Head of Zeus has snared Clare Whitfield’s “explosive” debut novel about a woman who suspects her husband is Jack the Ripper, in a two-book deal.

Commissioning editor Madeleine O'Shea bought world rights from David Headley at D H H Literary Agency. The first book in the deal, People of Abandoned Character, will be published in October 2020 as Head of Zeus’s lead crime debut for that year.

The synopsis explains: “When Susannah Chapman rushes into marriage with wealthy surgeon Thomas Lancaster, she believes her future is set. But after the honeymoon things start to turn sour at home, and as Susannah follows the newspaper reports of the terrifying killer stalking the streets of Whitechapel, her suspicions over where her errant husband has been spending his time take the darkest route possible.”

O’Shea said:  “This book has the biggest, most explosive central hook – a new bride suspects her mysterious husband of being the notorious killer, Jack the Ripper. How could you not be gripped? People of Abandoned Character is page-turning for sure, but it also engages with important questions on gender, class and mental health, making it a book for crime-lovers and reading groups alike.”

According to HoZ, Whitfield lives in a UK suburb where the main cultural landmark is a home store/Starbucks combo. She is the wife of a tattoo artist, mother of a benign dictator and relies on a black Labrador for emotional stability. She has been a dancer, copywriter, amateur fire breather, buyer and mediocre weight lifter.

She said: “I’m fascinated by characters that tread a fine line between right and wrong. Can a bad deed ever be right if it’s necessary to survive? My main character, Susannah, has to navigate Victorian London in the 1880s, a chaotic and unequal society, and I’m beyond thrilled she’s found a home at Head of Zeus.”

From The Bookseller article | Mark Chapman

​We are kicking off this week’s news roundup with the Very Exciting News that M.W. Craven won the CWA Gold Dagger Award for his novel The Puppet Show, the first in the Washington Poe series.
 
This is the highest accolade awarded by the Crime Writers’ Association, for Best Published Novel.
 
Naturally, we are over the moon, but not surprised. We knew this one was special from the get-go, and couldn’t be prouder of Mike.
 
If you’ve yet to read this superb book (perfectly understandable if you live under a rock) then now is the perfect time to start. It is followed by Black Summer, which was released in June 2019, and The Curator will be out in summer 2020.

M.W. Craven, David Headley (agent), Krystyna Green (publisher at Little, Brown)

​Lovely news from Iceland last week, with Ragnar Jónasson’s White Death hitting the No.1 spot in the country, with critics hailing it as “Ragnar’s best book yet”.

​We were honoured to be sponsoring this year’s Polari Prize for a new Award, celebrating the best LGBT writing, to run alongside the Polari First Novel Prize and in its inaugural year, it was awarded to poet Andrew McMillan for his collection playtime. Andrew received the Polari Prize from 2019 joint-Booker winner Bernadine Evaristo, who hailed McMillan for “exploring coming of age, masculinity and sexuality in ways that move and surprise. His poetic voice is completely natural and free, with no pretence or attempts to obfuscate meaning, yet the work has emotional complexity, power and depth.”
 
Congratulations, Andrew!

(L-R): David Headley, Andrew McMillan, Bernadine Evaristo, Angela Chadwick, Paul Burston & Fiona McMurrough

​Anna Jacob’s next Peppercorn series book, Christmas In Peppercorn Street, was released last week and just in time for the clocks going back - the perfect time to snuggle down with a good read.

Finally, we cannot wait for the release of Anita Frank’s debut novel The Lost Ones, this Thursday. And neither, it seems, can the Sunday Times, who chose it as part of their historical round-up for October, labelling it “unsettling”.
 
If you love your novels with a touch of the gothic, then this bone-chiller is the one for you.

This weekend, S Magazine reviewed the book, labelling it an "eerie, emotionally supernatural tale" and also ran a short story written by Anita. 
 
Also this weekend, Anita sat down with TalkRadio’s Penny Smith to discuss all things ghostly. To listen again, click here (09.30 - 10.00 slot, approx. 14 minutes in).
 
Read Anita’s ‘My Road To Publication’ feature over on booksbywomen.org here.

We're all celebrating today in the DHH office, as M.W. Craven's The Puppet Show has been awarded the CWA Gold Dagger Award, the highest accolade, for the Best Published Novel of the Year. 

This, the first in the Washington Poe series, was originally published in June 2018 and fast garnered high praise:

• Shortlisted for the Capital Crime / Amazon Publishing Best Crime Novel of the Year Award 2019
• Shortlisted for the Goldsboro Books Glass Bell Award 2019
• Selected as Goldsboro Books' BOTM in June 2018
• "Fantastic" Martina Cole
• "Dark, sharp and compelling" Peter James
• ​"A thrilling curtain raiser for what's set to be a great new series." Mick Herron

Black Summer followed in July 2019 and The Curator is due for publication in July 2020 - we're counting down the days already...

