Essie Fox’s Wuthering Heights retelling snared by Orenda Books

Orenda Books has signed Essie Fox’s “dark, seductive gothic masterpiece” Catherine: A Retelling of Wuthering Heights.

Karen Sullivan, publisher at Orenda Books, acquired world English-language rights from David Headley at DHH Literary Agency. Publication is scheduled for 12th February 2026.

“Essie Fox – Sunday Times bestselling author, queen of the gothic and master of atmospheric, dazzling historical fiction – has reimagined Wuthering Heights from a new angle, in Catherine Earnshaw’s own voice,” the publisher says.

“Revealing scenes, moments and emotions Nelly Dean was not privy to, Essie breathes new life into the greatest tragic love story ever told, transforming a gothic masterpiece into a haunting confession of madness, grief, obsession and a love that even death cannot end."

Its synopsis reads: “With a nature as wild as the moors she loves to roam, Catherine Earnshaw grows up alongside Heathcliff, a foundling her father rescued from the streets of Liverpool. Their fierce, untamed bond deepens as they grow – until Mr Earnshaw’s death leaves Hindley, Catherine’s brutal brother, in control and Heathcliff reduced to servitude.

“Desperate to protect him, Catherine turns to Edgar Linton, the handsome heir to Thrushcross Grange. She believes his wealth might free Heathcliff from cruelty – but her choice is fatally misunderstood, and their lives spiral into a storm of passion, jealousy and revenge … and ultimately ruin. Now, 18 years later, Catherine rises from her grave to tell her story – and to seek redemption."

Sullivan said: “Essie’s Catherine isn’t just a retelling – it’s a resurrection, a revelation. Nelly Dean told only half the story… there’s more. What if Heathcliff raised the spirit of the woman who has obsessed him since childhood, when he desecrates her grave to hold her in his arms once again? What would the ghost of Cathy recall from her life, from the moments that Nelly Dean was not present to describe? What would she see and feel when she observes the cruelty and wickedness of the man she once loved – with Heathcliff now intent on destroying the innocent daughter who was born when Cathy died?

“Bringing gothic richness, profound emotional depth and a modern clarity to this story, Essie has created an extraordinary novel with all the atmosphere, darkness and passion of the original, and from a convincing, devastating new perspective. This is the defining Essie Fox novel – the story she was meant to write, to tell – and we’ll be publishing it as a significant literary event, with the highest-spec hardback imaginable and our biggest marketing campaign ever, two days before Valentine’s Day and the new Wuthering Heights film."

Fox said: “I’ve been obsessed with this story since I was five years old, when I first saw the old film of Wuthering Heights starring Laurence Olivier and Merle Oberon. Since then, I’ve read the book more times than I can say, and it’s long been my passion to try to write about events that Nelly Dean had never seen, to relate in her account.  This is the story of Catherine. But Catherine as a ghost, looking back into her past and her enduring love and passion for the abused and orphaned boy who shared her home at the Heights... then moving forwards as she follows her own daughter through the nightmare of the hell he creates from grief and revenge.”

Headley added: “I’ve loved Wuthering Heights since I first read it as a teenager, but Essie Fox’s retelling genuinely astonished me. She brings new depth, urgency and emotional power to Cathy’s story while honouring the soul of the original. It’s both a love letter and a revelation.”