Publication: June 2018 in hardcover 338pp Primary agent: Eve White Translation rights: DLA Sold: Newton Compton Italy, General Press Hungary Options in Germany Blanvalet The House of Hop
Trang 1LONDON BOOK FAIR RIGHTS HOTLIST 2018 – TABLE 22N
Head of Rights: rebecca@rebeccawinfield.com (Tel 07932 673 244)
Rights Manager: Nick Walters (Tel 07900 490 701)
FICTION
Shadows of the Lake by Rachael Blok
NEW Contemporary thriller (first in a series featuring Maarten Jansen).
On submission in the UK
Jenny dreams of a young girl drowning in a lake, and wakes the next day to find it was more than a dream With only 12 days remaining until Christmas, she is struggling; with a young baby to look after, and snow that keeps falling, she finds herself inexplicably and repeatedly pulled towards the lake
The community of the Cathedral city is rocked by the murder of Elizabeth Hoarde, only 14 years old
It’s left to the Dutch-born Maarten Jansen, the DCI in charge of the investigation,
to unravel the strands binding the worlds of Jenny, Elizabeth and a dark figure, hidden in plain sight, in the heart of the snow drenched town
Rachael Blok grew up in Durham and studied Literature at Warwick University After spending some time exploring South America and Asia, she finished a PGCE and an MA at Durham University She moved to London and worked as an English teacher in a boys’ comprehensive in Holland Park She now lives with her husband and two children in St Albans This is her first novel
How Far We Fall by Jane Shemilt
NEW Michael Joseph UK & Commonwealth (Maxine Hitchcock)
Contemporary medical suspense thriller
From the international bestselling author Jane Shemilt TV rights optioned to Twelve Town Productions (formerly Pinewood Studios) – the team behind the
adaptation of Ian McEwan’s A Child in Time.
The perfect wife: Beth is devoted to her new husband But she's also keeping a
secret from him Albie must never know about the affair she once had with his boss, Ted Nor the reason that it ended
The perfect husband: Albie is a rising star at Great Ormond Street Hospital
With his ideal woman at his side and Ted as his mentor, nothing can hold him back from claiming his place as Ted's successor
Trang 2The perfect storm: Beneath the surface of their happy marriage, Beth's
betrayal is eating away at her And when Ted threatens everything Albie has worked for, his treachery ignites a passion for revenge in Beth
It would only take a small push to silence the man poisoning their marriage, and keep her secret safe
But how far will the fall take them?
Publication: June 2018 in hardcover (338pp)
Primary agent: Eve White
Translation rights: DLA
Sold: Newton Compton (Italy), General Press (Hungary)
Options in Germany (Blanvalet)
The House of Hopes and Dreams by Trisha Ashley
NEW Black Swan (Transworld) WEL (Francesca Best) Incredible Sunday Times bestselling author
For fans of Katie Fforde and Jenny Éclair.
Commercial Women’s Fiction
Sunday Times Top Ten Bestseller in hardcover and paperback
When Carey Revell unexpectedly becomes the heir to Mossby, his family’s
ancestral home, it’s rather a mixed blessing The house is large but rundown and comes with a pair of resentful relatives who can’t be asked to leave Still, newly dumped by his girlfriend and also from his job as a TV interior designer, Carey needs somewhere to lick his wounds And Mossby would be perfect for a
renovation show He already knows someone who could restore the stained-glass windows in the older part of the house…
Angel Arrowsmith has spent the last ten years happily working and living with her artist mentor and partner But suddenly bereaved, she finds herself heartbroken, without a home or a livelihood Life will never be the same again – until old friend Carey Revell comes to the rescue
They move in to Mossby with high hopes But the house has a secret at its heart:
an old legend concerning one of the famous windows Will all their dreams for happiness be shattered? Or can Carey and Angel find a way to make this house a home?
Publication: May 2018
Primary agent: Judith Murdoch
Translation rights: DLA
Miss Mary’s Daughter by Diney Costeloe
NEW Head of Zeus UK & Commonwealth.
Mass Market Historical Fiction.
DINEY COSTELOE HAS NOW SOLD OVER 850K COPIES OF HER BOOKS!