Congratulations, Mike!

​We are slowly but surely recovering after one of the busiest weeks in the literary calendar: the Frankfurt Book Fair. It was easily one of the best Fairs we’ve been to in recent years - the atmosphere was fantastic, the book love was palpable and most of all, we absolutely loved talking about our clever clients and their books. Super proud agents!

Abi Elphinstone’s upcoming book, The Snow Dragon (illustrated beautifully by Fiona Woodcock) has been given a lovely write-up by Love Reading in their newsletter:
 
“Not since The Snowman have readers been taken on such a magical, snowy journey of love and adventure. Filled with snowflakes, starlight and revelling in the power of the imagination this is a gorgeous story for Christmas nights and Fiona Woodcock’s illustrations are very special indeed.”
 
The Snow Dragon will be released on 31st October from Simon & Schuster, and you can pre-order here.

Congratulations to Eva Björg Ægisdóttir whose second book, Girls Who Lie, is at No.1 in her native Iceland.
 
We couldn’t be happier for this incredibly talented author, whose first book in the UK, The Creak on the Stairs, is due for publication in May 2020.

Janie Millman stopped by her local E.Leclerc in France to sign copies of the French version of her debut novel, Life’s A Drag - or, we should say, Les Copines d’Abord!

​The cover was revealed for Adrian Magson’s Death at the Clos du Lac last week. This is the final title in the Inspector Lucas Rocco series that the Dome Press have reacquired and reissued, with a revised text and brand new cover. It will be released in eBook on 1st November.
 
The book follows Death on the Marais, Death on the Rive Nord and Death on the Pont Noir.
 
France, 1964
 
The man was standing on the bottom of the therapy pool in the Clos du Lac sanitarium , his white cotton shirt billowing out like gossamer in the clear blue water…
 
At the exclusive Clos du Lac, a man is discovered standing in the therapy pool. But he is not there for his health; someone has chained him to the bottom, and left him to die there slowly.
 
Inspector Lucas Rocco believes it’s an unusual and elaborate method of execution, but finds that the inhabitants of the Clos du Lac are unwilling to talk. Nobody seems to have heard or seen anything, and the staff are resolutely unhelpful - or dead.
 
Meanwhile, ministry officials sent from Paris to ‘assist’ in the investigation attempt to impede Rocco’s efforts to find answers. It soon becomes clear the Clos du Lac is no ordinary sanitarium, and holds secrets the authorities feel are better left hidden. And with a high-level kidnapping mounted in an attempt to derail France’s new trade agreements with China, Rocco faces threats from more than one quarter… one of them a rogue government assassin.

PSST…!
 
Have you written a novel?
 
Would you like the chance to pitch it to one of the DHH agents with a view to getting valuable feedback?
 
Come and see us at PitchDHH in December, when we will be in Liverpool. Click here to find out more.
 
** SUBMISSIONS CLOSE THIS FRIDAY (25TH OCTOBER 2019) AT 6PM **
​

​We’d like to kickstart this week’s round up by welcoming a brand new client to the DHH stable.
 
Adam Simcox was signed by Harry Illingworth over the weekend and we simply couldn’t wait to shout about it. Adam will be working with Harry on his debut novel, The Dying Squad, the first of a new series that is Line of Duty meets Rivers of London. The novel begins when Joe Lazarus storms a Lincolnshire farmhouse, expecting to bring down the county lines drug gang within it; instead, he discovers his own bleeding-out body and a ghostly teenage spirit guide called Daisy-May. She’s there to enlist him to The Dying Squad, a spectral police force who solve crimes their flesh and blood colleagues cannot. Joe reluctantly accepts and must face dangers from both the living and the dead if he’s to discover the identity of his killer and bring them to justice.
 
Welcome, Adam!

Also released in eBook last week was Jules Wake’s winter warmer, Notting Hill in the Snow. The perfect romantic read to get you ready for the festive season, it’s only £1.99 on Kindle for a limited time only…
 
It’s mayhem in Bethlehem… unless they can work together!
Viola Smith plays the viola in an orchestra (yes really!), but this year she’s been asked to stretch her musical talents to organising Notting Hill’s local nativity.
Nate Williams isn’t looking forward to Christmas but as his small daughter, Grace, has the starring role in the show, he’s forced to stop being a Grinch and volunteer with Viola.
With the sparks between them hotter than the chestnuts roasting in Portobello market, Nate and Viola can’t deny their feelings. And as the snow starts to fall over London, they find themselves trapped together in more ways than one…
 
Download your copy here.

​A couple of lovely rights deals now:
 
Jo Thomas’ A Winter Beneath the Stars has been sold to Era in Bulgaria, and The Little Café in Copenhagen from Julie Caplin has had Danish rights sold to Turbulenz. Congratulations, ladies!

