In Memory of Ann Granger, 12 July 1939 – 7 September 2025

All of us at Blake Friedmann are deeply saddened by the death of Ann Granger, a much-loved client of the agency for many decades.

Booksellers, reviewers and her many fans spoke of Ann’s deft plotting and finely drawn characters, the recognisable worlds she created, with great insight, humour and humanity. It was that humanity and a deep interest in human nature that made such a strong connection with her readers and with everyone she came into contact with in her lifetime. We were so privileged to work with her for so long.

Her agent, Isobel Dixon, says: ‘It has been a great joy to work with our beloved Ann Granger over my thirty years at Blake Friedmann, an honour to continue Carole Blake’s work, and a pleasure shared with all my colleagues and the Headline team. We loved Ann for her wit and warmth and wisdom, her kindness and curiosity, all those sterling characteristics woven through her brilliant writing too. She was one of a kind, and she leaves a great gap in our lives. One consolation is that we can still share her books with readers, but I will miss our conversations more than I can say. As she is laid to rest, our thoughts are with her friends and family, her sons and other relatives, and also the fans who loved the characters and stories she gave to the world. We will continue to do our very best to honour her legacy.’

Her editor at Headline, Clare Foss, says: ‘It was an absolute joy and a privilege to publish Ann’s novels. She was inspirational, wise and incredibly witty, and we will all cherish our memories of her. Our thoughts are with her family and friends at this sad time.’

Her publisher in Germany, Marco Schneiders of Bastei Lübbe, says: ‘Ann Granger was a unique writer and even more a unique person. For more than a quarter of a century we have had her books on our list and Ann has always been seen in Germany as a stellar writer of crime fiction. When we met her over the last 26 years she instantly became a significant member of the Lübbe family. Ann will be missed deeply at our publishing house.’

In lieu of flowers, Ann’s family asks for donations to be made to The Book Trade Charity (BTBS): https://btbs.enthuse.com/cf/celebrating-the-life-of-ann-granger

Born in Portsmouth, Patricia Ann Granger studied modern languages, French and German at the University of London before working for the Foreign Office and receiving postings to British embassies across the world, including in Munich, Lusaka, Vienna, Zagreb and Belgrade. She met her husband John Hulme at the British Embassy in Prague, and later settled with her family in Bicester, Oxfordshire, where she began writing. In 1979 her first novel, a historical romance titled A POOR RELATION, was published under the name Ann Hulme. In 1991, Headline published her first crime novel as Ann Granger, SAY IT WITH POISON.

Over the long and illustrious career that followed, Ann Granger thrilled her devoted fans with over thirty murder mysteries, including the Mitchell and Markby series, the Fran Varady mysteries, the Campbell and Carter mysteries and the Victorian crime series featuring Scotland Yard’s Inspector Ben Ross and his wife Lizzie. Headline also published her Collected Short Stories, MYSTERY IN THE MAKING, in 2021.

Her UK publisher Headline has sold well over a million copies of Ann’s novels across print, ebook and audio, and her work is published in 10 languages. In Germany, she achieved more than 30 Top 5 appearances on the German bestseller lists and sold millions of copies. In 1999, Ann was welcomed into the prestigious Detection Club. She was also a member of the UK Crime Writers' Association and Sisters in Crime in the US.

You can read more about Ann in her obituary in The Telegraph: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2025/09/30/ann-granger-crime-writer-delighted-readers-village-mystery/

We are grateful for Ann’s great gifts and her long life, for the honour of working with her and for being able to share her stories with the world. We think of all who loved her too: may her memory be a blessing.

Graeme Macrae Burnet’s A CASE OF MATRICIDE wins Best International Crime Fiction prize at the Ned Kelly Awards

We are delighted to announce that Graeme Macrae Burnet’s A CASE OF MATRICIDE has been announced as the winner of the Best International Crime Fiction prize at Australia’s Ned Kelly Awards!

Run by the Australian Crime Writers Association, the Ned Kelly Awards are Australia’s oldest and most prestigious honours for the best crime fiction and true crime writing published in Australia. A CASE OF MATRICIDE, published by Text Publishing in Australia in October 2024, won against fellow nominees Michael Bennett, David McCloskey, Charity Norman, Jacqueline Bublitz and Michael Connelly.

