Bill Clinton writing second thriller with James Patterson

Bill Clinton is set to publish his second thriller, a crime novel which follows a former US president whose daughter is kidnapped.

Clinton, whose own daughter Chelsea Clinton is also an author and the vice chair of the Clinton Foundation, is teaming up for the second time with thriller powerhouse James Patterson to co-write The President’s Daughter.

Announcing the book on Thursday night, publisher Century said the novel would be “informed by details that only a president can know”.

The book will follow the pair’s first thriller, 2018’s The President is Missing, but is a standalone novel, not a sequel, with a new cast of characters. The President is Missing, which has sold over 3.2m copies worldwide, sees the US president forced to go off grid after he discovers a traitor in his cabinet. Television network Showtime is currently developing an adaptation of the novel, with David Oyelowo playing the president.

“I never imagined I’d be writing a book with a master storyteller like Jim, much less two. I was grateful for the success of the first book, and I believe readers will enjoy reading The President’s Daughter as much as I’m enjoying working on it,” said Clinton.

The book will be published worldwide in June 2021, with UK publisher Century promising an “irresistible mix of insider knowledge and edge of your seat suspense”.

Patterson said that working with Clinton on The President is Missing had been “a highlight of my career”, and he was “thrilled to have the chance to write with him again”.