Former president Clinton working on novel with famed suspense writer

Former US President Bill Clinton is working with best-selling suspense writer James Patterson on a novel called "The President is Missing," which will be published in June 2018, the publishers said on Monday.

The book will be "a unique amalgam of intrigue, suspense and behind-the-scenes global drama from the highest corridors of power," publishers Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group and Hachette Book Group said in a statement.

Clinton said he had been a fan of Patterson for years and has enjoyed working with him.

"Working on a book about a sitting president – drawing on what I know about the job, life in the White House, and the way Washington works – has been a lot of fun," Clinton said in a statement.

Patterson, known for his novels featuring the psychologist Alex Cross and for the "Women's Murder Club" series, said working with Clinton was the highlight of his career.

"I'm a story-teller, and President Clinton's insight has allowed us to tell a really interesting one," he said in a statement.

"It's a rare combination," he added. "Readers will be drawn to the suspense, of course, but they'll also be given an inside look into what it's like to be president."