Truly, Darkly, Deeply by Victoria Selman is among the six-strong line-up for the Richard and Judy Book Club this spring. 

Madley and Finnigan praised Selman for this “superb, intense and utterly addictive” story about a serial killer, told through the eyes of Sophie, stepdaughter of Matty, the man imprisoned for the murders. Twenty years on, Sophie receives a letter from Matty asking her to visit him in jail and familiar feelings of doubt, unease and guilt come flooding back. This feeling that something’s slightly off continues throughout the plot as the reader tries to piece together the clues that Selman masterfully leaves behind. 

The spring Richard and Judy Book Club launches with another series of podcasts on 9th March. WHSmith customers can purchase exclusive special editions of the titles with bonus content.

Penguin Michael Joseph has acquired The Truth About Her by Annie Taylor, described as a “dark and propulsive” psychological thriller.

Editor Grace Long secured world rights in a two-book deal from Emily Glenister at the DHH Literary Agency. The Truth About Her will be published in paperback original, e-book and audio in June 2023.

The publisher describes The Truth About Her as “a gripping and voice-driven psychological thriller, with a laser focus on the complexities of female friendships".

It adds: “Set in the coastal town of Whitstable, it follows online influencer Vanessa Lowe. Vanessa shares all aspects of her life with her growing number of fans – from her gorgeous home interiors to candid shots of her beautiful children.

“When new friends Rachel and Callie come into her orbit, at first they’re in awe of Vanessa, who is every bit as genuine in person as she appears to be online. But when Vanessa’s youngest son goes missing, the cracks in her seemingly perfect veneer begin to show, and new friends and old enemies begin to question everything they thought they knew about her.”

The cover for the first in the new series from David Wragg, The Hunters​, was revealed last week:

Two of Jo Thomas' gorgeous escapist reads, The Olive Branch and Coming Home To Winter Island have been snapped up by Meulenhoff Boekrij in the Netherlands.

In lieu of our usual DHH News Roundup, we thought it would be a great opportunity to tell you a little bit about us and reveal what it is we're looking for in 2023. Getting ready to submit a manuscript to us? Read on...

1. Tell us a little bit about your journey to being an agent.
I was approached by an author to help him find a publisher, and I decided to represent him. I set up my own agency because I was well-connected with publishers through my years of bookselling. The agency and my list grew from there. 

2. What does a typical day, as an agent, look like for you?
No two days are the same. The only thing constant in being an agent is that there is always something to read, and my clients have a pact with each other to send their manuscripts simultaneously ;)
​
The rest of the day is spent reviewing contracts, following-up on submissions to publishers, preparing a proposal, answering clients' emails, meeting editors, resolving issues, dealing with terrible proposed book covers, finalising deals, and, if there is any time spare, reading my submissions!

3. What is at the very top of your wishlist right now?
I would love to receive a brilliant dystopian thriller that will span half a dozen books. Character-driven debuts and epic, sweeping stories with big universal themes. Issue-driven crime and thrillers, high concepts and fear-inducing suspense. Thought-provoking stories, original narrative voices, uplifting fiction and emotional journeys - "stories that I don't want to end". 

4. What are three major 'don't's for an author regarding submissions?
1) Do not send a blanket email copying in other agents. 
2) Do not send a submission that doesn't meet my guidelines.
3) Send an email with only 'please see attached'!

5. And finally, what is your favourite thing about being an agent?
Receiving an outstanding and professional submission from a writer and then being able to represent their book. Going on the journey of the book from manuscript all the way to publication and then to the bestseller list. For me, that is the most exciting and rewarding part of my job. ​

1. Tell us a little bit about your journey to being an agent.
I used to work in publishing as an editor, but decided that being an agent was more creative, as I can decide exactly who to represent in whatever genre, and if I want to take a risk I can. Working in publishing is incredibly rewarding, but there is something quite special about reading someone’s work at the very outset and deciding whether or not to shape it into a book that could be published. I’ve got a butterfly brain, so love the fact that I can be captivated by any subject possible and if I feel it has commercial potential, I can take it on, and hopefully see it being published. ​

2. What does a typical day, as an agent, look like for you?
Every day is varied - I can spend a day editing, or I can spend a day reading submissions, and given that every submission is unique, that is always exciting. I can also spend a day visiting publishers, to discover what they are looking for, or spending the day with an author and an editor shaping their book into something special. And recently I have spent days abroad with an author visiting their foreign publisher, so that takes the days into a completely different realm. It’s the variety and the lack of routine that I find fulfilling.  

