THE WOMAN ON THE BRIDGE by Sheila O’Flanagan Is Number One on the Irish bestseller charts

Sheila O’Flanagan’s first foray into historical fiction, THE WOMAN ON THE BRIDGE, has stormed into the Irish bestseller chart, landing at Number 5 after its first three days on sale, and in its second week conquering the top spot!  

 Inspired by her grandmother’s story and set in 1920s Dublin, The Woman on the Bridge marks the start of an exciting new branch of Sheila’s work. THE WOMAN ON THE BRIDGE is published by Headline in the United Kingdom and Ireland and was launched at an event at Dubray Books in Dublin last week. Mobius publish the novel in the United States and Canada and the audio edition is narrated by Grainne Gillis.

 The novel has already been highly praised, with Electric Literature including it in ‘The Most Anticipated Irish Novels of 2023’, saying: ‘Braiding love, loss, and the sheer drama of war, O’Flanagan’s novel is redemptive in the way it peers into women’s lives, turns them right side up, and refuses to be forgotten.’ Peter Cunningham wrote in the Irish Independent that Sheila O’Flanagan ‘quickly establishes strong, credible characters and a clear sense of the city they live in… O’Flanagan’s legions of readers can look forward to yet another treat’ and Roddy Doyle praised THE WOMAN ON THE BRIDGE as ‘a great read… Winnie’s a great character, a terrific guide … She’s always real – she’s always human.’

Dublin. The 1920s. As war tears Ireland apart, two young people are caught up in events that will bring love, tragedy – and the hardest of choices. In a country fighting for freedom, it’s hard to live a normal life. Winnie O’Leary supports the cause, but she doesn’t go looking for trouble. Then rebel Joseph Burke steps into her workplace. Winnie is furious with him about a broken window. She’s not interested in romance. But love comes when you least expect it.

Joseph’s family shelter fugitives and transport weapons. Joseph would never ask Winnie to join the fight; but his mother and sisters demand commitment. Will Winnie choose Joseph, and put her own loved ones in deadly danger? Or wait for a time of peace that may never come? Ireland’s tumultuous independence struggle is the backdrop for an unforgettable story of courage and heartbreak, in which heroes are made of ordinary people.

Sheila is currently writing her next novel which will return to the present day, and will be published by Headline in 2024.

 About Sheila O’Flanagan

 Sheila O’Flanagan is an international bestselling novelist, with more than 9 million copies sold. Most of her novels have been immediate and long-lasting No 1s in Ireland, UK Top 10 Sunday Times Bestsellers and Kindle Bestsellers, and she is published in more than twenty languages around the world. She is the recipient of the prestigious Irish Tatler Literary Woman of the Year Award. Headline have acquired two new books from Sheila: THE WOMAN ON THE BRIDGE, a historical novel to be published in 2023 and a contemporary novel out in 2024.  

 Praise for THE WOMAN ON THE BRIDGE

 An Irish Independent 2023 pick

‘The people were entirely of their time and their struggles, but they could also be you or me, or anyone suddenly caught up in the sharpness of political disputes and the machinations of people and governments struggling for control.  It's the intimate stories painted on the wider canvas, and it brings history to life and into the home and the heart… filled with courage, heartbreak, optimism, and the strength of family bonds, both for good and ill.’ – Elizabeth Chadwick

‘A great read… Winnie’s a great character, a terrific guide. She brings us through big history but she has to feed the kids. She’s always real – she’s always human’ – Roddy Doyle

‘With a minimum of fuss, O’Flanagan quickly establishes strong, credible characters and a clear sense of the city they live in… O’Flanagan puts into play all the contemporary differences of class and political opinion, some of which are as fundamental today as they were a century ago… Whether Winifred and Joseph’s romance will survive in these circumstances is as fundamental to this warm-hearted story as are the survival prospects of the fledgling Free State. The emotional world of ordinary Dubs struggling to survive in a conflict whose consequences will take a century to resolve underpins this forthright tale of Ireland’s extremely complicated past. O’Flanagan’s legions of readers can look forward to yet another treat.’ – Peter Cunningham, Irish Independent  

‘This is historical fiction at its best. So often I find this genre focussing on a single woman, when in reality women's lives were more rooted in the home and their families. This beautiful story shows the true power and influence of so called “ordinary” woman. Women like Sheila’s grandmother might not have instigated history, but they were forced to react to it, so their stories take the true temperature of the times. It was unputdownable, full of poignancy, warmth and real and relatable women.’ – Kate Thompson

