​We hope you’ve got a plethora of chocolate eggs, hot cross buns and slices of Simnel cake on the go after the Bank Holiday weekend. Why don’t you stick the kettle on, grab a late and settle down to read our news roundup from the last week!
 
Firstly, we’d like to wish a very Happy Publication Day to four fabulous clients: Keris Stainton for The Bad Mother’s Book Club; Anna Stephens for the paperback of Darksoul; Anna Jacobs for Changing Lara and Ane Riel for the paperback of her debut novel Resin. 

Congratulations to Stuart Turton, whose acclaimed The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle has been longlisted for the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award. The shortlisted will be announced on the 19th May and the winner on the 18th July at the annual awards ceremony taking place at the Festival itself.

The film that was made out of Caroline Smailes’ novel The Drowning of Arthur Braxton has won Best Feature Film at the Coventry Film Festival last weekend. Congratulations all!

Italian rights for James Goodhand's debut YA novel Last Lesson have been sold to Rizzoli (via Penguin Random House). James was one of our pitchers at the very first Pitch DHH and rather fortuitously, was snapped up by Harry Illingworth. 

Russian rights for G.S. Locke’s debut novel Neon have been sold to Eksmo, via Orion. ​

Lightseekers, the spellbinding debut from Femi Kayode and due to be published by Bloomsbury in 2020, has sold its Czech Republic rights to Host.

In a super-exciting surprise this week, How I Met Your Mother’s Neil Patrick Harris told TODAY’s Jenna Bush Hager that one of the books he was currently reading and enjoying was none other than The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton. To watch the full clip, click here.

​Paul Burston’s new novel The Closer I Get has been garnering some incredible reviews pre-publication (out in July 2019 from Orenda Books) from the likes of Lisa Jewell (“Properly dark and human and twisty. I loved it!”); Melanie McGrath (“Compelling, creepy and completely believable. Bravo.”); Angela Clarke (“Absurdly gripping… enough to unnerve anyone who has ever spent any time online.”) and Sarah Hilary (“Dangerous from page one, lit by bursts of black humour, ultimately honest about the frailty of ego and the masks we all wear. Terrifically readable.”).

​Finally, we’d like to pay tribute one of our clients, Una-Mary Parker (rep: Broo Doherty) who sadly passed away earlier this month. Before turning her hand to novels, Una-Mary worked as a journalist at the Daily Mail and Evening Standard and also spent ten years as social editor of Tatler magazine. Una's first novel, Riches, was published in October 1987 and went on to become an international bestseller. Her other novels include Scandals, Temptations, Enticements, A Guilty Pleasure, Sweet Vengeance and The Fairbairn Fortunes. Glamorous, witty and unfailingly charming, it’s safe to say we will miss Una-Mary dearly. 

​It’s got awfully cold of late so we’ve decided to hunker down with a few good books and bad weather be damned! Of course this is made much easier by the fact that we’ve some excellent news in this week’s roundup…
 
Abi Elphinstone’s Everdark, the first adventure in Abi’s new Unmapped Chronicles series, and a World Book Day pick for 2019, was at No.5 in this week’s Sunday Times Children’s Chart. Abi joined the likes of David Walliams and Jeff Kinney for her Top Five spot. 

​Shooting straight in at No.4 in the Italian book charts was our very own The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle (or - Le sette morti di Evelyn Hardcastle) by Stuart Turton. We absolutely love the design for the Italian version. Classy and seriously stylish. The bestselling debut has sold in over 25 languages and counting...

… which brings us nicely to our next bit of news: Estonian rights for this title have been sold to Tänapäev. 
​

The audiobooks for Sleeper and Sleeper: The Red Storm by J.D. Fennell are now available to buy! Narrated by Joe Jamison, these books are a thrill-a-minute and pack a whopping punch of nail-biting excitement. More information here. 

​Kate Mallinder has written a piece for Words and Pictures, the online magazine for SCBWI (Society of Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators) as part of their Debut Journeys feature. Kate’s debut YA novel Summer Of No Regrets will be published by Firefly in May 2019. You can read the full piece here.

