Liberation, the co-written novel by Imogen Robertson and Imogen Kealey has sold its audio rights to Isis Publishing. The film for this fascinating book, inspired by the incredible true story of World War II’s “greatest heroine” Nancy Wake, is set to star Oscar winner Anne Hathaway.

Polish rights for the thrilling new book by G.S. Locke, Neon, have been snapped up by Proszynski.

Paul Hardisty’s new standalone book, Turbulent Wake, was picked as Love Reading’s Pick of the Week. It also received a wonderful review from Hair Past A Freckle blog: “If you like literary fiction with heart then you MUST read the stunning Turbulent Wake – powerful, evocative, profound; I savoured every word.” To read the whole review, click here.

Metro News featured an interview with client Samantha Baines this week, regarding hearing aids. Samantha discovered at the age of 30 that she needed to wear a hearing aid, and put it off as long as she could, admitting she had an outdated view of them. However, wearing a hearing aid has completely changed her life, and inspired her first children’s book, Harriet!, due to be published by Knights Of, in October 2019. 

A Perfect Cornish Summer, the first in “queen of Cornish romance” Phillipa Ashley’s new series hit No.2 on the Heatskeers chart this week.

It was in the news this week, that vandals broke in to, and destroyed, a local model train exhibition. Luke Turner wrote a piece for the Guardian on the importance of model trains helping mental health. “Not just for anoraks: model railways are a joyful escape from the pressures of masculinity”. Luke’s debut non-fiction novel Out of the Woods was published by W&N in January 2019. To read the full article, click here.

Luke Turner has also been confirmed for an appearance at Glastonbury, where he will be discussing his book with Emam Warren, on the Friday of the festival (28th June).

Two French covers for our clients’ books were revealed this week: The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle (or Les Sept Morts d’Evelyn Hardcastle) by Stuart Turton and Life's A Drag (or Les Copines d’Abord) by Janie Millman. 

The cover for the EIGHTH in LC Tyler’s Elsie and Ethelred series, The Maltese HerringThe Maltese Herring, was also revealed this week. Join Ethelred Tressider and Elsie Thirkettle as they attempt to solve the murder of Dr Hilary Joyce, who was “neither liked nor respected among his academic peers” and at the time of his death, working to uncover the truth behind a local Sussex legend: the ‘buried treasure story’.

Phyllida Shrimpton’s debut YA novel Sunflowers In February won the Falkirk Schools Red 13 Awards. Since 2006, hundreds of 13 and 14-year-olds from the Falkirk area have voted for their favourite books and had the chance to meet acclaimed authors from across the UK.

Finally, proofs for Anita Frank’s debut novel The Lost Ones, have landed and we are hopping with excitement! This is a haunting novel, weaving a spell-binding tale of family tragedy, loss and redemption. The book is available to pre-order now and will be released on Hallowe’en 2019!

The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton was discussed by Sarah Han on the Today Show, as her pick of ‘Mystery/Thriller’ in their segment on the best new books to check out this summer. Of course, we heartily agree with this endorsement and you can see the clip for yourself by clicking on this link.
 
There were huge celebrations in the DHH office this week when we learnt that Seven Deaths has, to date, sold over 100,000 paperback copies in the UK! We are completely thrilled for Stuart and his publisher Bloomsbury Raven. This mind-bending, extraordinarily clever book is a must for any bookshelf. You can grab your copy right here.

The second book in Abi Elphinstone’s Unmapped Chronicles series has been revealed… JUNGLEDROP! Following from the first in the series, Rumblestar, Jungledrop is a story about glow-in-the-dark rainforests, gobblequick trees and golden panthers, but it’s also a story about being kind – to others, to our planet and, perhaps hardest of all, to ourselves. Jungledrop will be out from Simon & Schuster Kids in Spring 2020. 

Other very exciting award news, it was announced this week that JD Fennell’s Sleeper: the Red Storm has been shortlisted for the Wilbur and Niso Smith Adventure Writing Prize. The winner will be announced at a ceremony on the 12th September 2019, at London’s Stationers’ Hall. In the meantime, you can hear four of the six authors shortlisted in conversation, including JD Fennell, at Stanfords bookshop in Covent Garden, on Thursday 23rd May, 7pm. For more information, and to book your tickets, click here.

It might seem like an absolute age away until the next Bank Holiday, but on the bright side, that's plenty of time to stock up your eReader with as many quality reads as you can and luckily, a number of DHH books are on offer for your literary pleasure!

Three of the books in Anna Jacobs' Rivenshaw saga are just 99p throughout May, A Time For Renewal and A Time To Rejoice, as part of the May Madness Kindle Deal, and Gifts For Our Time in the Kindle Monthly Deal. 

Rocco and the Price of Lies by Adrian Magson and White Lilies and Poetic Justice by R.C. Bridgestock are all below £2.99 in Kobo's Cheap Reads Sale.

You've got just a few days left to take advantage of the crazy-low prices for both J.D. Fennell's books, Sleeper and Sleeper: The Red Storm, in celebration of the latter being long listed for the Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize. Sleeper is only 95p on Kindle and 99p on Kobo and Sleeper: The Red Storm is £1.89 on Kindle and £1.99 on Kobo. 

