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Stacey Abrams has sold her new political thriller, While Justice Sleeps, for a television adaptation.
The Georgia politician and author’s novel was picked up after a bidding war by the NBCUniversal International Studios-owned production company Working Title Television.
“I created While Justice Sleeps to unravel a political mystery about power and secrets through the eyes of a protagonist dealing with her own demons,” Abrams said in a statement. “I am excited about the book’s release today, and I look forward to working with Working Title Television and Universal Studio Group to bring the intriguing world of Avery Keene to television.”
The novel follows a Supreme Court justice whose descent into a coma plunges the court, and the country, into turmoil.
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Added Tim Bevan, co-chairman, Working Title Television: “After weathering the competitive storm to secure Stacey’s novel, we are elated to have come out on top. This is one of those rare moments when the opportunity feels right, and we look forward to developing this thrilling project with the multihyphenate Abrams.”
Since 2001, Abrams has written romance novels and memoirs under a pseudonym, “Selena Montgomery.” This is her first novel published under her own name. “When I started publishing romance back in 1999 and 2000, I was also publishing articles about the unrelated business income tax exemption, and questions of taxation,” Abrams recently explained to Variety. “In my mind, it was worth it to keep these identities separate … There was never any attempt to hide who I was, my face was on the book cover when you open it up, the copyright is of my name. What is so different about this book is this is my first fiction work, where all of my identities are known.”
Here’s the full official description of the novel: “Avery Keene, a brilliant young law clerk for the legendary Justice Howard Wynn, is doing her best to hold her life together; excelling in an arduous job with the court while also dealing with a troubled family. When the shocking news breaks that Justice Wynn — the cantankerous swing vote on many current high-profile cases — has slipped into a coma, Avery’s life turns upside down. She is immediately notified that Justice Wynn has left instructions for her to serve as his legal guardian and power of attorney. Plunged into an explosive role she never anticipated, Avery finds that Justice Wynn had been secretly researching one of the most controversial cases before the court — a proposed merger between an American biotech company and an Indian genetics firm, which promises to unleash breathtaking results in the medical field. She also discovers that Wynn suspected a dangerously related conspiracy that infiltrates the highest power corridors of Washington.”
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