READERS LOVE HER! 4,OOO 5* REVIEWS
A gritty and heartrending drama set in 19th-century Cornwall Orphan Sophie and her friend Hannah are welcomed into the Penvarrow family but tensions rise and
Trang 3family secrets are revealed After her mother's death, twenty-year-old Sophie Ross
is left orphaned in London With no money and little chance of an income, she tries to get work as a governess to avoid destitution Now alone in the world, she only has the company of her erstwhile nursemaid and faithful friend, Hannah But unbeknown to Sophie, her mother instructed Hannah to post a letter to
Trescadinnick House in Cornwall upon her death The letter will be the catalyst that changes Sophie's life forever as she learns of her mother's romance,
marriage and then ultimate rejection by her own father and the estranged family she left behind in Cornwall
The Penvarrow family welcome Sophie and Hannah into their fold, but tensions rise and family secrets are revealed as Sophie attempts to rebuild her life and find happiness
Publication: May 2018
Primary agent: Judith Murdoch
Translation rights: DLA
Death in the Stars by Frances Brody
Piatkus, UK & Commonwealth
Cosy crime
The 9 th instalment in the Kate Shackleton series!
Wednesday, 29 June 1927 A hundred thousand people flock to the Yorkshire Dales
to witness the total eclipse of the sun Kate has chartered a small plane to fly Selina Fellini, popular star of stage and wireless, to the grounds of Giggleswick School where the astronomer royal and his party from Greenwich have set up camp on high ground by the chapel
Selina has concerns about her safety because of previous “accidents” to two fellow performers She feels the threats closing in but has not given Kate a full story Accompanying Kate and Selina on the plane is comedian Billy Moffatt Billy believes misery and disappointment provide the best material for funny stories
He hopes that forecasters are correct in predicting a probability of cloud
Publication: October 2017
Primary Agent: Judith Murdoch
US & Canada: St Martin’s Press
Translation rights: DLA
Germany: first three titles in series to Bastei Luebbe
Russia: first three titles in series to AST
Liar, Liar by Sarah Flint
Aria Fiction, UK & Commonwealth
Mass market, gritty contemporary crime / Female Sleuths
From the bestselling author of Mummy's Favourite and The Trophy Taker.
DC 'Charlie' Stafford returns with a superb new, brutally gripping serial killer thriller, where the hunter becomes the hunted Perfect for the fans of Angela Marsons.
3
Trang 4A faithful dog lies wounded beside the mutilated body of its owner
A woman is discovered bound and gagged, dead in her own bed
Both are police officers
Both have a red rose at their side worryingly more will follow
Lies and accusations abound but who is behind the murders and why are the victims being targeted?
Charlie, Hunter and the team must find the killer targeting their own before another body is found
Publication: December 2017
Primary agent: Judith Murdoch
Translation rights: DLA
ALSO IN THE SERIES:
The Trophy Taker
Mummy’s Favourite SOLD 105,000 COPIES IN THE UK!
Sold: Germany (Weltbild), Poland (Amber), Omega (Czech Republic)
Murder on the Green by H V Coombs
NEW Avon, UK & Commonwealth
‘An irresistibly mouth-watering mix of sleuthery and cooking’
Trisha Ashley
Midsomer Murders meets The Great British Bake Of in this foodie
delight with murder at its heart.
Hampden Green has been a quiet for months, allowing Ben Hunter to concentrate
on running The Old Forge Café That is until celebrity chef Justin McCleish
announces he is opening a pop-up restaurant at the local opera festival and wants Ben to help out Ben couldn’t prouder or more flattered, until he discovers he hasn’t been hired for his cooking abilities… Justin is being blackmailed and he needs help to crack the case That is, until extortion turns deadly!
Now Ben must do whatever it takes to find the killer before they strike again… Publication: June 2018
Primary Agent: Judith Murdoch
All rights: DLA
The First Dance by Catherine Law
Zaffre/Bonniers WEL
Spellbinding historical romance.
Perfect for fans of Judith Lennox, Santa Montefiore and Tracy Rees.
