Attention, authors: Pulling books is good for sales

NEW YORK (CBS/AP) Talk about silver linings.

Q.R. Markham's "Assassin of Secrets" was pulled by Little, Brown and Company because the publisher said it contained passages lifted from other authors. The next day, sales soared.

The book's ranking jumped on Amazon.com from 62,924 on Tuesday afternoon to 174 on Wednesday afternoon, making it the online retailer's No. 2 "Mover & Shaker."

The book was released Nov. 3 with an initial printing of 6,500, but within days the publishing house learned that Markham had lifted material from James Bond novels and other sources. A planned second book from Markham also has been canceled.

Markham, whose real name is Quentin Rowan, is a 35-year-old resident of New York's Brooklyn borough and an investor in the Brooklyn-based Spoonbill & Sugartown Booksellers.

Markham and his agent, David Peak of Vigliano Associates, haven't returned phone messages from The Associated Press seeking comment.