Egmont has triumphed at auction in a new "subversive" and "heart-warming" middle-grade debut series from comedian Jim Beckett which features exploding caravan toilets and a rescue mission in the afterlife. 

Sarah Levison, Egmont senior fiction editor, bought world rights in all languages to Beckett's Caravan at the Edge of Doom and another title from Hannah Sheppard. The first title launches in spring 2021, with the follow up coming in early 2022. The book will be illustrated by Ukraine-born Olia Muza in her first book for a British publisher. 

The Caravan at the Edge of Doom revolves around 12-year-old Harley, whose four grandparents seem to die when their caravan toilet explodes late one night. But then she discovers the surprising truth: that toilet is a gateway to the Land of the Dead, and her grandparents are its guardians. Then she realises her baby brother has accidentally gone with them, hidden in his grandma's wheelie bag. And Harley only has 24 hours to rescue him before he's trapped in the Land of the Dead for eternity.

Levinson said: "From the moment Harley's grandparents exploded in the toilet in the opening pages of The Caravan at the Edge of Doom, I knew this book was something special. In reluctant hero Harley's adventure in the afterlife, Jim Beckett has created a story that is laugh-out-loud funny with a searing undercurrent of emotion that takes you by surprise and brings tears to your eye."

Beckett is one half of comedy duo Bob and Jim and also an English teacher at a south London secondary school. He said that being at Egmont was "brilliant" as the team "have been so welcoming and wise and supportive - and you should see their offices! They've got free biscuits and table tennis and weird-shaped chairs... it's proper modern."

From The Bookseller article | Tom Tivnan

Simon & Schuster Children's has secured a three-book deal with children's author Abi Elphinstone, as part of "major brand-building" publication plan extending to 2024.

S&S Children's m.d. Rachel Denwood acquired world rights from Hannah Sheppard for "magical adventure" Fizzlehatch, and a second standalone middle-grade novel, plus picture book The Frost Goblin, which S&S said would be in the same vein as Elphinstone's Christmas 2019 hit, The Snow Dragon. The titles will be edited by fiction editorial director Jane Griffiths and picture book editorial director Helen Mackenzie Smith. 

Denwood said: "[Elphinstone's] fantastically magical and fantastically human adventures speak to a wonderfully broad range of readers and the Simon & Schuster team, many of whom have worked with Abi since her debut, are totally committed to further building her publishing; there is no doubt that Abi Elphinstone is a major author brand-in-the-making."

Elphinstone has shifted 225,000 units for just under £1m through Nielsen BookScan since first being published in 2015. 

Elphinstone said: "[S&S] have championed me and my stories from the off - and sent them out into the world with such ambition and flair - and I can't wait to get writing about flying bathtubs, firebirds and frost goblins in these upcoming middle-grade and picture books."

​From The Bookseller article | Ruth Comerford

Delighted that Chris McGeorge's new deal with Orion was announced last week. 

Francesca Pathak bought world rights for two further books from Chris, author of Guess Who and Now You See Me, in a deal negotiated by Hannah Sheppard. 

The first of the new books is Inside Out. Opening with another impossible mystery, Cara Lockhart, newly imprisoned in a high security women’s prison, wakes up one morning to discover her cellmate has been murdered—shot in the head with a gun that is missing. The door was locked all night, which makes Cara the only suspect. There is only one problem—Cara knows she didn't do it and she has no idea who did.

Inside Out will be published in paperback, eBook and audio on 6th August 2020. 

The third in Porthmellow series from Phillipa Ashley, A Perfect Cornish Escape is sitting pretty in the Top 100 for Hot New Releases in the Audio section. 

This new book from the "Queen of Cornish romance" Phillipa, could not come soon enough and we are really looking forward to getting lost in the pages and being whisked back to Porthmellow Harbour. 

The book will be released in paperback, eBook and audio on 11th June 2020. 

Finally, we couldn't help but notice that the cover for Jo Thomas' forthcoming Escape to the French Farmhouse has been revealed and if that wasn't enough to make you crave warm, summer days, then nothing will!

Del and her husband Ollie moved to a beautiful village in Provence for a fresh start after years of infertility struggles. But six weeks after they arrive, they’re packing the removal van once more. As Del watches the van leave for England, she suddenly realises exactly what will make her happier…a new life in France – without Ollie.

