chloe Carter greeting the man who was once her music teacher on the day of his release from prison — where he spent twenty years following a conviction for the murder of Chloe’s classmate. Yet the truth is even more shocking, and the threat of danger is far from over for those involved.

Alice Leigh is a writer and novelist. She is the author of two commercial women’s fiction titles, and psychological thrillers under the pseudonym Michelle Adams. Her novels have sold in 20 territories, including UK, US, Germany, Greece, and China. She has also written for the Guardian newspaper and Daily Mail. Michelle is British, but now lives in Limassol, Cyprus, with her husband and their children.

Leigh says: ‘I am absolutely delighted to be working with Canelo. From the moment I first spoke to Louise, I was impressed by their expansive vision for the books they publish, and the ambition with which they do so. I cannot think of a better home for my latest work, and I cannot wait to bring my new thrillers to a whole new audience. I am indebted to both my agent Joanna Swainson, and Louise Cullen of Canelo, for their tireless work to make this happen.’

Cullen says: ‘I’d been on the hunt for a dark academia thriller for some time before Alice Leigh came along, and it was definitely worth the wait! The opening pages of this deliciously twisty and suspenseful novel are laden with hints about a decades-old web of lies, inescapable toxic relationships and the horrifying legacy of High Hill Manor. It more than delivers on all its promises, and I am so excited to work with Alice on two new crime thrillers that will have huge appeal for international crime fiction audiences.’

Swainson says: ‘I’m thrilled that Louise and Canelo will be publishing Alice’s dark academia novel. She’s the perfect author to capture the intricacies of female friendships (and enemies) and I can’t wait for readers to be swept along by its twists and turns.’