A CASE OF MATRICIDE – in which small-town French police inspector Georges Gorski must investigate the overlapping paths of a deceased business magnate, a shadowy stranger with no apparent reason to be there, and the titular threat of familial murder – sees Graeme receive his second nomination at the Ned Kelly Awards, having also been recognised for his Booker-longlisted standalone CASE STUDY in 2022.

Alongside Text Publishing, A CASE OF MATRICIDE was published in North America by Biblioasis and, most recently, as a paperback in the UK by Saraband in May 2025. The audiobook edition is published by Bolinda, and rights have sold to Impedimenta in Spain. Graeme will return this autumn with his new novella BENBECULA, the latest entry in Polygon’s Darkland Tales series, in which Scotland’s best writers reimagine moments from the country’s past – Polygon, Biblioasis and Text will all publish in October 2025.

Congratulations Graeme!

About A CASE OF MATRICIDE

In the unremarkable French town of Saint-Louis, a mysterious stranger stalks the streets; an elderly woman believes her son is planning to do away with her; a prominent manufacturer drops dead. Between visits to the town’s bars, Chief Inspector Georges Gorski mulls over the connections, if any, between these events, while all the time grappling with his own domestic and existential demons.

Graeme Macrae Burnet pierces the respectable bourgeois façade of small-town life in this deeply human story. He draws a wry humour from the tiniest of details and delves into the darkest recesses of his characters’ minds to present a fascinating puzzle that blurs the boundaries between suspect, investigator and reader in an entertaining, profound and moving novel.

Credit: Euan Anderson

About Graeme Macrae Burnet

Graeme Macrae Burnet was born in Kilmarnock, Ayrshire and now lives in Glasgow. He has also lived in the Czech Republic, France, Portugal and London.

His first novel, THE DISAPPEARANCE OF ADÈLE BEDEAU (Contraband, 2014), received a New Writer’s Award from the Scottish Book Trust and was longlisted for the Waverton Good Read Award. A second Inspector Gorski novel, THE ACCIDENT ON THE A35, was published in 2017, and the trilogy was completed in 2024 with the ‘tragic, cinematic, propulsive' (Martin MacInnes) A CASE OF MATRICIDE.

HIS BLOODY PROJECT (Contraband, 2015) won the Saltire Society Fiction Book of the Year Award and the Vrij Nederland Thriller of the Year, and was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize, the LA Times Mystery Book of the Year and the European Crime Fiction prize. It has been published in over twenty languages. CASE STUDY was published in 2021 by Saraband (UK), Text (ANZ) and Bolinda (UK audio) to wide critical acclaim. The North American edition was published in 2022 by Biblioasis. It has been longlisted for the Booker Prize 2022 and the Dublin Literary Award, and shortlisted for the Gordon Burn Prize and Ned Kelly International Crime Prize. It has been published in fifteen languages.

Graeme was named Author of the Year in the 2017 Sunday Herald Culture Awards and has appeared at festivals and events in Australia, New Zealand, the US, Canada, Russia, Estonia, Macau, Ireland, Germany, Poland and France, as well as in the UK.

Praise for A CASE OF MATRICIDE

‘A dizzyingly immersive experience. Macrae Burnet’s Gorski novels were already a significant achievement, but the concluding part is breathtaking – tragic, cinematic, propulsive – and marks a new standard in contemporary crime fiction.’ – Martin MacInnes, Booker-longlisted author of IN ASCENSION

‘Burnet plays metafictional games, but the book pulls off the rare double of being emotionally involving as well as teasingly tricksy.’ – Jake Kerridge, 5* review, The Telegraph

‘Brilliantly weird.’ – Paula Hawkins, author of THE GIRL ON THE TRAIN

‘I’ve long appreciated the way Burnet’s novels are in conversation with earlier times… min[ing] the postmodern era without pretense and with deep respect… You can gulp down A CASE OF MATRICIDE in one sitting, as the prose style seems to demand. But linger over Burnet’s novel, and its real pleasures emerge.’ – Sarah Weinman, New York Times

