HBG Big News This Week: June 24-28, 2019

Following is a recap of major news at Hachette Book Group for the week of June 24-28, 2019:

Elin is #1!: A thrilling moment for Elin Hilderbrand – her new novel Summer of ‘69 (LB) debuts this week at #1 on both the NYT Print Hardcover Fiction and Combined P&E bestseller lists and on the USA Today bestseller list!

Amazon and counterfeiting: The most talked about publishing story this week was “What Happens After Amazon’s Domination Is Complete? Its Bookstore Offers Clues” by David Streitfeld in the New York Times (also attached), to which Amazon issued this response.

Industry news: The Association of American Publishers filed a 12-page statement with the Federal Trade Commission this week, urging the FTC to “more closely scrutinize the behavior of dominant online platforms that pervade every aspect of the economy.” Read more in these Publishing Perspectives and Publishers Weekly stories.

Movie news: Paramount Pictures has  acquired the screen rights to Adrian McKinty’s novel The Chain. Mulholland will publish The Chain on July 9, building on the amazing in-house and industry buzz for this propulsive thriller, already sold in 35+ countries.

TV news: CBS has issued a series production commitment for The Lincoln Lawyer, based on Michael Connelly’s 2006 novel (LB), with David E. Kelley to write and executive produce, for A+E Studios in association with CBS TV Studios. The novel has already been transformed into a hit movie (2011), starring Matthew McConaughey.