​A very exciting event was announced this week: Empowering Teens In YA. DHH client Kate Mallinder will be appearing on a panel alongside fellow YA authors Lucy Powrie, Alexandra Sheppard and Gill Stewart, at Foyle's on Charing Cross Road, on Thursday 25th July. Sitting down with award-winning book blogger Michelle Toy, the panel will explore the topic of "empowering teens in YA", focusing on characterization, storytelling and representation as means of encouraging young peoples' creative expression through reading. Tickets are £5 and you can book yours here. Kate's debut YA novel Summer of No Regrets was released earlier this month.

Client Luke Turner has written a piece for BBC Three's online blog centered around the "LGBT groups changing the face of football fandom". A fascinating article and one you will be glad you read, and you can do so right here.

Congratulations to DHH client M.W. Craven who has been nominated for a CWA Gold Dagger Award for his novel The Puppet Show, the first in the Washington Poe series and Mike's debut. To celebrate, Amazon has lowered the price of the paperback to just £2.00. No, your eyes are not​ deceiving you - only £2.00! The second in the series, Black Summer is published in June so now is the perfect time to snap up the first one. 

​Some very exciting news... Adam Hamdy has recently signed up to co-write a book with James Patterson in the PRIVATE series. Due for publication in 2020 we’ll have more details soon so watch this space!

​We're jumping the gun slightly with the next two pieces of news, but they're too blooming' fabulous not to share asap!

Ragnar Jónasson's The Darkness was featured in the Sunday Times feature, 'The 100 Best Crime Novels Since 1945'. While we can totally believe it, no big deal and all that (insert ironic emoji) it's still rather exceptional and pride-inducing to see the first in the Hulda Hermansdóttir 'Hidden Iceland' series listed alongside the likes of Georges Simenon and Agatha Christie - and speaking of the Queen of Crime, if you love a Christie novel then you are 100% guaranteed to fall head over heels for any and all of Ragnar's books. We can't recommend them enough. 

​Finally, our lovely Paul Burston saw in the eBook publication of his new book The Closer I Get, a twisty, psychological tale of obsession caught up in the tangled wires of social media. It's a heart-stopper and available right here. 

Delighted for Abi Elphinstone and her forthcoming middle-grade book Rumblestar, as it was revealed last week that Waterstones are going to be doing an exclusive limited edition, complete with blue sprayed edges and a bonus chapter. It’s available to pre-order now, so what are you waiting for?
 
A trailer for Rumblestar has also been released. Casper Tock hates risks and is allergic to adventures, so it comes as a nasty shock to him when he accidentally stumbles into Rumblestar… To watch the trailer, click here.

​J.D. Fennell’s second book Sleeper: The Red Storm has been longlisted for the Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize 2019 for Best Published Novel. We are so excited for J.D., whose first book Sleeper was nominated for a number of awards and The Red Storm is in some fabulous company.
 
The prize is given annually and this year, the focus is on the best adventure novels published between 1st May 2018 and 30th April 2019, with entries open to writers of any nationality, writing in English. From the longlist, a number of books will now be selected for the shortlist and, under guidance from an expert judging panel, the £15,000 first prize for Best Published Novel will be awarded at a ceremony on the 12th September 2019, at London’s Stationers’ Hall. 

Rocco and the Price of Lies (Adrian Magson)
“A great crime thriller that will keep you entertained and guessing throughout!” MADEUP Group
“Delighted to have discovered a new series I can enjoy and I am very much looking forward to catching up on the earlier stories. Highly recommended.”
Grab This Book
“A quality crime and investigation novel, recommended!”
Big Fat Bookworm

The Island (Ragnar Jónasson)
“[Ragnar Jónasson] demonstrates easy command of the police procedural format, and is well aware that he can take his time with the steady, methodical bringing together of key facts. Hulda Hermansdóttir is a striking character - both gloomy and tenacious - and she is a key reason for the success of this atmospheric novel.”
Barry Forshaw, EuroLit Network

Marked Men (Chris Simms)
“First class. I shall be buying the first in the series and adding Chris Simms to the list of my favourite authors.”
Breakaway Reviews
​

German rights for Phillipa Ashley’s new book A Perfect Cornish Summer have been sold to DuMont. This perfect summer read is the first in a gorgeous new series.
 
Summer is on the horizon, and the people of Porthmellow are eagerly awaiting the annual food festival. At least, most of them are…
 
The eBook for this title is out now and you can order it here. The paperback will be released next Thursday (16th May).

Finally, a very exciting cover reveal took place last week. Payback is the first in a brand new series by R.C. Bridgestock, authors of the DI Jack Dylan series. Payback stars DI Charley Mann and is set in rural Yorkshire. The Dome Press will be publishing Payback in eBook in December (pre-order here) and paperback in January 2020.

Sleeper: The Red Storm, the second book from JD Fennell has been longlisted for the Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize 2019. 

The prize is given annually and this year, the focus is on the best adventure novels published between 1st May 2018 and 30th April 2019, with entries open to writers of any nationality, writing in English. 

Submissions were received by authors from across the world including the USA, Australia, Nigeria, South Africa, Canada, New Zealand and many more.

The Wilbur Niso Smith Foundation worked with experienced library professionals to select the titles for the longlist. 

From the longlist, a number of books will now be selected for the shortlist and, under guidance from an expert judging panel, the £15,000 first prize for Best Published Novel will be awarded at a ceremony on the 12th September 2019, at London's Stationers' Hall. 

​We are so thrilled for JD, congratulations!