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Penguin Michael Joseph to publish its Christmas Love Story competition winner’s festive rom-com

12/18/2022

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Penguin Michael Joseph has acquired the “uplifting and joyfully festive” The Christmas Swap by the winner of the PMJ Christmas Love Story Competition, Talia Samuels.

Editorial director Rebecca Hilsdon acquired world rights from Emily Glenister at D H H Literary Agency after Samuels was selected out of hundreds of applicants last year when Penguin Michael Joseph launched the contest. 
The PMJ Christmas Love Story Competition is an opportunity for unpublished writers in the UK and Ireland to submit their festive, feel-good romance novels to be considered for publication by the publisher.

Entries were judged by a panel from the Penguin Michael Joseph editorial team, as well as Times journalist Phoebe Luckhurst, author of The Lock In (published by PMJ).

The winning novel follows Margot Murray, a newly single businesswoman with no interest in a cutesy seasonal romance, who agrees to pose as the girlfriend of unlucky-in-love Ben Gibson.
His family live in a picture-perfect manor in the countryside and every year ask when he’s going to meet “The One”. Ben realises only one thing will stop them asking – introducing them to his new “girlfriend”. The story can only go one way. Margot is sure to fall in love for real. And she does. With Ben’s sister, Ellie.

Samuels said: “This experience has been a dream come true from the start – not least because I received the good news while tucking into a jalfrezi. Rebecca has been the perfect fit as an editor and her guidance has helped shape this book into all I wanted it to be and more. I am beyond delighted to be sharing this story full of love, silliness and queer joy.”

Hilsdon said: “It was wonderful running our Christmas Love Story Competition last year and we were lucky enough to read stories from so many talented writers. However, Talia’s novel was precisely what we were looking for – warm-hearted, festive and funny – and will be the perfect seasonal romance for 2023.”

Glenister added: “Talia is one of those rare gems of an author, whose writing makes you feel like you’re chatting to your best mate and The Christmas Swap is no exception. We need far more queer love stories in the commercial fiction space and I am so excited that this very funny, very frank (and at times rather sexy) story will soon be in readers’ hands!” The Christmas Swap will be published in October 2023.

​From The Bookseller article | Lauren Brown
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DHH News Roundup 5th - 11th December 2023

12/10/2022

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In our final DHH News Roundup of 2022, we have some fantastic updates from your from our clients. 

Thank you to all the readers, publishers and of course, clients, who continue to make the world of books such a delight to wake up to every day. 

Have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Love,
​DHH Literary Agency

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We were delighted to see the below endorsements for Chris McGeorge's most recent book, A Murder at the Castle:

"McGeorge is an accomplished master of misdirection and as we join faithful servant, chef extraordinaire and amateur detective Jon on his journey into the Windsors’ stronghold of dirty secrets and hidden desires, the suspects and their motives tumble out like a sack of warring ferrets ... [A] gripping slice of pure Christmas escapism."
Lancashire Evening Post
"It's the perfect stocking stuffer for book lovers who get into thrillers ... Everyone's a suspect in this who-dun-it, in this spine-tingling yuletide mystery."
The Week

The cover for Stephen Moss' forthcoming book, Ten Birds That Changed the World​ (March 2023, Faber), has been revealed:
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For the whole of human history, we have lived alongside birds. We have hunted and domesticated them for food; venerated them in our mythologies, religion and rituals; exploited them for their natural resources; and been inspired by them for our music, art and poetry.

In Ten Birds that Changed the World, naturalist and author Stephen Moss tells the gripping story of this long and eventful relationship through ten key species from all seven of the world’s continents. From Odin’s faithful raven companions to Darwin’s finches, and from the wild turkey of the Americas to the emperor penguin as potent symbol of the climate crisis, this is a fascinating, eye-opening and endlessly engaging work of natural history.

Happy Publication Day to Mark de Jager - Homecoming's Fall was published in paperback last week. This is the standalone addition to the 'After the War' series. A band of elite warriors, who missed the fall of the Kinslayer, are tasked with stopping a new evil…
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Victoria Selman's latest novel, Truly, Darkly, Deeply was selected as a Woman & Home Book of the Year, as well as a Book of the Year for Prima magazine. 

Huge congratulations, Victoria!

Also published this week was Love Under Contract, the debut novel from Cassie Connor. For fans of Emily Henry and Tessa Bailey, this is the perfect read to cosy up with this Christmas. 
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The Plant Hunter by T. L. Mogford was named as one of The Times' Books of the Year:

"The Plant Hunter is full of suspense and at time, laugh-out-loud funny. I was sad when I got to the end. Job done, T. L. Mogford."

Another cover reveal this week was for Maddie Please's Sunrise With the Silver Surfers!​
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Newly single at sixty, Elin Anderson decides it’s finally time for an adventure of her own. With her marriage to tedious Tom now officially over, Elin plans to visit the family she hasn’t seen in years. First stop: Australia!

But going home is harder than Elin thought. Everywhere she turns Elin sees brightness and colour, which only makes her own life seem even more drab and beige. How has she let herself fade away?

Determined to have some fun, Elin reluctantly agrees to join The Silver Surfers – a group of seniors who travel the coast, only caring about their next big adventure. Because life’s too short to watch the ocean when you could be making waves…

There’s only one catch – her road trip companion, Kit Pascoe. Kit is a man who doesn’t know the meaning of the word fun and makes it clear to Elin that this adventure will be subject to his own strict rules.

But with every new day, Elin slowly begins to rediscover who she really is. And she’s certain that rules are meant to be broken…aren’t they?

