Mushens Entertainment Spring Rights Update
Here are all the rights deals we’ve completed since the start of 2023:
Norwegian, Dutch, French, Slovenian and Greek rights to Abigail Dean’s DAY ONE have sold to Gursli-Berg, HarperCollins, Ucila and Psichogios respectively. Rights: HarperCollins (UK), Viking (US), Lattes (France), Einaudi (Italy), Kinneret (Israel), HarperCollins NL (Netherlands), Gursli-Berg (Norway), Ucila (Slovenia) and Psichogios (Greece). Pub date: 28th March 2024.
Julia Wisdom at HarperCollins has acquired UK & Comm (ex Canada) rights in two new novels by Abigail Dean, in a major deal. Her as yet untitled third book follows a couple whose life was destroyed by a home invader – years later they reunite at his trial, and must face the secrets of their shared past, and the truth of that night. Please click here for rights and options. Pub date: January 2025.
Amy McCulloch’s next two thrillers have been taken up by Joel Richardson at Michael Joseph, as well as by Edward Kastenmeier at Randomhouse/Anchor and Lara Hinchberger at Randomhouse/Canada in six figure deals. Polish rights to Amy McCulloch’s MIDNIGHT have sold to Marginesy. Rights: Michael Joseph (UK), Knopf/Penguin (US/Canada), Piper (Germany), House of Books (Netherlands), and Marginesy (Poland). Pub date: 22nd June 2023.
French rights to THE BONE SHARD WAR by Andrea Stewart have been taken up by option publisher Bragelonne. Rights: Orbit (UK), Orbit (US), Bragelonne (France), Blanvalet (Germany), Fabryka (Poland), and Trini (Spain). Options: Autentica (Brazil) and Epsilon (Turkey). Pub date: 18th April 2023.
UK & Comm ex Canada rights to Chris MacDonald’s reading group novel THE METHOD following a controversial method actor haunted by events at his drama school years earlier, were pre-empted by Joel Richardson at Michael Joseph for publication January 2024. Rights: Michael Joseph (UK). Pub date: January 2024.
Michael Joseph and HarperCollins have acquired two novels from Claire Douglas. Maxine Hitchcock, publishing director for fiction, acquired UK and Commonwealth rights including audio. North American rights were snapped up by Sarah Stein at HarperCollins in a six-figure deal via Jenny Bent at the Bent Agency. The first book, THE WRONG SISTER, will be published in spring 2024 and will be Claire’s first outing in hardback. Set between Bristol and Venice, the novel follows two sisters whose lives become dangerously entangled.
Claire Douglas’ THE COUPLE AT NO 9 and THE GIRLS WHO DISAPPEARED have been taken up by option publisher Ucila in Slovenia. Polish rights to THE GIRLS WHO DISAPPEARED by Claire Douglas have sold to Filia, and Romanian rights have been taken up by Grup Media. Meanwhile, Spanish rights to THE WOMAN WHO LIED by Claire Douglas have sold to Planeta. All of Claire’s rights can be found here.
Serbian rights to Elodie Harper’s THE WOLF DEN have sold to Laguna, while THE HOUSE WITH THE GOLDEN DOOR has sold in Slovenia, Romania and Croatia to HKZ, Trei and Vorto. Both THE HOUSE WITH THE GOLDEN DOOR and THE TEMPLE OF FORTUNA have sold to Dar Molhimon for Arabic language rights. All of Elodie’s rights can be found here.
Spanish rights to Elvin James Mensah’s SMALL JOYS sold to Urano. Rights: Scribner (UK – Chris White), Ballantine (US), Urano (Spain). Pub date: 13 April 2023.
North American, Brazilian, Hungarian, Croatian, Turkish, Polish, Italian, Romanian, French, Spanish and Greek rights to Hannah Kaner’s GODKILLER were sold. Rights: HarperVoyager (UK), HarperVoyager (US), Morro Branco (Brazilian), Ciela (Bulgaria), VBZ (Croatia), De Saxus (France), Piper (Germany), Minoas (Greece), Gabo (Hungary), Oscar Fantastica (Italy), Jaguar (Poland), Nemira (Romania), Urano (Spain), Olimpos (Turkey). Pub date: 19 January 2023.
Czech rights to MISS AUSTEN INVESTIGATES: THE HAPLESS MILLINER by Jessica Bull have sold to Jota – the 15th territory! Rights: Michael Joseph (UK), Union Square (US), Brazil (Rocco), Znanje (Croatia), Jota (Czech), Bazar (Finland), J’ai Lu (France), Droemer (Germany), Piemme (Italy), Luitingh Sijthoff (Netherlands), Portugal (Topseller), Vulkan (Serbia), Alfaguara (Spain), HarperCollins (Sweden). Pub date: Spring 2024.
