MICHAEL JOSEPH ACQUIRES TWO NOVELS FROM DEBUT AUTHOR LIA MIDDLETON

Michael Joseph has acquired WHEN THEY FIND HER and one other novel by debut author Lia Middleton. Editorial Director Clio Cornish acquired UK and Commonwealth rights, in a major deal, from Kate Burke at Blake Friedmann at auction.

WHEN THEY FIND HER is an emotional and nerve-shredding debut about a mother, Naomi, who has lost custody of her young daughter. She is granted permission to have her child back for an overnight stay, but when the night ends in tragedy Naomi makes a split-second decision with huge repercussions. It will be a major launch for Michael Joseph, publishing in Hardback, eBook and Audio in Spring 2021, with a paperback to follow.

Lia Middleton said: ‘I’m ecstatic and honoured to be working with Clio and the team at Michael Joseph. I was blown away by the team’s passion and enthusiasm, and by Clio's vision for the book: it was clear from the moment I spoke to her that Clio was the perfect editor to bring my novel and its characters to the world. I can't wait for readers to discover Naomi and to find themselves thrust into the centre of her dark and complex life.’

Clio Cornish added: ‘I was utterly transfixed by WHEN THEY FIND HER. At once a white-knuckled page-turner and an emotional depiction of motherhood and mental health, it’s fiendishly twisty read with huge depth – not an easy balance to strike. I know Lia has a brilliant career ahead of her, and I’m so excited to be working with her and Kate.’

Kate Burke said: ‘I’m thrilled that this deliciously dark, gripping and topical novel has found such a great publishing home in Penguin and such a visionary editor in Clio.’

About Lia Middleton
Lia Middleton is a barrister who specialises in crime and prison law, and lives with her husband and two young children in Buckinghamshire. You can find her on Twitter @liamiddlet0n and on Instagram @liamiddletonauthor. WHEN THEY FIND HER is her first novel.

MANDALAY, by MiMi Aye, is a finalist for The Guild of Food Writers Awards

MiMi Aye’s cookbook MANDALAY: Recipes and Tales from a Burmese Kitchen, which was published by Bloomsbury Absolute last year, has been made a finalist for the International or Regional Cookbook Award by The Guild of Food Writers.

MANDALAY, which was one of The Financial Times’ Best Books of 2019, pulls the curtain back on Burmese cuisine making it accessible to new audiences. The rich cookbook details traditional Burmese ingredients and techniques, whilst recipes are brought to life by stories from Aye’s experiences in Burma and her personal family history.

One of the judges praised MANDALAY for offering ‘an evocative snapshot of Burmese culture and cuisine,’ whilst another commented that it is ‘a great read, her recipes all sound and looked delicious’. The book was also described as ‘a cracking cookbook that I’ll be using for years to come.’

The winners of the awards will be announced on 16th June, on The Guild of Food Writers’ Instagram feed: @thegfw

Praise for MANDALAY:

'MiMi Aye's new book is a readable, personal collection... Enlivened with family snaps and beautiful photography, it's a brilliant introduction to Myanmar's food culture.' — Delicious Magazine, Hot New Cookbooks

‘There is so much to love in MiMi Aye’s wonderful MANDALAY: RECIPES & TALES FROM A BURMESE KITCHEN but, even before I got on to the recipes, I felt that a book that told me that in Burma people greet each other by asking whether they’ve eaten yet, belonged in my life… I am so grateful to Mimi Aye for a really loving and hungry-making introduction to a fascinating cuisine.’ — Nigella Lawson

‘It’s rare to come across a book that opens up a largely unknown cuisine, but MANDALAY does exactly that. Burmese recipes that combine the deliverable with the authentic, written with calm authority leavened with personal touches from an engaging personality.’ — Tim Hayward, Financial Times, Best Books of
2019

‘Aye is a gifted recipe writer and opinionated champion of the food of her family (see, for instance, the short section on “Why MSG is A-OK”). This is a book to read as well as cook from, packed with evocative imagery.’ — The Observer, The 20 best food book of 2019

‘The book that opened my mind, and belly, to Burmese food, a cuisine I knew little about. Aye is the most beguiling of guides, weaving in tales of Burmese family and childhood travels, alongside recipes for mohinga
and pickled tea-leaf salad.’ — Tom Parker Bowles, Daily Mail, Books of the Year 2019

