Analysis: Killing England: 2 Weeks on the Bestseller List. by Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard. Major Events and Battles During the Revolutionary War Are Told

Killing England "Killing England: The Brutal Struggle for American Independence," is the first announcement in Mr. O'Reilly's popular history series since Fox fired him. Every fall for the latter seven years, Bill O'Reilly, the retired Fox News host, printed a new title in his blockbuster "Killing" series. And time without fail, the books reach the top of the nonfiction best-seller list. It is a book he wrote with Martin Dugard about the Revolutionary War. The subject only ought to be attractive to his conservative fan base. There are many reasons for these listless preorder sales, including maybe the erosion of Mr. O'Reilly's fan base after reports that he had settled claims by five females who accused him of sexual harassment or verbal abuse. The scandal and the resulting advertising boycotts cost him his job at Fox, divesting him of a platform to promote his books to a nightly audience of almost four million viewers. But Mr. O'Reilly's publishing career isn't over by any stretch. As sales prove and his publisher, Henry Holt, persisted by him after Fox fired him. And big book retailers like Amazon and Barnes & Noble continue to sell his books. A spokeswoman for Barnes & Noble stated that the chain would present "Killing England" prominently in its buildings and that the company was "treating it like all best-selling books." A representative for Holt said the company had a national media and advertising plan for the title. "We are just as passionate and supportive of Bill O'Reilly's newest book, 'Killing England, ' as we have been about his other best-selling titles we've printed for him." But Mr. O'Reilly's "Killing" books, which he writes with Mr. Dugard, succeeded in large part because they were a piece of his massive media empire. The titles have typically sold more than a million copies in the first few months - a colossal figure for nonfiction. Previous editions in the series, all instant No. 1 New York Times bestsellers, were "Killing Kennedy," "Killing Lincoln," "Killing Jesus," "Killing Reagan," "Killing Patton," and "Killing the Rising Sun." Together, more than 17 million impressions of those titles are in distribution in all formats, including audiobooks, digital books, and young readers' editions. In its first week last year, "Killing the Rising Sun" sold more than a quarter of a million copies, according to a news release from Holt. The book went on to be the best-selling adult book of 2016, selling 1.1 million copies, according to Publishers Weekly. Even though Holt has continued committed to Mr. O'Reilly since the scandal, other partnerships have dissolved. Not long after Fox let Mr. O'Reilly go, National Geographic dropped its planned adaptation of "Killing Patton," that explores the death of Gen. George S. Patton. Four of the initial "Killing" books went into the documentaries for National Geographic. The documentaries pulled in an average of 3.1 million viewers, giving the books another flow of exposure. After the documentary about Patton cancelation, the network announced that it was a creative decision. Other creative partnerships seem to have ended quietly. Last year, Mr. O'Reilly distributed "Give Please a Chance," a children's picture book promoting good manners, together with another best-selling writer, James Patterson. The book, for 2- to 5-year-olds, printed by Mr. Patterson's children's book imprint, Jimmy Patterson. This fall, Mr. Patterson is releasing a sequel. It's still unclear how or if severely Mr. O'Reilly's sales will be affected by the fallout from the harassment disgrace. Transactions for his 2016 best seller, "Killing the Rising Sun," dropped after his firing, but sales of prior books in the series often declined in the spring and summer. A study by NPD BookScan of the first 52 weeks of sales in his "Killing" series noticed the recent drop is consistent with previous years.