Finally, we're totally over the moon that King Of Kings, the collaboration between Wilbur Smith and DHH client Imogen Robertson is No.1 in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Republic of South Africa (for it’s sixth week running). 

We are delighted to welcome Carys Jones to the agency on David Headley's client list, and we are very excited to have this incredibly talented author on board. Carys has written fourteen books include Best Friends and Dead Girls Can't Lie, both published by Aria.

There were three gorgeous cover reveals this week: The Snow Dragon by Abi Elphinstone; My Lemon Grove Summer by Jo Thomas and I Know You’re There by Sarah Simpson. 

​The Snow Dragon tells a beautiful story of friendship, magic and belonging, with stunning illustrations from Fiona Woodcock. My Lemon Grove Summer is Jo’s next glorious escapist read set in the lemon groves of Sicily and I Know You’re There is Sarah’s third gripping psychological thriller, guaranteed to have you turning the pages well past your bedtime!

Lucinda Hawksley’s colourful and emotionally-charged biography of Lizzie Siddal received a fab mention in the Metro’s ‘On My E-Reader’ feature last week, from none other than author Michelle Paver: “A riveting biography of a young woman who packed one hell of a lot into her brief life: talent, beauty, gorgeous [but selfish] young men, addition, obsession - the poor girl modelled for Millais’s Ophelia in a tin bath in winter. I couldn’t put it down.”

Liberation, based on the incredible true story of World War II’s greatest heroine, Nancy Wake, has been sold in more territories making a total of twelve foreign rights sales thus far:  

The book, written by Imogen Kealey and client Imogen Robertson will be published by Sphere in spring 2020 and is due to be made into a move starring Anne Hathaway. 

Abi Elphinstone’s Everdark, the first adventure in her new Unmapped Chronicles series reached No.3 in the Children’s book chart this week. Everdark, set in the magical world of Crackledawn was selected as an official World Book Day 2019 book.

The Little Café In Copenhagen by Julie Caplin, and the first in her super-popular Romantic Escapes has been sold to Koncept in Croatia.
 
Amanda Jennings’ haunting and suspenseful The Cliff House has been sold to Bastei Lübbe in Germany.
 
My Lemon Grove Summer by Jo Thomas has been sold to Amber in Poland.
 
Femi Kayode’s thrilling debut novel Lightseekers has had its French rights sold to Presses de la Cite at auction.
 
Luke Turner (Out of the Woods, Wiedenfeld & Nicolson, January 2019) was on BBC Radio’s Music Matters last week, creating a playlist to talk about how we approach climate change through the prism of unpredictable weather. Have a listen here.

Congratulations to Ragnar Jonasson, whose book The Island, the second in the Hidden Iceland series featuring DI Hulda Hermannsdóttir was published this week in hardback. The paperback of Stephen Moss’ Mrs Moreau’s Warbler, detailing how birds got their names, was also published this week, along with King of Kings the new Wilbur Smith novel co-written by client Imogen Robertson. This is the long-awaited sequel to the worldwide bestseller, The Triumph of the Sun. 

Finally, we’d like to extend a huge e-round of applause for client Adam Hamdy who co-hosted an event for new crime festival, Capital Crime, this week aimed at school children and their teachers about how to get into publishing. The event, on 2nd April, was part of Capital Crime’s Social Outreach Initiative, a collaboration between DHH Literary Agency MD David Headley, and Adam, to help London students enter the writing and publishing world. Capital Crime asked 10 state-funded schools to select two sixth-form students with interest and ability with creative writing. Those 20 students and their teachers were invited to attend a seminar evening at Goldsboro Books, where they heard from authors and professionals like Hodder publisher Ruth Tross, author Ali Land and DHH client Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé. Read the full article in The Bookseller here.

