Quercus is a formerly independent publishing house, based in London, that was acquired by Hodder & Stoughton in 2014. It was founded in 2004 by Mark Smith and Wayne Davies. Quercus is known for its lists in crime (publishing such authors as Elly Griffiths, Philip Kerr, Peter May, Peter Temple), its MacLehose Press imprint (formerly headed by Christopher MacLehose), which publishes translated (often prize-winning) works by authors such as Philippe Claudel, Stieg Larsson, and Valerio Varesi, its literary fiction titles (including by Kimberley Freeman, Prajwal Parajuly) and its Jo Fletcher Books imprint, which publishes science fiction, fantasy, and horror.