​David Wragg’s debut fantasy novel The Black Hawks was launched last week at Goldsboro Books, who have a beautiful hardback edition with sprayed red edges. Buy your copy here.

Finally, we were every excited to see the title reveal of Stuart Turton’s new book with Bloomsbury Raven, The Devil and the Dark Water. More details about the book itself to follow, but for now, all you need to know is:
 
A tale of murder on the high seas, a detective duo and a demon who may or may not exist…
 
Oh, and that it’s out on 1st October 2020. Pre-order here.

First things first, we’d like to wish client Carys Jones a huge congratulations as her new novel The List has been sold to Orion Books as part of a two-book deal negotiated by David Headley. It is due for publication in 2020.
 
To read the full press release, and to find out more about this superbly clever thriller, click here.

We’ve got some eBook deals for you, courtesy of Kindle and Apple Books.
 
Joanna Toye’s A Store At War, Jean Levy’s What Was Lost, Julie Caplin's ​The Little Paris Patisserie and Keris Stainton’s The One Who’s Not the One are only 99p, £1.99, 99p and 99p respectively. Click on the titles above to go straight to the deals!
 
Also by Keris Stainton, If You Could See Me Now, is only 99c as part of the Apple Books US Feel-Good Romance sale (1 - 8 October). 

​We’ve got a veritable plethora of cover reveals to catch you up on from last week!
 
First up, is the paperback for M.W. Craven’s Black Summer, the second in the Washington Poe series, which follows The Puppet Show. This incredibly twisty, gritty crime novel will be released in this format on 12 December.

​James Goodhand was one of the pitchers at our very first #PitchDHH event back in April 2017 and we are over the moon to see the cover for his debut YA novel Last Lesson. An important book on youth and mental health, this will be out in May 2020.

As the weather has become decidedly cooler, it seems the perfect time to show you the cover for Phillipa Ashley’s sparkly new book, A Perfect Cornish Christmas (following A Perfect Cornish Summer), out on 31 October.

​Finally, we are very excited to be able to show you the cover for Brian McGilloway’s forthcoming novel The Last Crossing, published in April 2020 by the Dome Press. With notes of Donna Tartt set against the backdrop of the Troubles, we cannot wait for this superb book. 

It’s not even out yet, but Anita Frank’s debut gothic horror novel The Lost Ones has already been chosen as one of Magic FM’s October Book Club titles, and is also a Woman & Home Book Club pick for November.
 
We are thrilled for this incredibly talented author and trust us when we say: this book is going to be HUGE. The perfect book for curling up with on these chillier, decidedly spookier autumnal nights…

​Lastly, we come to the DHH books out this week. There’s one or two…
 
Wartime for the Shop Girls, the second in the Marlow’s Department Store series by Joanna Toye (following A Store At War) was released in eBook

​The third volume of the Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards, curated by Paul Joynson Hicks and Tom Sullam was released, just a handful of weeks after the finalists for the Award were released.

​The debut fantasy novel from David Wragg, The Black Hawks, the first in the Articles of Faith duology was released this week and we’re very much looking forward to launching this epic - very funny - beauty next week. 

The Island, the second in Ragnar Jónasson’s Hidden Iceland series was also set free in to the world complete with a gorgeous paperback cover. We might be a little bit in love.

Samantha Baines’ debut children’s book Harriet Versus the Galaxy saw its publication and we couldn’t resist but show you the photo of Sam’s dress at the launch - perfectly in keeping with the theme of the book!

​PSST...!

Have you written a novel?

Would you like the chance to pitch it to one of the DHH agents with a view to getting valuable feedback?

Come and see us at PitchDHH in December, when we will be in Liverpool. Click here to find out more.

Orion Fiction has snared two novels by crime writer Carys Jones, with The List to be published in December 2020 as a paperback and e-book.

Publishing director Francesca Pathak acquired world rights from David Headley at D H H Literary Agency.

The List opens with the premise: “Five names on a list. The first two are dead. The third one is yours.” 

Its synopsis explains: “Beth Belmont runs every day. She knows every turn, every bump in the road. So when she spots something out of place, a slip of white paper at the base of a tree she’s drawn to it. On the paper are written five names. The third is her own.

“Concerned, Beth pockets the list and takes it home. Why is she on the list? And what ties her to the other four strangers on it? Finally, Beth’s curiosity gets the better of her and she searches for the first two names on the list, only to discover that they are both dead. Is she next? Terrified, Beth delves into the past of the deceased names on the list but the truth she finds will be darker and more dangerous than even her worst nightmares .”

Jones said: “I'm thrilled to be working with Francesca and becoming part of Orion. Both she and David have been hugely supportive of The List and I can't wait for it to be released next year.”

Pathak added: “I am always drawn to a book with a cracking premise and Carys has delivered that and so much more with The List. I can’t wait to publish Carys at Orion Fiction.”

From The Bookseller article | Mark Chandler