​We’ve had a few new additions to the DHH stable this week, and we’re delighted to welcome Clare J. Cavanagh and Jay Glennie, who will be joining Natalie Galustian’s roster of clients; Mandy Robotham to Broo Doherty’s list and New York Times bestselling author Brian McGilloway to David Headley’s. 

Neon has been sold to HarperCollins Germany. Neon is the debut thriller from Birmingham-based writer G.S. Locke and will be published by Orion in spring 2020.  To read the full press release, click here. 

​There’s just over a day left to take advantage of Kobo’s brilliant Mother’s Day sale, which features three of our stunning authors: Claire Dyer’s deeply moving The Last Day; Jean Levy’s psychological thriller debut What Was Lost and Rachael Featherstone’s touching and laugh-out-loud Puzzle Girl - all a complete steal at just 99p! To view the deal, click here.

​Congratulations to client Samantha Baines whose debut children’s book, Harriet! has been acquired by Knights Of in a deal negotiated by Hannah Sheppard. Harriet! is a book about a girl who finds out her hearing aid can help her understand aliens from across the universe. Publication is set for October 2019. To read the full press release, click here. 

​We were thrilled this week to see Ragnar Jonasson’s forthcoming The Island reviewed favourably in The Times last week. The Island is the second in the hugely successful Hidden Iceland series and follows on from The Darkness, which introduced DI Hulda Hermannsdóttir. “No one does isolation better than Ragnar Jonasson, who is superb at portraying Iceland’s stark landscape and savage beauty… Hermannsdottir is an excellent cop… An excellent addition to the growing band of top-class women detectives.”

Julie Caplin had not one, not two, but three of her books sitting pretty in the iBooks Romance Chart’s Top 12 last week. The Northern Lights Lodge, The Little Café In Copenhagen and The Little Brooklyn Bakery are all available to buy now - whisk yourself away on your own Romantic Escape…

​Lightseekers, the debut novel from Femi Kayode has been sold at auction to BTB Random House in Germany. This powerful novel was sold initially, also at auction, to Bloomsbury Raven and has since struck deals with Poland and Italy.

Knights Of has acquired Harriet!, a book about a girl who finds out her hearing aid can help her understand aliens from across the universe, by comedian Samantha Baines.

Baines, who wears a hearing aid herself, said: “When I was younger I always wanted to be an inter-galactic adventurer, alas they didn't teach space flight at my school but now we can all live our space hero dreams through Harriet! I realised when I got my hearing aid that I had personally never read a book, or seen a film, where the lead character has hearing loss. I am delighted to be working with Knights Of, who champion diversity and have a passion for helping to tell interesting stories from different perspectives. I can't wait for everyone to meet Harriet.”

Knights Of bought world rights from Hannah Sheppard. The novel is aimed at readers aged 8+ and is scheduled for publication in hardback on 3rd October. 

“Funny, direct and honest, with her unstoppable energy there is no one better to bring hearing aid representation to kids books than Sam Baines,” said publisher David Stevens. “We are thrilled to be working with and can’t wait for the world to join us on the maddest adventure.”
​
Baines is currently playing the female lead in Magic Mike Live! and has also appeared in The Crown, Silent Witness and Call the Midwife. She is an an ambassador for Action on Hearing Loss and the British Tinnitus Association.

From The Bookseller article | Charlotte Eyre

​Sending congratulations and happy publication day wishes to Paul Hardisty for his new standalone novel, Turbulent Wake; Adam Hamdy for the paperback release of Aftershock, the third in the Pendulum series; Paul Fraser Collard for the paperback release of The Rebel Killer, the seventh in the Jack Lark series; Anna Jacobs for her new saga romance One Perfect Family, which is the last in her recent Ellindale series; and Noel O’Reilly for the paperback publication of his haunting debut Wrecker.   

King of Kings, written by Wilbur Smith and DHH client Imogen Robertson has reached No.1 in South Africa. 

​Following the success of Volumes 1 and 2, with sales in exess of 60,000 copies, the third in the Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards has been bought by Blink / 535, in a deal negotiated between the aforementioned’s Joel Simons and Natalie Galustian.
 