Trang 5http://www.catherinelaw.co.uk/
To find what she has lost, she must go back to the beginning
1924
The First World War is over and eleven-year-old Alexa is growing up on the idyllic Cornish coast with her best friend Harvey But she soon discovers there are
secrets at the heart of her family that have been hidden for years
1931
Alexa flees Cornwall for the intoxicating city of Venice But her new glamorous life
is not what she hoped for and, with dark shadows closing in on her, Alexa will question everything she thought she wanted
Publication: March 2018
Primary agent: Judith Murdoch
All rights: DLA
Miss Nightingale’s Nurses by Kate Eastham
Michael Joseph
Series fiction, historical for fans of Donna Douglas’ nursing series.
Kate Eastham’s debut historical saga is set to do very well indeed as the appetite for historical nursing stories continues apace!
Ada Houston is alone Her brother has gone missing, last seen working on the Liverpool docks, and everyone assumes him to be dead But she will not give up hope Ada's determined search takes her to the Crimea where she joins the team
of Florence Nightingale's nurses She may have set off looking for her brother, but along the way Ada finds friends, romance and a new purpose in her own life
Miss Nightingale’s Nurses is the first in a four book series from Michael Joseph publishers The next novel, The Liverpool Nurses, is set amidst the surge of
post-Crimean Nightingale nursing and features the first probationer nurses at the Liverpool Royal Infirmary Kate has over thirty years nursing experience and knows her stuff!
Publication: June 2018
Primary agent: Judith Murdoch
Translation rights: DLA
The Concubine’s Child by Carol Jones
1930s Malaysia Historical Romance Head of Zeus
In 1930s Malaya a sixteen-year-old girl, dreaming of marriage to her sweetheart,
is sold as a concubine to a rich old man desperate for an heir Trapped, and bullied
by his spiteful wife, Yu Lan plans to escape with her baby son, despite knowing that they will pursue her to the ends of the earth Four generations later, her great-grandson, Nick, will return to Malaysia, looking for the truth behind the facade of a house cursed by the unhappy past Nothing can prepare him for what
5
Trang 6he will find This exquisitely rich novel brings to life a vanished world – a world of abandoned ghost houses, inquisitive monkeys, smoky temples and a panoply of gods and demons A world where a poor girl can be sold to fulfil a rich man's dream But though he can buy her body, he can never capture her soul, nor quench her spirit
Publication: June 2018
Primary agent: Judith Murdoch
Translation rights: DLA
The Boy with the Blue Trousers by Carol Jones
NEW Head of Zeus.
1856
Exiled from London after a scandalous liaison, English governess, Violet Hartley, lands on the wild shores of Robetown, South Australia, where her reputation does not precede her As tutor to a grazier’s children, she longs to return to civilized society, and a wealthy husband might be just the ticket But after being thrown into exile, Violet conceives a plan to seek her fortune on the goldfields of
Australia… Meanwhile, in southern China, the rebellious Little Cat is on the run from a dangerous clan seeking vengeance for the murder of their leader Under a new identity as a boy, Strong Arm, she flees to Australia in search of safety But her past soon catches up with her
From the author of The Concubine’s Child, The Boy with the Blue Trousers is a tale
of love, revenge, and tragedy that will keep you guessing at every turn
Publication: TBC
Primary agent: Judith Murdoch
Translation rights: DLA
Gracie’s Secret by Jill Childs
NEW Bookouture (a division of Hachette), World English Language Contemporary women’s fiction/domestic noir
Gracie’s Secret
My dearest daughter, I will never forget the day I nearly lost you The day you learned the secrets that would tear our lives apart…
Time stops for Jen when her beloved daughter, Gracie, is involved in a terrible car crash Pronounced dead at the scene, it’s a miracle when paramedics manage to then resuscitate the little girl The relief Jen feels at Gracie’s recovery is matched only by her fury at the driver of the car – her ex-husband’s new girlfriend Ella Jen has never trusted Ella, and now her worst fears have been confirmed But then Gracie begins to tell strange stories about what she heard in the car that day, and what she saw in those moments near death It’s clear that there’s something shocking hidden in Ella’s past… but exposing it could tear all their lives apart
Trang 7An emotional page-turner that will take your breath away Perfect for fans of Jodi Picoult, Lisa Wingate and Kerry Fisher
Publication: July 2018 in ebook
Primary agent: Judith Murdoch