‘Wonderful… The perfect introduction to a cuisine that draws from its neighbours in Thailand, India and China while making dishes that are quite unique. MiMi gives detailed descriptions of ingredients, techniques
and recipes - giving the home cook all the tools, tips and - most of all - inspiration to make these dishes themselves.’ — Hot Dinners, The best cookbooks for Christmas presents in 2019

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

British-born to Burmese parents, MiMi Aye has spent herwhole life soaking up Burmese food, language, and culture through endless trips to see family and friends in Burma, as well as back at home. A passionate
advocate for Burmese cuisine, she is the writer of www.meemalee.com, founder of supper club and community, Burmese Food and Beyond, and author of NOODLE! 100 Great Recipes (Absolute Press). Her second book, MANDALAY: Recipes and Tales from a Burmese Kitchen, was published by Bloomsbury Absolute in June 2019.

WATCH JAYNE KIRKHAM'S STORY JUDY ON THE BEACH

Jayne Kirkham’s short story for Showtown Blackpool’s Seaside Week is currently streaming on Youtube.

JUDY ON THE BEACH is the story of Judy the dog who visits the seaside for the first time and is set in the Victorian era.

You can watch the story here

THE BOOK OF MALACHI BY T.C. FARREN LONGLISTED FOR THE 2020 NOMMO AWARDS

T.C. Farren’s THE BOOK OF MALACHI has been longlisted for the 2020 Nommo Awards for Speculative Fiction by Africans, awarded by the African Speculative Fiction Society.

THE BOOK OF MALACHI was published by Kwela in South Africa, where the Cape Times described it as ‘utterly brilliant’ and the Sunday Times said the novel ‘will have you ripping through the pages’. It will be published in the UK and US by Titan Books in October 2020, with audio available from Bolinda.

Malachi Dakwaa has survived civil war but is mute, his tongue cut out. Disengaged from the world, he's performing mind-numbing work as a factory slave when he gets an extraordinary job offer he can't refuse. In exchange for six months as warden on a top-secret organ-farming project, Frasier Pharmaceuticals will graft a new tongue for him. Far out to sea, Malachi finds himself among warlords and mass murderers of the kind who have ruined him. But are the prisoners as evil as Frasier says? Do they deserve their fate?

As doubt starts to grow, Malachi’s own memories rise until he must make a terrible choice. To remain silent and let them suffer, or risk his life to set them free. 

Malachi may have no tongue, but his is a voice you will never forget – sharply ironic, vividly descriptive and leavened with humour, every sense sharpened by his loss of speech. He is a compelling guide through the twists and turns of a terrible dilemma, in this darkly gripping but ultimately redemptive novel.

The shortlist of the Nommo Awards will be revealed in mid-May.

Praise for THE BOOK OF MALACHI

‘Farren is an exceptional writer, one of the best I’ve encountered, and not just in this country. By the time the novel ended, I was bereft, missing the characters and the setting as if I’d spent real time in an actual place. I can’t recommend this powerful novel highly enough.’ — Janet van Eeden Harrison, LitNet

‘Her descriptive powers are faultless, but more than that her understanding and exposition of what it is to be human, even in a broken form is magical… Sheer genius … Utterly brilliant.’ — Jennifer Crocker, Cape Times

‘Will have you ripping through the pages. Part thriller, part horror, part speculative fiction: this gripping read goes to the heart of ethical quandaries, forcing the reader to ask: “What if it were me?”’ — Sunday Times (SA)

‘An extraordinary, moving story that I read sometimes through the gaps in my fingers, like peeking at a horror movie — but one with hope and some exquisite visuals.’ — Country Life

T.C. Farren is a prize-winning novelist and scriptwriter, based in Cape Town. Her first novel, WHIPLASH won both humanitarian and literary awards. Her screenplay adaptation gave rise to the feature film, TESS, which won numerous awards, including a prestigious screenwriting nomination. She also adapted her highly acclaimed second novel, SNAKE to a screenplay which has won production funding and is due to be produced soon. HOTEL NOWHERE, T.C. Farren’s drug trafficking thriller script has recently been selected for development.