Now alone, all Del has is a crumbling farmhouse, a mortgage to pay and a few lavender plants. What on earth is she going to do? Discovering an old recipe book at the market run by the rather attractive Fabian, Del starts to bake. But can her new-found passion really help her let go of the past and lead to true happiness?

The eBook is due for publication on 1st June 2020, with the paperback following on 9th July 2020.

#StayHomeSaveLives

Orion Fiction has acquired two more novels from Chris McGeorge, whose stories have been described as "Agatha Christie meets Jonathan Creek".

Francesca Pathak, publishing director at Orion Fiction, did the two-book deal for world all language rights via Hannah Sheppard at DHH, following the success of McGeorge's Guess Who that sold in 13 territories.

Inside Out is the first book in the deal. Opening with another impossible mystery, Cara Lockhart, newly imprisoned in a high security women’s prison, wakes up one morning to discover her cellmate has been murdered—shot in the head with a gun that is missing. The door was locked all night, which makes Cara the only suspect. There is only one problem—Cara knows she didn't do it and she has no idea who did.

Pathak said: "Chris McGeorge has set us up again with an incredible concept and leaves us guessing throughout an impossible crime. His stories fuse Agatha Christie and 'Jonathan Creek' and they are an absolute joy to read."

McGeorge said: "I have always been fascinated with the locked-room mystery, and a locked prison cell is the ultimate version of it, so I knew I had to tackle it. Cara Lockhart is put in the impossible situation where she knows she didn't kill her cellmate, and the guards don't believe her, because why would they? Inside Out is an exploration of people's perceptions and Cara starts to realise how hard it is for those perceptions to change. With Guess Who and Now You See Me I played around with the locked-room concept, and Inside Out is the culmination. I am very excited to be telling this story with Orion and can't wait to share it."

Orion Fiction will publish in paperback original, e-book and audio on 6th August 2020.

From The Bookseller article | Katherine Cowdrey

The outpouring of book love over the last few weeks has really lifted our spirits and is testament to the fact that books are pure escapism, and can never be undervalued. 

​We hope you are all managing to stay safe & well in this very uncertain times.

We should like to kick off this week's news roundup with a fantastic review from The Times, for Liberation, the joint effort between Imogen Kealey and client Imogen Robertson. 

Liberation tells the fascinating story of Nancy Wake, who was born in New Zealand but grew up in Australia before fleeing at 16. She eventually made a new life in France, first as a freelance journalist then as a socialite wife, and finally as a courageous agent with a price of five million francs put on her head by the Gestapo.

"These are exciting and well-written accounts of wartime valour, and their protagonist's qualities shine through. As the authors' note to Liberation observes, Nancy Wake's life was too full to be contained by any single novel... fine addition(s) to the literature on this extraordinary woman."

Liberation is published by Sphere / Little, Brown in hardback and eBook on Thursday 26th March. 

Also released last week in paperback, was Paul Fraser Collard's The Lost Outlaw​ (Headline), the 8th in the Jack Lark series. 

In the midst of civil war, America stands divided. Jack Lark has faced both armies first hand, but will no longer fight for a cause that isn't his...

Get your copy here.

We are delighted to be able to show you the cover for Amanda Jennings' new novel, The Storm. 

To the outside world Hannah married the perfect man. Behind the closed doors of their imposing home it’s a very different story. Nathan controls everything Hannah does. He chooses her clothes, checks her receipts, and keeps her passport locked away. But why does she let him? Years before, in the midst of a relentless storm, the tragic events of one night changed everything. And Hannah has been living with the consequences ever since. Keeping Nathan happy. Doing as she’s told.
 
But the past is about to catch up with them.
 
Set against the unforgiving backdrop of a Cornish fishing port in the ‘90s, this is a devastating exploration of the power of coercive control in a marriage where nothing is quite as it seems…

With a number of fantastic pre-publication endorsements, The Storm will be published by HQ in July 2020 and is available for pre-order here.

If your little ones love reading, and are stuck at home at the moment, then there is no better time to introduce them to the magic world of Abi Elphinstone. 