Italian rights for Jessie Burton’s THE MINIATURIST are now with La Nave di Teseo. All of Jessie’s rights can be found here. Pub date: 3 July 2014.
Ukrainian rights to Kate Gray’s THE HONEYMOON have sold to Knigolove. Rights: Welbeck (UK), Knigolove (Ukraine). Pub date: 20 July 2023.
Hebrew rights to ROOTLESS by Krystle Zara Appiah have sold to Mirabelle. Rights: HarperCollins (UK), Ballantine (US), Signatuur (Netherlands), and Mirabelle (Israel). Pub date: 16 March 2023.
German rights to THE WHISPERING MUSE by Laura Purcell have sold to Festa. Rights: Bloomsbury (UK), Festa (Germany) Hayakawa (Japan) and Urano (Spain). Pub date: 2 February 2023.
Polish and Romanian rights to L.R. Lam’s DRAGONFALL have sold to Filia. Rights: Hodder (UK), DAW (US) Filia (Poland) and Nemira (Romania). Pub date: 2 May 2023.
World rights to two YA novels by Polly Crosby sold at auction to Linas Alsenas at Scholastic UK. The first, THIS TALE IS FORBIDDEN will be published in January 2024. Nesta and her grandmother live in the woods, safe and far away from the city, where women live under the oppressive regime of the authorities, under values espoused by The Book of Fairytales. When her grandmother is taken, Nesta must go to the city to save her. Along the way Nesta discovers she has the power to uncover the true stories of the past – and that makes her dangerous. Can she evade the authorities long enough to find a way to tell the truth and bring magic back into the world, liberating everyone? Rights: Scholastic (World All Languages). Pub date: January 2024.
Soft Press in Bulgaria have taken up rights to THE BULLET THAT MISSED by Richard Osman, and Bilgi have take up Turkish rights.
Hungarian, Ukrainian, Greek, Slovakian and Romanian rights to Richard Osman’s THE LAST DEVIL TO DIE have sold to Agave, Family Leisure Club, Psichogios, Slovart and Crime Scene Press.
UK, Czech and French rights to Robert Gold’s ELEVEN LIARS sold to Sphere, Alpress and Lafon. The first book in the series TWELVE SECRETS has now sold over 100,000 copies across all formats in the UK. The next two thrillers in Robert’s Ben Harper series have also sold to Sphere in the UK in a significant six-figure deal. Rights: Sphere (UK), Alpress (Czech), Lafon (France), Goldmann (Germany) and Longanesi (Italy). Options: Faro (Brazil), Znanje (Croatia), Alpress (Czech), Niculescu (Romania), and HKZ (Slovenia). Pub date: 30th March 2023.
Rob Temple’s next VERY BRITISH PROBLEMS QUIZ BOOK has sold to Emily Barrett at Sphere (WAL). Rights: Sphere (WAL). Pub date: Christmas 2023.
Phoebe Morgan at Hodder as acquired UK & Comm (ex Canada) rights to BAD BLOOD by debut author Sarah Hornsley in a two-book deal following a big six-figure pre-empt after the book was on submission for only 48-hours. Furthermore, German, Romanian and Slovenian have sold to Penguin, Crime Scene Press and Učila respectively. BAD BLOOD is a debut thriller which reads like Blood Orange meets Sharp Objects. BAD BLOOD follows criminal barrister Justine Stone who must return to the home she hasn’t visited in twelve years when her childhood sweetheart is accused of murder. NA rights are handled by Ginger Clark at Ginger Clark Literary. Rights: Hodder (UK), Penguin (Germany), Crime Scene Press (Romania), and Učila (Slovenia). Pub date: TBD 2025.
THE NIGHTINGALE’S CASTLE by Sonia Velton was sold in a two-book deal at auction to Clare Smith at Little, Brown. It also sold at auction in NA to Millicent Bennett and Amy Baker at HarperPerennial. Furthermore, Hungarian rights have been snapped up by Libri. THE NIGHTINGALE’S CASTLE is a reading group historical novel which looks at the story of Elizabeth Bathory, ‘the blood countess’, rumoured to have murdered 600 peasant girls in Hungary and bathed in their blood to maintain her youthful looks. But is that the real story? Or was she simply a powerful and wealthy woman who influential men wanted to be rid of? Please note that film rights are represented by Emily Hayward-Whitlock. Rights: Little, Brown (UK), HarperCollins (US) and Libri (Hungary). Pub date: Spring 2024.