The new book from Noel O'Reilly, The Darlings of the Asylum, was published in hardback, eBook and audio last week. It is the second novel from the Wrecker author and is a gripping new dark historical fiction and captivating winter read for 2022…
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We are very happy to welcome Katy Harrison to the Agency. Katy, who joins Emily Glenister's list, is working on her debut novel, Together In Electric Dreams​.

Bestselling author, Becca Day, has sold her next two psychological thrillers to current publishers Embla Books.

In a deal negotiated by Emily Glenister, Hannah Smith bought World English Language rights and the first in the contract, The Secrets We Buried, will be published in summer 2023. 

Becca's debut novel, The Girl Beyond the Gate (March 2022) was a Top 15 Kindle Bestseller.
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Finally, congratulations to Graham Bartlett, who last week saw his debut novel, Bad For Good, win the Editor's Choice Award at the Crime Friction Lover Awards 2022. 

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Embla Books seizes two new ‘breathtaking’ thrillers from Becca Day

12/10/2022

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​Embla Books, the digital-first commercial fiction imprint of Bonnier Books UK, has snapped up two new psychological thrillers from Becca Day.

Hannah Smith, who helped launch Embla before recently moving to Penguin Michael Joseph, acquired world English-language rights from Emily Glenister at DHH Literary agency. The first of the two, The Secrets We Buried, will be published in summer 2023, with the next to follow in early 2024.

Smith’s replacement Cara Chimirri will be publishing both new Becca Day books in her role as editorial director. Chimirri said: “Becca Day is absolutely at the top of her game and delivers exactly what fans of psychological thrillers are looking for. She had me hooked from the very first page and her masterful twists never fail to take me by surprise. The way in which readers have reacted to Becca’s amazing writing has been extraordinary, and we are beyond thrilled to be publishing two new outstanding thrillers from her.”

Day, whose first two books, The Girl Beyond the Gate and All Her Little Lies, were also published by Embla, said: “I am so excited to be continuing my journey with Embla for two more books. The whole team is so wonderfully collaborative, making my début experience an absolute dream. I can’t wait to see what we all come up with next with the exciting addition of Cara Chimirri’s editorial vision.”

Glenister said the “phenomenal success” that Day achieved with Embla for her début, The Girl Beyond the Gate, is “testament to the dedication and vision they set out to have from the get-go”.
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“I couldn’t be happier that Becca’s next two heart-pounding psychological thrillers will continue to be published by them, with the addition of Cara Chimirri, whose excitement echoes fiercely that of the rest of the Embla team. Becca’s star is well and truly on the rise,” she said.

​From The Bookseller article | Lauren Brown
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DHH News Roundup 28th November - 4th December 2022

12/4/2022

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As we head into December, and the Christmas holiday draws ever closer, we have some fantastic books deals to help you while away the time; simply click on the covers below to take you straight to the promo:
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A date for your diaries!

Client Victoria Selman will be doing a very special event at the Brighton branch of Goldsboro Books in March 2023.

Victoria will be joined by fellow authors Elly Griffiths, Araminta Hall and Ruth Ware for 'Celebrating Women in Crime Fiction'.

Click this link to book your tickets - they're selling fast!

Phillipa Ashley contributed a short story to last week's edition of My Weekly, entitled 'Special Connections'.
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The magazine is on sale now. In addition, the magazine reviewed Phillipa's latest book, the fabulously festive The Christmas Holiday:

"I'd defy even the most ardent Christmas grinch not to be converted to loving the season through this gorgeous story. The Christmas Holiday is a total festive treat filled with emotion and entertainment."

We are delighted to welcome new client Jacquie Bloese to the Agency this week. 

Jacquie, who joins Broo Doherty's list and whose debut novel, The French House was published earlier this year by Hodder and Stoughton will see her next novel, The Golden Hour, is coming in spring 2024. 
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The forthcoming second in Richard Swan's Empire of the Wolf series, The Tyranny of Faith, has been given a starred review in Kirkus:

"This book travels even further beyond the traveling investigator/justice dealer mold of Tremayne’s Sister Fidelma and van Gulik’s Judge Dee series and more squarely into territory reminiscent of Andrzej Sapkowksi’s Hussite trilogy, another complex and dark historical fantasy series inspired by medieval state-military-church political conflicts."

Doom is inevitable; it will be interesting (and no doubt, heart-wrenching) to see what form it will take."
To read the full review, click here.

Congratulations to Eva Björg Ægisdóttir and Ragnar Jónasson, who saw both their novels respectively shortlisted for the Icelandic Crime Fiction Award. 

Ægisdóttir's Boys Who Hurt and Jónasson's Reykjavík (co-written with Icelandic Prime Minister Katrín Jakobsdóttir) are honoured at this year's Awards.
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Both Jo Thomas' Keeping A Christmas Promise and Noel O'Reilly's soon-to-be-published The Darlings of the Asylum were selected as the 'Best Books of December by Apple Books!
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Access the full list and download / pre-order your copies here.

Finally, the cover for The Ungrateful Dead, the third in Adam Simcox's The Dying Squad series, has been revealed:
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A MISSING DETECTIVE

Detective Joe Lazarus is missing. The Dying Squad are on the case, but following reports of his sighting, signs suggest he may have fallen back into his criminal ways.

A DEATH IN A NIGHTCLUB

A new drug is taking the world by storm. Spook allows the living to see the dead, but its effects are often fatal. The Dying Squad's visit to a Berlin nightclub quickly turns their search into an entirely more sinister case.

TWO WORLDS COLLIDE

Because the invention of Spook has another purpose. One that's been decades in the planning. Two worlds are on a collision course - the living and the dead's - and the Dying Squad must summon all their investigatory cunning to stop a plot that could change people's (after)lives for ever.


​The book will be published in July 2023.

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