JK Rowling revealed as writer of crime novel

LONDON — An ex-military man tries his hand at writing, publishes a debut detective novel, and wins critical acclaim. But here's the twist in the tale: The true identity of the author is none other than "Harry Potter" creator J.K. Rowling.

It's impressive literary wizardry by Rowling, who said she relished the freedom of writing "The Cuckoo's Calling" under her pseudonym Robert Galbraith.

"I hoped to keep this secret a little longer because being Robert Galbraith has been such a liberating experience," she said in a statement released by her publicist on Sunday. "It has been wonderful to publish without hype or expectation, and pure pleasure to get feedback from publishers and readers under a different name."

"The Cuckoo's Calling," a story about a war veteran turned private investigator who is called in to probe the mysterious death of a model, was published to rave reviews in April by Sphere, part of publisher Little, Brown & Company.

The Sunday Times said it was investigating "how a first-time author with a background in the army and the civilian security industry could write such an assured debut novel" when it connected the dots. The paper said clues included the fact that Rowling and Galbraith shared the same agent and editor, and that Little, Brown published Rowling's novel for adults, "The Casual Vacancy." It also said the book's style and subject matter resembled Rowling's work.

Rowling's publicist confirmed the paper's detective work was correct.

In her statement, Rowling thanked her editor David Shelley, the publishing staff who worked on the book without knowing her identity, and the reviewers who praised it without knowing about her authorship.

She added that "Galbraith" planned to keep writing the series.

On its website, Little, Brown marketed "The Cuckoo's Calling" as a classic crime novel in the tradition of P.D. James and Ruth Rendell. It said the novel, whose central character is named Cormoran Strike, was the first of a series of crime novels to come.

The publisher described Galbraith as an ex-military man, married with two sons, who wrote the novel based on experiences from his military life. Revealingly, it also stated that Galbraith was a pseudonym.

The publisher lists many favorable reviews to the book, including critics who called it "a scintillating debut novel" and who praised Galbraith for his "superb flair as a mystery writer."