‘A CASE OF MATRICIDE demonstrates literary talent of the highest order… Details of place are especially rich, and the subtle mores of the small town are reflected in Gorski’s misguided incorruptibility… few writers can rival Burnet.’ – Andrew Rosenheim, The Spectator

‘Macrae Burnet brings a slyly playful quality to his reimagining of the classic police procedural… and here delivers a wickedly funny novel that owes as much of a debt to Albert Camus as it does to Georges Simenon.’ – Declan Burke, Irish Times

‘Burnet has proved to be a durable talent, and A CASE OF MATRICIDE continues his upwards trajectory… this final book in a trilogy is a triumph.’ – Barry Forshaw, Financial Times

‘Graeme Macrae Burnet’s A CASE OF MATRICIDE finished up his Gorski trilogy with all the Kafkaesque shenanigans, paranoia and observational bathos you could wish for. It’s an incredibly fun, cleverly crafted novel that works on so many levels I can even forgive him for being a postmodernist.’ – Eimear McBride, The New Statesman, ‘Books of the Year 2024’

Visit Graeme’s website.

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Prize-winning poet Romalyn Ante’s lyrical debut novel THE LEFT-BEHIND CHILD to be published by Chatto & Windus

Photo: Jeremiah Doles

Romalyn Ante – the Poetry London Prize and Manchester Poetry Prize-winning author of AGIMAT and ANTIEMETIC FOR HOMESICKNESS – has written her debut novel THE LEFT-BEHIND CHILD, which reveals the experiences of Filipino overseas workers, untold in fiction until now, through the story of one family, and one daughter in particular. Rosanna Hildyard, assistant editor at Chatto & Windus, has acquired World All-Language rights from Isobel Dixon, with publication in the UK set for 2 July 2026.

The book is an evocative coming-of-age story following Neneng, a spirited girl growing up in Lipa, whose life is forced onto a new path when her mother, Rosa, leaves to work as a nurse in Oman and then the UK.

As Neneng navigates the pressures of caring for a ‘left behind’ family, her resentment at her mother’s desertion, and the experience of first love, things come to a head when she herself falls into danger. Yet THE LEFT-BEHIND CHILD shows that perhaps Neneng and Rosa’s experiences are not so different, despite being geographically far apart.

‘I feel incredibly honoured that Chatto and the Blake Friedmann Literary Agency believed in this novel, even in its earliest stages,’ said Romalyn. ‘This is our story, but it’s also yours: a story of every child and parent separated by distance and time. I hope it gives voice to the narratives that have been left behind, yet continue to shape who we are – and the love that we carry.’

‘When I first read Ante’s prose, I was blown away by the emotional pull of the relationship she portrays between an equally stubborn mother and daughter,’ added Rosanna Hildyard. ‘This novel takes you to the heart of one particular family, but it also puts the spotlight on a global community that many countries rely on – with over 40,000 Filipino health workers in the UK’s NHS alone. It’s an unforgettable and important story.’

Isobel Dixon said: ‘Romalyn Ante’s poetry has captivated and challenged me since I first heard her read her prizewinning poem of nursing experience, ‘Names’, years ago. I am thrilled that Rosanna Hildyard and Chatto have embraced her vivid storytelling in THE LEFT-BEHIND CHILD, a novel of both heartbreak and balm, that will speak to so many readers around the world.’

US and Translation rights are available. For US, please contact Lucy Beresford-Knox (LBeresford-Knox@penguinrandomhouse.co.uk), and for translation requests, please be in touch with Celia Long (CLong1@penguinrandomhouse.co.uk).

About Romalyn Ante

Romalyn Ante is a Filipino-British writer born and bred in Lipa, Philippines. She was 16 years old when her mother – a nurse in the National Health Service – brought the family to the United Kingdom. She now lives in the West Midlands where, as well as writing and editing, she works as a registered NHS nurse and psychotherapist, specialising in the mental healthcare of young people.

Her debut poetry collection, ANTIEMETIC FOR HOMESICKNESS, is published by Chatto & Windus and was an Irish Times Best Poetry Book of 2020, an Observer Poetry Book of the Month and a Poetry School Poetry Book of the Year 2020. It was also a National Poetry Day UK Recommended Read and was shortlisted for the Jhalak Prize and longlisted for the Dylan Thomas Prize. Chatto published her second collection AGIMAT in 2023, which was longlisted for the 2025 Jhalak Prize for Poetry.