3. What is at the very top of your wishlist right now?
I’d love to discover a new historical novelist as there seems to be a market for them at the moment - The Dressmaker of Paris has been incredibly successful both here and abroad; or a new crime series, such a M. W. Craven, or a big sweeping novel along the lines of Lucinda Riley or Taylor Jenkins Reid; and I am always delighted to receive a rom com along the lines of Cassie Connor. I have recently read Claire Keegan’s Small Things Like These which will live with me for some time. Basically I just want to represent authors that are writing at the top of their game in whatever genre they themselves have chosen. 

4. What are three major 'don't's for an author regarding submissions?
​Please don’t send me any science fiction or fantasy - my mind turns to spaghetti when I read those; please don’t tell me your mother thinks this is the best thing she has ever read; and lastly, please don’t try and be funny - jokes first thing on a Monday morning always fall flat!

5. And finally, what is your favourite thing about being an agent?
​My favourite thing is that as I am the first person to read a submission, I am the first person to recognise that your book might have potential, it might fly. And I love working with my authors - it is a collaborative process - and knowing that I have the chance of changing someone’s life and enabling them to realise the dream of a lifetime is an incredibly privileged position to be in.   

1. Tell us a little bit about your journey to being an agent.
I did the usual English degree and then to be honest didn’t know what I wanted to do next until I realised that books had been staring at me all along. When I moved to London I did some internships at publishers before getting a job as David’s assistant at DHH, but also working as a bookseller at Goldsboro Books. This was where I developed and learnt all about the industry, getting a really great understanding of how the wheels turn, before eventually getting to the point where I couldn’t manage the two any longer. At this point I turned solely to focus on the agency and my clients, and here we are!

2. What does a typical day, as an agent, look like for you?
The good thing about an agent’s day is that it can look very different on any given day. Some days can be meeting and call heavy; whether that’s on Zoom or in person. Other days are spent looking over contracts and negotiating royalty rates. And then of course there’s the reading. At the moment I’ve got a huge amount of scripts that my current clients have written that need reading and notes making on, so lots of my day is being spent in front of those. However there’s always the towering pile of submissions that need attacking too!

3. What is at the very top of your wishlist right now?

• A sweeping crime epic like Age of Vice. I just read that book and it blew me away
• Dark academia
• Epic Fantasy
• A really original mystery
• Something set in the North

4. What are three major 'don't's for an author regarding submissions?
Don’t address your submission to the wrong agent! I get so many of these you wouldn’t believe it, and it shows a lack of care. I’d also say don’t just compare your book to the biggest and most famous books in the genre, take the time to know your market and get your comps right.

5. And finally, what is your favourite thing about being an agent?
​There is no better feeling in the world than working with a writer on their debut novel (but equally, any novel!), sometimes for months, sometimes for years over multiple novels, and being able to call them up and tell them that a publisher has made an offer for it. That absolute joy for the writer especially, but also for the agent, of knowing they’re going to be published is wonderful.

1. Tell us a little bit about your journey to being an agent.
I trained to be an actress at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, but it was while I was sitting at my dressing table backstage at the National Theatre, that I looked in the mirror and thought "I can't to do this anymore". So I swiftly gave up acting, and tried my hand at agenting for actors (a terrible idea); before too long, I spied an opportunity to work with David at both Goldsboro Books and DHH Literary Agency, and then in 2020, I was made an agent and started to build a list of my own.

2. What does a typical day, as an agent, look like for you?
I tend to to spend the first part of my day getting through the admin side of things (emails that have come in overnight, invoicing for clients' work, going through contracts, speaking with editors or scouts, drawing up pitches and so on); and then in the afternoon, I will read and / or edit clients' manuscripts, as well as read submissions from potential authors. I tend to do this until dinner, eat, and then carry on until bedtime, when I try and squeeze in a few chapters of a "non-work" book.

3. What is at the very top of your wishlist right now?
A psychological thriller that feels fresh and new; book club fiction in the vein of Abi Daré and Jessie Burton; and historical fiction - all of it with women at its very core.

4. What are three major 'don't's for an author regarding submissions?
1) Please refrain from heading your letter 'Dear Sir / Madam' - need I say more?
2) If you receive a pass from an agent, I would encourage you to not reply saying we've "missed out" or that I'll "regret it". It just reinforces the fact that I haven't, and I won't.
3) Try and not make the letter too long; we can have a good old natter about your personal life and your pets when we start working together; but until then, please keep it focused on your work. The same goes for the synopsis - one page is preferable and it's good practice for pitching your book!