Translation rights: DLA
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NON-FICTION
MEMOIRS
Saving Lucy by Ishbel Holmes
NEW Bradt Travel Guides UK and Velo Press, USA
Recovery Memoir/Petmoir
Ishbel Rose Holmes was adrift and alone when she set out to bicycle across the world She was pedalling across Turkey when a street dog, Lucy,
crossed her path and changed her life forever Ishbel did not want anything or anyone to slow her down, but when she witnessed Lucy attacked by other dogs, Ishbel rescued her forming a deep bond between the pair Ishbel recognized her own vulnerability in her new canine friend and launched a heartfelt mission to find Lucy a home and give her a happy life Their adventures took them to the Syrian border and into the hearts of everyone who met them
People around the world who followed the story on Ishbel's blog, World Bike Girl, watched as Lucy's unconditional love broke down the wall around Ishbel's heart When Lucy died unexpectedly in her arms, Ishbel realized that Lucy had found a home after all with her, and that Ishbel had been Lucy's happy ever after
Published October 2018
Translation rights: DLA
Spilt Milk by Simon Dawson
NEW Mirror Books (WEL)
Recovery memoir / “Petmoir”
Simon Dawson is the author of three books including the very successful “Pigs in Clover” (Orion, 2015) in which he described the joy of leaving city life behind and becoming a farmer But what that book did not reveal was that Simon had been terribly neglected as a child
When a newborn lamb on his farm is rejected by its mother, Simon must take drastic action to save it from starving to death and, in the process, he is forced to confront his own childhood which in many ways mirrored what was happening before his eyes as the lamb struggled to stay alive Loneliness, neglect, fear and near starvation – the memories come flooding back for Simon but through his care for the lamb, he also finds peace This is a remarkable book with a hugely
uplifting ending that reveals the remarkable power of us all to heal and find our way back home again
Publication: Spring 2019
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Trang 8Primary agent: Graham Maw Christie
Translation rights: DLA
Sample chapters available now Manuscript delivered September 2018
A Million Minutes by Wolf Kuper
NEW Bonniers (WEL)
Travel and inspirational memoir
"Oh Daddy, I wish we had a million minutes Let's go far, far away whilst
we have time."
And so begins a journey for Wolf Kuper and his daughter, Nina The successful scientist, who is finally about to hit the big time in his job, suddenly realizes that a million minutes might be worth much more than a perfect CV Thus begins a two-year (or one million minutes) trip from Germany to Thailand, New Zealand,
Australia and back again On board with Wolf and Nina (who is seriously unwell and in every respect different to what child psychologists, teachers, doctors and politicians imagine a child should be like) is Nina’s baby brother and her mum, Vera
A Million Minutes is a heart-warming and funny declaration of love for everything
that doesn't work out as planned A story encouraging you to plunge into life – containing no guarantees, but with a bag packed with optimism and superglue A true story: infectious, amusing, intelligent
Rights sold in Germany (Knaus), France (Actes Sud), Netherlands (Meulenhoff), Korea (Business Books)
All other rights: DLA on behalf of Hanna Leitgeb
Death Row: The Final Minutes – My Life as an Execution Witness in
America’s Most Infamous Prison by Michelle Lyons
NEW Blink Publishing WEL (Kelly Ellis)
True crime / memoir
"You want to know how long it takes someone to die by lethal injection in Texas? Start singing Silent Night and when you get to 'Mother and Child' well, that's how long it takes I know this because I saw it happen once." Larry Fitzgerald
IN 12 YEARS, MICHELLE LYONS WITNESSED NEARLY 300 EXECUTIONS First as a reporter and then as a spokesperson for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Michelle was a frequent visitor to Huntsville’s Walls Unit, where she recorded and relayed the final moments of death row inmates’ lives before they were put to death by the state
Michelle was in the death chamber as inmates spoke their last words on earth, while a cocktail of lethal drugs surged through their veins
Michelle supported the death penalty, before misgivings began to set in as the executions mounted During her time in the prison system, and together with her dear friend and colleague Larry Fitzgerald, Michelle came to know and like some
of the condemned men and women she saw die, query the arbitrary nature of the
Trang 9death penalty and increasingly ask the question: do executions make victims of all
of us?