She is co-founding editor of harana poetry, a magazine for poets who write in English as a second or parallel language, and the founder of Tsaá with Roma, an online interview series with poets and other creatives. She was awarded the Jerwood Compton Poetry Fellowship and she currently sits as an editorial board member for Poetry London magazine.  She is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, and the first East-Asian writer to win the Poetry London Prize (2018) and the Manchester Poetry Prize (2017). She also won the Creative Future Literary Award 2017.

Praise for Romalyn Ante

‘Ante is an alchemical wonder of a poet: unparalleled in her image-making, raw to both historical and contemporary damage and rich in cultures.’ – Fiona Benson

‘Captivating, playful, moving, witty and agile... an unforced poet with a lightness of touch and fortitude’ – The Guardian

‘Romalyn Ante is a poet to fall in love with’ – Liz Berry

‘Ante's poems are like embers, pared back to a slow-burning emotional core’ – Times Literary Supplement

‘I felt grateful for the tender attention the poet affords to a hope that many of us hold dear: that as patients – that as people – we may amount to more than just flesh and bone. Thankfully, in the hands of Romalyn Ante the human self far exceeds statistics and the subtotal of all its scars.’ – Jade Cuttle, The Observer

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Rachel Blackmore’s ‘powerful and deeply affecting’ COSTANZA longlisted for Historical Writers’ Association Debut Crown award

COSTANZA – Rachel Blackmore’s acclaimed Renaissance Rome-set debut novel – has been longlisted for the Historical Writers’ Association Debut Crown award. The prestigious HWA Awards celebrate the best historical writing, fiction and non-fiction, and its ability to engage, illuminate, entertain and inform legions of readers. To be considered, the bulk of the work must take place at least thirty-five years prior to publication.

‘Hypnotic, sensual, heartbreaking, and shocking, COSTANZA is flawless in execution and is set to be a classic for years to come,’ wrote the HWA in their statement. ‘A rich and compelling evocation of art and obsession in 17th-century Rome.’

A passionate feminist retelling of a true seventeenth-century tale, COSTANZA brings the tragic muse of famed sculptor Gianlorenzo Bernini to vivid life. The novel was published by Renegade Books in August 2024, with a paperback published worldwide in July earlier this year, and translation rights have so far sold in eight languages. Rachel’s next novel will be published by Renegade Books in Summer 2026.

Longlisted alongside Rachel are THE WICKED OF THE EARTH by A. D. Bergin, THE INSTRUMENTALIST by Harriet Constable (Bloomsbury), NEPTHYS by Rachel Louise Driscoll (Harvill Secker), MURDER IN CONSTANTINOPLE by A.E. Goldin (Pushkin Press), WINTER OF SHADOWS by Clare Grant (Black Spring Crime), A POISONER’S TALE by Cathryn Kemp (Bantam), SPITTING GOLD by Carmella Lowkis (Doubleday), THE EIGHTS by Joanna Miller (Fig Tree), A LITTLE TRICKERIE by Rosanna Pike (Fig Tree), THEY DREAM IN GOLD by Mai Sennaar (Picador), and A CASE OF MICE AND MURDER by Sally Smith (Bloomsbury).

The winner will follow in the footsteps of last year’s honouree, Blake Friedmann’s own Bridget Walsh, who was recognised for her Victorian London crime novel THE TUMBLING GIRL, and 2023 winner THE SECRET DIARIES OF CHARLES IGNATIUS SANCHO by Paterson Joseph. The shortlists will be announced on 15 October, ahead of the awards ceremony in Central London on 19 November 2025.

Congratulations Rachel!

About COSTANZA

Rome, 1636: In the scorched city of Rome, the cobbled streets hum with gossip and sin... Costanza Piccolomini is a respectable young wife - until she meets Gianlorenzo Bernini, the famed sculptor and star of Roman society, whose jet-black gaze matches his dark temper. From the second they set eyes upon each other, a fatal attraction is born.

Their secret love burns with a passion that consumes them. But with every stolen kiss and illicit tryst, Costanza's reputation is at stake. Meanwhile, Bernini has a dangerous desire: he wants to make Costanza immortal. He vows to possess her not just in body and soul, but also in marble.