Abi's new series, Unmapped Chronicles (beginning with Rumblestar and out now) is the perfect escapism, and you can watch Abi talk about the new UC book, Jungledrop (S&S Kids, May 2020) via this link here. 

In addition, Abi has also revealed a sneak peek at the first three chapters of Jungledrop. Fancy a look? Just click here.

Finally, The Irish Times has reviewed Brian McGilloway's forthcoming new book The Last Crossing:

"... McGilloway brings a forensic and compassionate eye to bear on the post-Troubles settlement in this thoughtful, moving, morally complex book."

The Last Crossing will be published on 2nd April by The Dome Press, and a signed first edition is available to order here.

#StayHomeSaveLives

We hope you're managing to stay safe & well out there, and have a stack of great books by the bed. If not, let us help you out by telling you the brilliant things our clients have been up to this past week. 

Gerard O'Donovan's The Long Silence (Severn House, Jan 2018), which is the first in his Tom Collins' mystery series set in Hollywood's golden age of the roaring 1920s, is included in Kobo's 'Best of Irish' promo, running from 12th - 18th March.

Download your copy here. 

Amy McLellan appeared in this month's Writing magazine to discuss her debut novel, Remember Me (Orion Books), which was published in eBook in November 2019, and the paperback will be published next month. 

Pre-order your paperback copy here. 

Georgia Kaufmann's upcoming debut novel The Dressmaker of Paris has sold in a further two territories: Sweden (Modernista) and Poland (Otwarte).

The book is due for release in January 2021 from Hodder & Stoughton.

Client Andrew Ewart wrote a piece for The Express based around the ideas that led him to writing his speculative debut thriller, Forget Me (Orion Books, Feb 2020). 

Get your copy here.

Wranglestone (Stripes Publishing, Feb 2020) by Darren Charlton, was selected as one of The Irish Times' picks in their Young Adult round-up. 

"Gripping... [a] fun, smart take on zombie lore is definitely one to pick up."

​Get your copy here. 

If you like your fiction fairly close to home in these less-than-certain times, then you're going to want to make a note in your diary for Eve Smith's upcoming debut novel The Waiting Rooms (Orenda Books, July 2020)

Decades of spiraling drug resistance have unleashed a global antibiotic crisis. Ordinary infections are untreatable, and a scratch from a pet can kill. A sacrifice is required to keep the majority safe: no one over seventy is allowed new antibiotics. The elderly are sent to hospitals nicknamed 'The Waiting Rooms' ... hospitals where no one ever gets well.

The book received a fantastic endorsement from Miranda Dickinson this week: "Stunning... Terrifying and wrenches your heart in every way possible, but written with such humanity and emotion."

The only kind of panic buying we would heartily endorse at this stage is BOOKS. All the books. And there are some fantastic deals available for your eReader:
​

• Sara MacDonald's In A Kingdom By the Sea is included in the Kindle Spring Sale for the entirety of March, for only 99p
• Selected for the US Kindle Monthly Deal for March are Clare Boyd's Three Secrets and fantastic chilling debut Little Liar, 99c a piece
• Adrian Magson's first Inspector Lucas Rocco book, Death on the Marais is included in Kobo's 99 for 99p sale
• Also included in the Kobo sale is R.C. Bridgestock's Payback, the first in their new series starring DI Charley Mann

Simply click on any of the titles above to take you straight to the respective deals!

Also published this week was the paperback for Anna Stephens' Bloodchild, the third and final installment in the Godblind trilogy. 

The long-prophesied final battle for the future of Rilpor and Mireces, of humans and gods, is near.

Very happy to announce a couple of rights sales for Georgia Kaufmann's forthcoming debut, The Dressmaker of Paris (January 2021, Hodder & Stoughton). 

Italian rights were snapped up by Mondadori, and German rights went to Goldmann. 

Finally, Abi Elphinstone's beautiful children's book, Sky Song, has been given a stunning makeover in the form of a brand new cover and re-release. 

Set in the snowy kingdom of Erkenwald, we join Eska, a girl who breaks free from a cursed music box, and Flint, a boy whose inventions could change the fate of Erkenwald forever, as they journey to the Never Cliffs and beyond in search of an ancient, almost forgotten, song with the power to force the Ice Queen back.