J.K. Rowling to unveil second novel as Robert Galbraith

J.K. Rowling is returning with a novel involving a writer whose acid-tipped pen may have led to murder.

Publisher Little, Brown said Monday that it’s unveiling a second book by Robert Galbraith, the "Harry Potter" author's thriller-writing pseudonym.

"The Silkworm" sees the return of detective Cormoran Strike, the ex-soldier hero introduced in "The Cuckoo's Calling." In the new book, Strike investigates the disappearance of a novelist who has written a book that features scathing descriptions of real people.

The publisher describes Rowling's latest as "a compulsively readable crime novel with twists at every turn.” "At first, Mrs Quine just thinks her husband has gone off by himself for a few days – as he has done before -- and she wants Strike to find him and bring him home," according to the book’s description.

"The Cuckoo's Calling" initially attracted little notice when it was published last year, but rocketed up the charts once Rowling was exposed as its author.

A lawyer has been fined for letting slip the writer's identity.

"The Silkworm" will be published June 19 in Britain and June 24 in the U.S.