JOSEPH O’CONNOR’S SHADOWPLAY SHORTLISTED FOR KERRY GROUP IRISH NOVEL OF THE YEAR AWARD 2020

Joseph O’Connor adds yet more award recognition to his growing collection of accolades, with the news today that his novel SHADOWPLAY is shortlisted for the Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year Award 2020. The winner of the award will be announced by Listowel Writers’ Week on Wednesday 27th May 2020.

Harvill Secker published SHADOWPLAY to rapturous reviews in the UK and Canada in June 2019, with the paperback to be published in October 2020. It was described as a ‘literary highlight of 2019’ by The Sunday Times. Europa will publish in June 2020 in the US, where the novel has received starred previews in Publishers Weekly and Library Journal, which described it as ‘an authentic and deeply moving literary experience’. In the UK, W.F. Howes published the audio edition, read by Barry McGovern and Anna Chancellor, and Dreamscape will publish the US audio edition. Rights have been sold in eight translation markets so far: China (Shanghai Elegant People), Croatia (Fraktura), France (Editions Rivages), Hungary (Helikon), Italy (Guanda), Serbia (Carobna Knjiga), Sweden (Natur Och Kultur) and Turkey (Sia Kitap). A film deal is under negotiation.

1878: The Lyceum Theatre, London. Three extraordinary people begin their life together, a life that will be full of drama, transformation, passionate and painful devotion to art and to one another. Henry Irving, the Chief, is the volcanic leading man and impresario; Ellen Terry is the most lauded and desired actress of her generation, outspoken and generous of heart; and ever following along behind them in the shadows is the unremarkable theatre manager, Bram Stoker.

Fresh from life in Dublin as a clerk, Bram may seem the least colourful of the trio, but he is wrestling with dark demons in a new city, in a new marriage, and with his own literary aspirations. As he walks the London streets at night, streets haunted by the Ripper and the gossip which swirls around his friend Oscar Wilde, he finds new inspiration. But the Chief is determined that nothing will get in the way of his manager’s devotion to the Lyceum and to himself. And both men are enchanted by the beauty and boldness of the elusive Ellen.

SHADOWPLAY explores the complexities of love that stands dangerously outside social convention, the restlessness of creativity, and the experiences that led to Dracula, the most iconic supernatural tale of all time.

Praise for Joseph O’Connor and SHADOWPLAY:

‘There are few living writers who can take us back in time so assuredly, with such sensual density, through such gorgeous sentences. Joseph O’Connor is a wonder, and SHADOWPLAY is a triumph.’ – Peter Carey

‘As much as this is a hugely entertaining book about the grand scope of friendship and love, it is also, movingly – at times, agonisingly – a story of transience, loss and true loyalty.’ – Sadie Jones, The Guardian

‘Joseph O’Connor is a very great artist and storyteller. The quotient of enjoyment in his extraordinary new novel is stupendous.’ – Sebastian Barry

‘Wonderful. The writing is beautiful.’ – Derek Jacobi

‘A hugely entertaining and atmospheric novel, one can almost smell the greasepaint.’ – Deborah Moggach

‘Seriously fascinating’ – Colm Tóibín, The Observer

‘A virtuoso act of literary ventriloquism. SHADOWPLAY is funny, smart, tender, wise and written with inch-perfect precision.’ – Colum McCann

‘A great writer performing Olympian literary storytelling.’ — Bob Geldof

About the Author

Joseph O’Connor was born in Dublin. His books include nine novels: COWBOYS AND INDIANS (Whitbread Prize shortlist), DESPERADOES, THE SALESMAN, INISHOWEN, STAR OF THE SEA (American Library Association Award, Irish Post Award for Fiction, France’s Prix Millepages, Italy’s Premio Acerbi, Prix Madeleine Zepter for European novel of the year), REDEMPTION FALLS, GHOST LIGHT (Dublin One City One Book Novel 2011), THE THRILL OF IT ALL and SHADOWPLAY. His work has been published in forty languages. He received the 2012 Irish PEN Award for outstanding achievement in literature and in 2014 he was appointed Frank McCourt Professor of Creative Writing at the University of Limerick.

Visit Joseph O’Connor’s website.