‘Utterly captivating, a novel that resonates as a piece of history and yet also as a modern story of love, war and how women will fight for the people they love.’ – Cathy Kelly

‘Sheila has always been one of my go-to authors and THE WOMAN ON THE BRIDGE does not disappoint, beautifully rich in historical detail and drama. An irresistible story of a country torn apart, the bonds of family, and the enduring power of love.’ – Carmel Harrington

‘Winnie’s development, both emotionally and politically, is interesting… [A] gripping novel… nuanced in its telling of Ireland’s seismic historical period.’ – Colette Sheridan, Irish Examiner

‘Inspired by the true story of O’Flanagan’s grandmother, THE WOMAN ON THE BRIDGE is about a young woman’s commitment to the fight for Ireland’s freedom. Braiding love, loss, and the sheer drama of war, O’Flanagan’s novel is redemptive in the way it peers into women’s lives, turns them right side up, and refuses to be forgotten.’ – Electric Literature, ‘The Most Anticipated Irish Novels of 2023’

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New bestseller PICTURE YOU DEAD by Peter James – ‘Picture perfect at peak’

Credit: Graham Franks Photography

PICTURE YOU DEAD by Peter James has flown to Number One in the Bookseller’s weekly ‘Bookstat E-Book Top 10’ and to Number Two in the Sunday Times hardback bestseller charts, after only three days on sale. ‘Picture perfect at peak for James’, the Bookseller reported, adding that ‘Peter James’s PICTURE YOU DEAD swiped the Bookstat e-book number one in a photo finish.’

The eighteenth instalment of the bestselling Detective Superintendent Roy Grace series is published by Pan Macmillan, who signed up 5 more series titles from Peter James last year.

PICTURE YOU DEAD was launched with a vigorous and inventive marketing and publicity campaign including a much-anticipated return to the traditional annual Roy Grace launch party – held again on Brighton pier after two years without an in-person celebration, and this time with ITV’s GRACE stars, John Simm and Richie Campbell, among the crowd.

Peter went on a whirlwind book signing tour across Sussex and beyond, visiting multiple independent bookshops, the Jersey Festival of Words, and Capital Crime Festival. He also embarked on an extensive regional radio tour. As well as the trade hardback, two exclusive editions of PICTURE YOU DEAD were also published: one with extra material exclusive to WH Smith, and a special edition for indie bookshops with beautiful sprayed edges.

In PICTURE YOU DEAD, Detective Superintendent Roy Grace finds himself plunged into an unfamiliar world of fine art – and art forgery. Outwardly the fine art scene appears respectable, refined, above reproach. But beneath the veneer, he rapidly finds that greed, deception and violence walk hand-in-hand.

Harry and Freya, an ordinary couple, dreamed for years of finding something priceless buried amongst the tat in a car boot sale. It was a dream they knew in their hearts would never come true – until the day it did… They buy a drab portrait for a few pounds, for its beautiful frame, planning to cut the painting out. Then studying it back at home there seems to be another picture beneath, of a stunning landscape. Could it be a long-lost masterpiece from 1770? If genuine, it could be worth millions. One collector is certain that the painting is genuine. Someone who will use any method he can to get what he wants and will stop at nothing.

And Harry and Freya are about to discover that their dream is turning into their worst nightmare…

Filming of the ITV series based on the Roy Grace novels continues in Brighton, with more of the thrilling stories to be broadcast in 2023. Peter is now writing the nineteenth instalment of the Roy Grace series which Pan Macmillan will publish next year.

Praise for Peter James:

‘Superior plotting and edge-of-the-seat suspense.’ – The Guardian

‘Peter James is one of the best crime writers in the business’ – Karin Slaughter

‘A master plotter who cunningly tunes into contemporary concerns. Peter James cannot fail to thrill.’  – Daily Mail

‘Memorable characters and nail-biting tension.’ –  Kathy Reichs

‘Peter James creates a world we can smell, touch and feel for his Brighton detective Inspector Roy Grace.’ – The Times

‘With echoes of Thomas Harris, the closer analogue is to Jeffrey Deaver’s clock-racing thrillers… James delivers the goods.’ — Kirkus Reviews

‘James just gets better and better and deserves the success he has achieved with this first-class series.’ — Independent on Sunday

About Peter James:

Peter James is the international bestselling author of many award-winning novels, repeatedly occupying the Number One slot on the Sunday Times bestseller charts in both hardback and paperback. Peter writes both thriller standalones and the hugely popular Brighton-set Roy Grace series, now adapted for ITV.