Congratulations to Stuart Turton whose debut novel The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle has been nominated for the Fiction Debut Book of the Year at the British Book Awards (the Nibbies).

Her Closest Friend, the new psychological thriller from Clare Boyd made its way in to the Kindle 100 last week and we couldn’t be more thrilled. A clever book that’s full of twists and turns, and guaranteed to keep you reading well in to the night…
 

If you like your psychological thrillers, then Sarah Simpson’s novel Who I Am is just the ticket, and just as well because it is currently FREE on Amazon Kindle. Click here to buy.

Delighted for client Femi Kayode, and his debut novel Lightseekers, which has been bought by Bloomsbury Raven’s Alison Hennessey, in a UK & Commonwealth deal, negotiated by Harry Illingworth. Both Polish and Italian rights were pre-empted for this book during London Book Fair, within 24 hours of submission. Lightseekers follows psychologist Philip Taiwo who is commissioned to investigate the lynching of three young students in a Nigerian university town, a brutal act caught on social media. Femi won the £3,000 Little, Brown prize in October 2018 with judges paying tribute to Lightseekers, which they described as “shocking and emotional”.

The cover for Abi Elphinstone’s forthcoming book Rumblestar has been revealed! Rumblestar is the first in Abi’s new Unmapped Chronicles series with a short story, Everdark, set within the Unmapped Chronicles land, released for World Book Day at the end of last month. Follow Casper Tock as he embarks on an adventure full of cloud giants, storm ogres and drizzle hags. A magical time awaits…

​If you’re looking for a bargain on your books at the moment, Kobo is having a big Mother’s Day sale and you can get The Last Day, Puzzle Girl, What Was Lost and A Store at War all for a fraction of their usual cost! Click this link to see more.

Finally, Ben Willis of Orion has acquired World Rights in debut thriller Neon by G.S Locke. Set in Birmingham, Neon tells the story of desperate detective Matt Jackson, who teams up with hitwoman Iris to track down the serial killer responsible for murdering his wife. But the killer, dubbed “Neon” for the way he displays his victims among elaborate, snaking neon light installations, is also on the hunt - and has both Jackson and Iris in his sights. Publication has been set for spring 2020.

We are delighted that Stuart Turton has been nominated for a British Book Award in the Fiction Debut category for his novel The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle. 

The book, which was published by Bloomsbury Raven in February 2018, has already garnered high praise, received multiple nominations and won a number of awards, most notably the Costa First Novel Award 2018. 

The category winners will be decided by eight separate judging panels, with judges including acclaimed illustrator Axel Scheffler, star food critic Jay Rayner and Adam Kay, author of the multi-award winning bestseller This Is Going To Hurt. A separate panel which choose the overall Book of the Year, where the Labour MP Jess Phillips is judging alongside Sky News presenter Kay Burley. 

The British Book Awards, known as the Nibbies, honour and celebrate the commercial successes of publishers, authors and bookshops. Organised by The Bookseller, the culminate in a gala ceremony presented by Lauren Laverne at the Grosvenor House Hotel on 13th May.

#Nibbies 

Ben Willis, senior commissioning editor at Orion, has acquired World Rights in debut thriller Neon by G.S. Locke. Publication has been set for spring 2020.

Set in Birmingham, Neon tells the story of desperate detective Matt Jackson, who teams up with hitwoman Iris to track down the serial killer responsible for murdering his wife. But the killer, dubbed "Neon" for the way he displays his victims among elaborate, snaking neon light installations, is also on the hunt - and has both Jackson and Iris in his sights.

G.S. Locke said: "For some time, I've had this powerful image in my head of a desolate detective sitting alone in a cafe, picking up the phone and ordering his own murder after his wife is killed by a serial killer. With that, DCI Jackson was born, and with him, Iris, a contract killer who I hope is as fierce and unrelenting a character as Stieg Larsson's Lisbeth Salander and Killing Eve's Villanelle. What follows is a story of survival, revenge, an unorthodox investigative partnership, and a serial killer with a particular fondness for neon art."