5. And finally, what is your favourite thing about being an agent?
​Making that phone call to tell a client they're going to be a published author; there is no feeling like it and it's a huge privilege to be able to do so. 

Also, reading a submission that gives you those little tummy butterflies you get when you know you've got something special on your hands.

We've got a few fantastic reads for you, courtesy of Amazon's January Kindle Monthly Deal - yours to download for just 99p each!

To go straight to any of the deals, simply click on the book covers above.

Truly, Darkly, Deeply author, Victoria Selman, will be appearing at the Bay Tales Live Festival, with her 'On the Sofa Roadshow'. 

Talking to fellow bestselling authors, Fiona Cummins, Cara Hunter and Abigail Dean, Victoria's panel will be on Sunday 5th March at 10.30am, taking place at Whitby Library. 

To book your slot, email baytales20@gmail.com.

The cover for Paul Burston's memoir, We Can Be Heroes​, is now out in the world and we couldn't wait to show it to you. 

Activist. Journalist. Survivor. One man’s journey from prejudice to Pride.

Paul Burston wasn’t always the iconic voice of LGBTQ+ London that he is today. Paul came out in the mid-1980s, when ‘gay’ still felt like a dirty word, especially in the small Welsh town where he grew up. He moved to London hoping for a happier life, only to watch in horror as his new-found community was decimated by AIDS. But even in the depths of his grief, Paul vowed never to stop fighting back on behalf of his young friends whose lives were cut tragically short.
It’s a promise he’s kept to this day. As an activist he stormed the House of Commons during the debate over the age of consent. As a journalist he spoke up for the rights of the community at a time of tabloid homophobia and legal inequality. As a novelist he founded the groundbreaking Polari Prize.

But his lifestyle hid a dark secret, and Paul’sdemons—shame, trauma, grief—stalked him on every corner. In an attempt to silence them, he began to self-medicate.
​
From almost drowning at eighteen to a near-fatal overdose at thirty-eight, this is Paul’s story of what happened in the twenty years between, and how he carved out a life that his teenage self could scarcely have imagined. Emotional but often witty, We Can Be Heroes is an illuminating memoir of the eighties, nineties and noughties from a gay man who only just survived them.

We Can Be Heroes will be published by Amazon's Little A imprint in June 2023.

Bestselling author, M. W. Craven, was featured on ITV News last week as news broke of plans to adapt the first in his highly-anticipated news series, Fearless, for television. 

Craven has a worldwide fan base with his books achieving best-seller status as far afield as Japan, and has recently concluded talks with a major streaming service to develop his latest work into a TV adaptation, following talks with household names including Steven Spielberg and Channing Tatum.

While we can't reveal too much yet, more news is expected soon about this incredibly exciting news ... Watch this space!

This collection of the world’s most notable limbs, organs and appendages includes how Queen Victoria’s armpit led the development of antiseptics; why Percy Shelley’s heart refused to burn; and the strange case of Hitler’s right testicle.”

Vital Organs will be published in hardback, e-book and audio in September 2023. ​

This collection of the world’s most notable limbs, organs and appendages includes how Queen Victoria’s armpit led the development of antiseptics; why Percy Shelley’s heart refused to burn; and the strange case of Hitler’s right testicle.”

Wildfire published the author’s first book, Mortal Monarchs: 1,000 Years of Royal Deaths, in September 2022. 

Edge is a molecular cell biologist and medical historian whose TikTok channel (@suzieedge) has amassed more than 323,600 followers and 6.3 million "likes" since August 2020.

She said: “I am delighted to be working with Phil Connor and the Wildfire/Headline team again in a follow-up to my debut Mortal Monarchs. Vital Organs tells the fascinating and sometimes gory stories of famous body parts from history and from all around the world. We had such a wonderful response to the publication of Mortal Monarchs in 2022 and I’m very excited to bring another instalment in 2023.”
​
Connor commented: “The whole team at both Wildfire and Headline loved working with Suzie this year and are thrilled to welcome her back for another book. Suzie continues to go from strength to strength, not just making her writing debut but seeing her already impressive online audience almost double in 2022. Vital Organs is the perfect project to continue Suzie’s publishing career: her trademark mix of wicked humour and impressive research is sure to appeal to her existing fans and win her legions of new ones.”

From The Bookseller article | Lauren Brown