Amanda Knox Signs £2.5m Book Deal In US

Amanda Knox, the American student convicted and then cleared of murdering Briton Meredith Kercher, has reportedly signed a £2.5m book deal in the US.

Following a "heated" bidding war, publishing giant HarperCollins announced the as-yet untitled memoir would appear in the shops early next year.

The firm said 24-year-old Knox will give a "full and unflinching" account of the events surrounding her arrest and trial.

She and her then Italian boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito were sentenced to 26 and 25 years respectively for the murder of Miss Kercher in the Italian city of Perugia in 2007.

They spent four years in prison before being freed in October.

Prosecutors in Italy this week launched a high court appeal against their release.

They maintain the couple murdered fellow student Miss Kercher , 21, slitting her throat and stabbing her repeatedly when she refused to take part in a sex orgy.

A third defendant, Ivorian Rudy Guede , remains in jail after being found guilty of sexually assaulting and stabbing Miss Kercher in a separate trial.

Miss Kercher's half-naked body was found in the apartment she shared with Miss Knox in Perugia .

Knox initially told police that bar owner Patrick Lumumba, who employed her as a part-time waitress, was responsible for the Briton's death.

He was arrested but later released and subsequently launched a defamation case against Knox.

In a statement, Harper Collins said: "Knox will give a full and unflinching account of the events that led to her arrest in Perugia and her struggles with the complexities of the Italian judicial system.

"Aided by journals she kept during her imprisonment, Knox will talk about her harrowing experience at the hands of the Italian police and later prison guards and inmates.

"She will reveal never before-told details surrounding her case, and describe how she used her inner strength and strong family ties to cope with the most challenging time of her young life."

HarperCollins refused to confirm how much Knox will be paid for the book, but insiders suggested it was at least seven figures, and probably close to \$4m (£2.5m).

Twenty publishers had expressed an interested in the memoir of the Seattle -based student before her representatives held an auction this week.

Jonathan Burnham of HarperCollins said Knox had studied creative writing in college, and would be writing the book herself with the help of an unnamed collaborator.

Knox became notorious during the early stage of the investigation into Miss Kercher's murder after it emerged she had turned a cartwheel in the police station soon after.

She was also captured on television kissing Sollecito, 27, passionately. He is also said to be preparing to sell a book about the crime in Italy.

The family of Miss Kercher, from Coulsden in Surrey, have called on Knox not to publish her story. Her father John described the American's release from jail as "ludicrous".