We just can’t get over how talented our authors are – as we ease into the last few days of the month, they’re showing no signs of slowing down!

We were so excited to finally reveal the brand new cover for C.L. Taylor’s upcoming YA novel, The Island, which will be published by HarperCollins / HQ on the 21st January 2021. This new design is almost as captivating as the story itself, in which six teenage holidaymakers become stranded on an island, and are confronted with their worst fears…

Cally also had a great time at the Strangers (HarperCollins / Avon) reading party this week – a special event where a group of lucky participants took turns reading extracts from the book with her. At the end, there was an incredible sneak peek of  her upcoming adult thriller, Her Last Holiday, which is being released by Avon on the 29th April 2021.

We’re enthralled (and a little bit terrified!) by the incredible revamped jacket for Stephanie Wrobel‘s Darling Rose Gold (Penguin Random House / Michael Joseph). The book’s paperback campaign for launched last week; it’s a dark and enigmatic thriller following the fragile Rose Gold as she questionably reconnects with her abusive mother, who is about to be released from prison. It won’t be long before you can hold the paperback in your hands – mark your calendars for the 18th February 2021!

Jane Healey has won big for her enrapturing wartime debut, The Animals at Lockwood Manor, which was released in March by Pan Macmillan / Mantle. We couldn’t be prouder that she is this year’s recipient of the 2020 Historical Writers’ Association Debut Crown Award. The Crown Awards, held on Wednesday, judge books based on their ability to “engage, illuminate, entertain and inform”, and this novel does all of the above. The panel were delighted by Jane’s story of a young woman evacuated to a creepy manor house along with the Natural History Museum’s entire collection of mammals. If you haven’t already, now is the perfect time to pick up a copy.

The MM Agency has a whole cover boy in our midst! Words can’t describe how thrilled we were to see Benjamin Dean on the cover of this week’s The Bookseller. Ben has every reason to be smiling – his Middle Grade debut,  Me, My Dad and the End of the Rainbow (Simon & Schuster), is a heart-warming and important book that’s already receiving critical acclaim. We predict that come February, it will soar off the shelves! You’ll definitely want to read his full interview, in which he shared how the book, which follows a young boy who’s dad comes out as gay, is kind of a gift to his younger self, noting the lack in Black and LGBTQ+ stories.

It was our absolute pleasure to announce Heather Marshall’s incredible two-book deal with Hodder Studio, for her punchy debut, Looking For Jane. This multigenerational women’s rights saga will keep you on the edge of your seat, as it switches between past and present to reveal three women’s fight for body autonomy in an underground Canadian abortion network.

We already know that our client,  Alexandra Wilson, is an outstanding woman. Not only is she an accomplished barrister, in the past year she’s released an acclaimed memoir, In Black and White (Hachette / Octopus), signed a fiction book deal, and handled a media storm with commendable grace after speaking out about the regular injustices she faces as a Black woman in the UK court system. For all these reasons and more, it is absolutely no surprise that last night she was awarded ‘Outstanding Woman of the Year’ at the PRECIOUS Awards, a platform which spotlights ambitious women of colour. We want to wish her the biggest congratulations!

The results of Beth Morrey’s fabulous Kindness Day (or rather, Kindness Week) paperback campaign for Saving Missy continue to delight us. The combined effect of the social media buzz, brand partnerships, competitions and giveaways which lasted well after the official day, meant that her team connected with a whopping 786k people! Twitter in particular was a hive of activity, with over 1.2 million impressions on the #SavingMissy hashtag. We just love that so many people have been reached, all in the name of kindness.

Katherine May has a brilliant op-ed in the New York Times this week that you’ll certainly want to read –  in it, she explores how the strange circumstances of this year’s pandemic have, in a way, unmoored us from time. This is, in fact, Katherine’s debut in the publication, so do let her know how much you enjoyed the piece!

You can catch Michelle Elman in a fantastic feature for The Guardian this week, discussing her favourite lock-down friendly activity: not only is she a no-nonsense life coach and outstanding self-help author, she’s also an avid paddleboarder!

And be sure to watch Michelle’s engaging comments in the Sky News mini-documentary, ‘Off Limits’, where she tackles the issue of fatphobia:

If you picked up the latest edition of My Weekly Special magazine, you’ll have spotted a super review of Jenny Bayliss’ festive treat, The Twelve Dates of Christmas (Pan Macmillan). Jenny also had lot of fun on their website this week, reading an exclusive extract and detailing her favourite things about the holiday season.  It’s no surprise that the title is doing wonderfully in the charts, peaking at No. 33 on the Kindle charts this week. With less than a month to go until the most wonderful time of the year, why not get yourself – and everyone you know – an early Christmas gift?

Holly Bourne, who recently celebrated her American debut with the publication of Pretending (HarperCollins / MIRA) last week, continues popping up in the US media. Be sure to catch both her book feature and interview in Hasty Book List, especially if you want to find out which Scottish delicacy is on her bucket list…

The praise won’t stop for Helen Scarlett’s The Deception of Harriet Fleet (Hachette / Quercus), a captivatingly spooky Victorian mystery:

Sonia Velton, author of Blackberry and Wild Rose, has called it “a deliciously unsettling tale with women, and their quest for truth, independence and fulfilment, at its dark, Gothic heart”.

Elizabeth Buchan, author of The Museum of Broken Promises, had this to say: “With terrific characters and a deep feeling for the Gothic, this is quite a debut. Helen Scarlett is obviously a writer who will go far.” We certainly agree!

 

And of course, there’s simply no stopping our IRD – we’re very happy to announce the following deals:

Czech rights to Teresa Driscoll’s I Will Make You Pay have gone to Euromedia.

French rights to Lizzie Pook’s Moonlight and the Pearler’s Daughter have gone to Gallmeister

Korean rights to C.J. Tudor ’s The Burning Girls have gone to Dasan Books.

Norweigan rights to Debbie Johnson’s Maybe One Day have gone to Anemone.

Norweigan rights to Jenny Bayliss’ The Twelve Dates of Christmas have gone to Cappelen Damm.

Russian rights to Debbie Johnson’s Maybe One Day have gone to Eksmo.

Swedish rights to Emma Stonex’s The Lamplighters have gone to Sekwa.