When Bernini unveils his sculpture of Costanza, she is exposed as his lover, marking the undoing of their affair - and the beginning of a scandal which will rock Roman society. For Bernini would rather destroy Costanza than let her go.

Betrayed. Abandoned. Banished. This was meant to be the end of Costanza's story. But Costanza is no ordinary woman: from the ashes, she will rise...

History calls her a Muse. Temptress. Fallen woman. This is her story. Based on a true story, COSTANZA brings to life a feminist icon who has been written out of history.

Photo: Nicolas Laborie

About Rachel Blackmore

Born in Birmingham the daughter of a theatre director and a teacher, Rachel developed her love of language and storytelling at a young age. She went on to study Early Modern History, before embarking on a career in politics which morphed into a long bout as a speechwriter – a craft she now teaches.

Rachel spent more than a decade working and raising a family, before taking a career break to write historical fiction about marginalised women, as a way of looking at contemporary issues.

In 2021 she was a runner up in Harper’s Bazaar Short Story Competition and won the Irish Writers Centre Novel Fair in 2022. Her debut novel, COSTANZA, a historical novel set in Renaissance Rome telling the story of Costanza Piccolomini, the muse of Bernini, was published by Dialogue Books imprint Renegade in August 2024.

She lives in London with her three teenagers, two cats and one dog.

Praise for COSTANZA

‘Spent my week immersed in this stunning piece of historical fiction, COSTANZA… This gorgeous, intimate portrayal of Costanza herself, reminded me of THE MARRIAGE PORTRAIT in its melding of art & artistry with the lives of the women of the time’ – Jennie Godfrey

‘Wonderful… This novel took over my life for the time I was buried in it. Powerful and deeply affecting storytelling bringing us a new perspective on a famous story’ – Paterson Joseph

‘Sumptuous, immersive and bold, Costanza breathes life into a woman frozen in marble for three hundred years, finally giving her a chance to speak… Costanza is both a cathartic cry and a clarion call for justice for generations of forgotten women’ – Hesse Phillips

‘COSTANZA by Rachel Blackmore is a mesmerising, powerful tale of a young woman’s seeming rise to power and riches as the muse of a famous artist, only to come crashing down as his true nature is revealed.’ – Laura Shepperson

‘The substance, the textures the feel of the city was so immediate and immersive. It’s one of those historical novels that transports the reader straight to the time and place… A fabulous, evocative novel with plenty of food for thought.’ – Elizabeth Chadwick

‘I was mesmerised by COSTANZA, a searing, fierce tale of obsession, revenge, and resilience. Blackmore’s lush, sensuous prose evokes seventeenth-century Rome superbly, from its seamy underbelly to the glamourous Bernini circle. An unforgettable debut novel.’ – Naomi Kelsey

‘A shocking story… It is most persuasively written, obviously deeply felt and the detail is excellent. Quite apart from anything else, I will look at Bernini in a new light.’ – Elizabeth Buchan

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Jeanette Ashmole interviewed by Drama Quarterly

Drama Quarterly recently profiled our screenwriter client Jeanette Ashmole, exploring her unconventional journey from criminal barrister, police officer, and criminal investigator—with more than two decades of frontline legal experience—to TV legal consultant and now screenwriter.

Jeanette has quickly established herself as a trusted voice in TV, bringing a rare level of authenticity to the dramas she advises. Her credits include major productions for broadcasters such as ITV, Sky, and the BBC—among them are shows such as Grace, Jimmy McGovern’s acclaimed series Time and Unforgivable, as well as a recent adaptation of a Harlan Coben bestseller. Her legal and police background allows her to help with character development, story, and procedural detail with a precision that can only come from lived experience.

In the article talking about Jimmy McGovern’s ‘Time’, she explains: “I was involved right from the start to build all those character backgrounds and make sure it worked, as well as reading scripts, giving notes, and working with the costume department,” Jeanette explains.

Now, Jeanette is turning her knowledge and expertise into the creation of her own original projects, blending gripping storytelling with the same realism that has defined her consultancy work. She is represented by Julian Friedmann.

Read more about Jeanette and her unique career journey in Drama Quarterly’s article here.