Willis said: "Neon is everything I love about a proper serial killer thriller - but it's also so much more. It's got twists and turns aplenty but, most surprisingly, at its heart are two brilliant characters with a unique dynamic that will both thrill and surprise fans of the genre. A kind of literary mash-up of Luther, The Snowman by Jo Nesbø and No Country For Old Men, Neon is set to light up the British crime fiction scene in 2020."

G.S. Locke is a Birmingham-based British crime writer.

We are delighted that Femi Kayode's debut novel Lightseekers, plus one as-yet-untitled novel, has been sold to Alison Hennessey at Bloomsbury Raven. 

Alison acquired UK & Commonwealth rights (exc. Canada) from Harry Illingworth in a four-way auction. Josh Kendall, editorial director for Mulholland, pre-empted US rights. The novels were also pre-empted in Poland and Italy, the latter within 24 hours of submission. 

​Lightseekers follows psychologist Philip Taiwo who is commissioned to investigate the lynching of three young students in a Nigerian university town, a brutal act caught on social media.

Kayode, formerly a University of East Anglia creative writing student, won the £3,000 Little, Brown prize in October with judges paying tribute to Lightseekers, described as “shocking and emotional”. The author described it at the time as "a kind of love letter to my home country, Nigeria”.

​To read the full press release, click here. 

​Last week saw 2019’s London Book Fair and each of our agents met with publishers from around the globe in back-to-back meetings. No mean feat, but great fun!
 
The very lovely, and little bit magical, Abi Elphinstone was on CITV Scrambled’s Eggbox  Celebrity Interview last Saturday (9th March) to talk about her new book, Everdark which is out now. Abi also gave her Top Three Writing Tips:

• Carry a notepad with you everywhere: “you’re like a detective as an author; you watch the world fiercely for the things other people miss.”
• Let yourself daydream: “some of the best stories start as accidental daydreams.”
• Don’t be afraid of failure: “I had 96 rejections before I got my agent and first book deal, so never give up.”

Missed it? Fear not, you can catch up here. 

We are delighted to be sponsoring a brand new prize as part of the annual Polari Prize. The Prize, founded by DHH client Paul Burston in 2011, is awarded annually to a writer whose debut book explores the LGBTQ+ experience, whether in poetry, prose, fiction or non-fiction. DHH Literary Agency will be sponsoring The Polari Book Prize, which will be awarded to a writer at any stage of their publishing career (other than debuts). We couldn’t be prouder to be a part of something so inspiring and inclusive. For more information, click here. 

JD Fennell’s Sleeper and Sleeper: the Red Storm (The Dome Press, 2017 / 2018) and Gerard O’Donovan’s The Long Silence (Severn House, 2018) have been selected by Kobo as part of their ‘Best of Irish’ sale, from the 14th - 20th March. Both these authors hail from the Emerald Isle, and we couldn’t recommend these brilliant books more. Click here to buy yours!

R.C. Bridgestock have written a fantastic piece for The Crime Warp on their road to being published. The Dome Press acquired the rights to first three in their DI Jack Dylan books and also published a brand new title, Poetic Justice - a prequel to the bestselling series.
 
Staying with this marvellous crime-writing duo, we are thrilled that the news is out! The Dome Press have bought the rights to the Bridgestock’s new series starring DI Charley Mann, who “left her native Yorkshire for the Met and a fast-track career - but now she’s back and in charge and is the area’s first young, female DI… When a brutal murder is discovered, Charley is forced to question everything”. Dome has acquired the rights to the first in the series, Payback (due for publication in October 2019), and the as-yet-untitled second book, which will follow in 2020.

​Capping off this week’s news roundup, Luke Turner took the Guardian’s Claire Armistead for a wander through the trees and history of Epping Forest for the publication’s podcast. They discuss his debut non-fiction book Out of the Woods and how he managed to find solace in nature. A powerful listen, and you can catch up here.