Peter’s books have been translated into thirty-eight languages, with worldwide sales of over twenty-one million copies and his Detective Superintendent Roy Grace series, set in Brighton, has given him 19 consecutive Sunday Times Number Ones. In 2015 WH Smith customers voted him the Greatest Crime Author of All Time and in 2016 he was awarded the coveted CWA Diamond Dagger, a lifetime achievement award for sustained excellence. In 2018 he received a Specsavers Honorary Platinum Bestseller Award. Peter James has also written two books based on true crime stories, with former senior detective Graham Bartlett.

The 16th Roy Grace, FIND THEM DEAD, was a UK Number 1 in both hardback and paperback, spending four consecutive weeks at Number 1 in paperback, and reaching Number 5 in Australia and Canada too. In 2021 Peter James repeated the hardback and paperback Top Ten double with LEFT YOU DEAD and standalone thriller I FOLLOW YOU.

Successful nationwide tours of the stage plays of THE PERFECT MURDER (2014), DEAD SIMPLE (2015,) NOT DEAD ENOUGH (2017) and THE HOUSE ON COLD HILL (2019) have packed theatres in dozens of British cities, and garnered magnificent reviews. The stage play of LOOKING GOOD DEAD toured the UK in 2021, and WISH YOU WERE DEAD will premiere in 2022. Several other Peter James novels are optioned for film and in further development.

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SHEILA O’FLANAGAN’S THE WOMEN WHO RAN AWAY ACHIEVES DOUBLE TOP TEN SUCCESS

THE WOMEN WHO RAN AWAY PB cover UK high res.jpg

In its first full week of sale Sheila O’Flanagan’s latest paperback THE WOMEN WHO RAN AWAY (Headline, UK and Audio) has made it to Number Five in the Irish Times Bestseller list this weekend, and Number Seven in the Sunday Times paperback charts in the UK. Last year, the hardback of THE WOMEN WHO RAN AWAY topped the Irish Times Bestseller list, jumping straight to Number One, also in its first week of sale.

THE WOMEN WHO RAN AWAY follows two women on a life-changing European trip. Deira isn't the kind of woman to steal a car. Or drive to France alone with no plan. But then, Deira didn't expect to be single. Or to suddenly realise that the only way she can get the one thing she wants most is to start breaking every rule she lives by.

Grace has been sent on a journey by her late husband, Ken. She doesn't really want to be on it but she's following his instructions, as always. She can only hope that the trip will help her to forgive him. And then – finally – she'll be able to let him go.

Brought together by unexpected circumstances, Grace and Deira find that it's easier to share secrets with a stranger, especially in the shimmering sunny countryside of Spain and France. But they soon find that there's no escaping the truth, whether you're running away from it or racing towards it.

Sheila O’Flanagan’s brand new novel, THREE WEDDINGS AND A PROPOSAL, will be published by Headline in May 2021.

Head to Sheila’s Facebook page to watch the wonderful Facebook Lives she’s been hosting.

Sheila O’Flanagan is an international bestselling novelist, with more than 9 million copies sold. Numerous novels have been immediate and long-lasting No 1s in Ireland and, UK Top 10 Sunday Times Bestsellers, and she is published in more than 20 languages around the world. Her books have been Number 1 bestsellers in Sweden. She is the recipient of the prestigious Irish Tatler Literary Woman of the Year Award.

Praise for THE WOMEN WHO RAN AWAY

‘Life-affirming goodness from O’Flanagan.’ — Irish Examiner

‘If you’re looking for complete escapism, this riveting book with captivating characters and an evocative storyline is perfect.’ — August Books 2020, Candis

‘Love Sheila's writing.’ — Rosin Meany, Irish Independent

‘Sheila was a star at our Rooftop Book Club event, fans will love her fabulous new book.’ — Nina Pottell, Prima

Praise for Sheila O’Flanagan

‘'O'Flanagan doesn't skirt the pain of heartache but embraces it along with the humour (and imperfect judgment) that give her characters their aching credibility... Despite some dark themes, the book's overall tone is light and hopeful.' - Irish Independent on HER HUSBAND’S MISTAKE

‘O'Flanagan is one of our best-known, best-loved and most prolific women's fiction authors’ – Irish Independent

‘One of my favourite authors’ – Marian Keyes

‘O'Flanagan's writing is crisp and concise and her plotting deft’ – Belfast Telegraph

'One of our best storytellers' – Irish Mail on Sunday

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