An incredibly powerful and unique look at the complex story of capital punishment
in the United States, as told by those whose lives have been shaped by it, Death Row: The Final Minutes is an important take on crime and punishment at a
fascinating point in America’s political history
M/s delivery: 31 March 2018
Primary agent: Nick Walters at DLA
Publication: May 2018
Translation rights: DLA
Sold: Poland (Agora), Russia (AST)
Stopping Places by Damian Le Bas
Chatto & Windus (Parisa Ebrahimi) UK & Commonwealth.
Literary Travel memoir
Selected as BBC Radio 4’s Book of the Week !
Our world is very different to the one described to Damien by his great
grandmother, a Romany A nomadic life is unthinkable Even she lives (very happily) in a bungalow now
As a child, Damian Le Bas would sit on his great-grandmother’s knee, begging for more tales of the old Traveller ways, told to him in the ancient Romany language Now, Damian will discover the secret routes passed through the generations He embarks on a year-long quest across the British Isles and visits the “stopping places”, the old sites of encampment known only to Travellers But can Damian have the freedom that the nomad in all of us craves, or is the old Traveller way irrevocably lost? His life is very different from that of his forebears – Oxford educated and a poet and journalist, a chance to discover his past is also a chance
to write the book he has longed dreamed of
Manuscript delivery: September 2017, 90,000 words
Publication: April 2018
Primary Agent: Eve White
Translation rights: DLA
The Way of the Tortoise by Matt Little
NEW Little, Brown UK (Anna Steadman) UK & Commonwealth
Self-help / Lifestyle.
Matt Little is best known for his role as part of the elite coaching team that helped propel Sir Andy Murray to the top of his profession However, it’s Matt’s journey
to achieving his own career success that is the subject of this book
Starting from the premise that the pressures to achieve instant success – the
“Hare Approach” - often sees us crash and burn, Matt Little sets out to show us
how, by following his unique programme, which he calls The Way of the Tortoise, it
is possible to achieve a more meaningful and enduring success
9
Trang 10Matt identifies several core “tortoise values” that can be used in any field in order
to achieve a better life Matt also provides tips and exercises to help develop the critical “soft skills” that are the bedrock of his philosophy
Manuscript delivery: December 2018
Publication: Spring 2019
Primary agent: Nick Walters for DLA
Translation rights: DLA
The Hidden Horticulturalists by Fiona Davison
NEW Atlantic Books (James Nightingale)
Gardening and History
Murder, mystery and intrigue in the world of gardening! Fiona Davison is the Head Librarian for the UK’s prestigious Royal Horticultural Society Last year she discovered a book that had lain untouched for decades In it was letters of
application to the RHS from hundreds of young men looking for their chance to make a name for themselves as plant collectors They would travel across the world in search of rare species, many of which are now commonplace on the tables of Europe and beyond
This is the story of modern gardening told through the lives of the men who gave
us the sweetest strawberries and the finest orchids… Fully international in its scope this is a beautifully told story of the history of 19th century horticulture Publication: Spring 2019
Extent: tbc
Primary agent: Rebecca Winfield for DLA
Translation rights: DLA
US rights: Atlantic
Oak and Ash and Thorn by Peter Fiennes
Oneworld (WEL) September 2017
Nature Writing and Environment
Amazon bestseller
The magic and mystery of the woods and trees are embedded in our culture, from ancient folklore to modern literature They offer us refuge, a place to play and a place to think They are the generous providers of fuel, timber, energy and life They let us dream of other ways of living Yet we now face a future where taking a walk in the woods is consigned to the tales we tell our children
Threatened by development, neglect, climate chaos and ignorance, they are emptier - of flora and fauna, but also of people - than they have ever been Immersing himself in the beauty of Britain's woodlands and the art and writing they have inspired, Peter Fiennes explores our long relationship with the woods and the sad and violent story of how so many have been lost Just as we need them, our woods need us too But who, if anyone, is looking out for them?
Extent: 304pp
Primary agent: Rebecca Winfield for DLA
Translation rights: DLA