French paperback rights to Stacey Halls’ MRS ENGLAND have sold to Pocket via Lafon. Rights: Bonnier (UK), Mira (US), Dar Molhimon (Arabic), Lafon (France hardback), Pocket (France paperback) Piper (Germany), XXI Szazad (Hungary), Neripozza (Italy), Korean Media Studies (Korea), Gursli Berg (Norway), Swiat Ksiazki (Poland), Nemira (Romania), Urano (Spain), and Bokfabriken (Sweden). Pub date: 10 June 2021.
Turkish rights to PANDORA by Susan Stokes-Chapman have gone to Eksik. Rights: Harvill Secker (UK), HarperCollins (US), Verus (Brazil), List (Bulgaria), Stilus (Croatia), Euromedia (Czech), Lafon (France), DTV (Germany), Alexandra (Hungary), Neri pozza (Italy), Kobiece (Poland), Nemira (Romania), Vulkan (Serbia), Grada (Slovakia), Duomo (Spain), and Eksik (Turkey). Pub date: 27th January 2022.
We’ve had lots of wonderful news to share about our authors!
Saara El-Arifi and Susan Stokes-Chapman have been nominated for the Goldsboro Glass Bell.
Pim Wangtechawat’s THE MOON REPRESENTS MY HEART has been chosen as Prima Magazine’s Book of the Month!
Congratulations to Laura Purcell who has won a Silver Signal Award for 'Best Scripted Fiction' with podcast she wrote, Roanoke Falls! It also won Gold for Craft - Sounds Design. The Signal Awards seek to honour and celebrate the people and content that raise the bar for podcasting. Industry leaders will judge shows, limited series & specials, individual episodes and branded shows/advertising across various categories.
Anna Mazzola was shortlisted twice for The CWA Daggers (Gold Dagger and Historical Dagger) with THE CLOCKWORK GIRL. Laure Van Rensburg’s NOBODY BUT US was longlisted for the ILP John Creasey (New Blood) dagger). The CWA (The Crime Writers’ Association) is a network aimed at supporting and promoting writers of every kind of crime fiction and non-fiction. The awards have been running for 68 years and this year they will be announcing the winners on 6th July 2023.
Anna Mazzola’s THE CLOCKWORK GIRL was longlisted for the Dublin Literary Award. The Award, now in its 28th year, is presented annually for a novel written in English or translated into English, and aims to promote excellence in world literature and is solely sponsored by Dublin City Council, and administered by Dublin City Libraries. Nominations are submitted by libraries in major cities throughout the world.
Sussie Anie has won a Somerset Maugham Award for her debut novel, TO FILL A YELLOW HOUSE! Somerset Maugham set up a fund in 1947 to enable young writers to enrich their work by gaining experience of foreign countries. The awards are given for a published work of fiction, non-fiction or poetry.
Richard Osman was shortlisted for two British Book Awardswith THE BULLET THAT MISSED in the categories of ‘Best Fiction AudioBook’ and ‘Best Crime & Thriller Book’. The Awards are a snapshot of the industry’s achievements and showcases the authors and illustrators who have stirred our hearts and imaginations through the stories they’ve brought to readers.
Jessie Burton was shortlisted for the Yoto Carnegie Medalfor Writing with MEDUSA! A total of 31 books have been recognised, with 15 books selected for the Yoto Carnegie Medal for Writing longlist, and 18 books for the Yoto Carnegie Medal for Illustration. The winners will be announced on Wednesday 21st June. Please contact Bloomsbury for any rights queries.
In March ROOTLESS by Krystle Zara Appiah was picked by Book of the Month as one of their March picks! Onyi Nwabineli, author of Someday, Maybe, writes that “One mark of a great novel is the emotions its characters are able to elicit within us. Krystle Zara Appiah’s Rootless is one such example of a character-driven narrative which, from page one, welcomes you in…”
Mushens Entertainment is sponsoring the Brick Lane Short Story Prize this year! Amongst other prizes, the winner and first two runners-up will receive individual feedback on submission materials from our agents. Our senior assistant, Kiya Evans, will also be judging the prize for the 2023 competition alongside Gurnaik Johal, author of We Move, and Melissa Cox, Publishing Director for Zaffre at Bonnier Books.
Charlie Turnbull’s short story, ‘Headshot’, was longlisted for Galley Beggar Press’ Short Story Prize for 2022/23! Read ‘Headshot’ here.
The Authors’ Club longlisted TO FILL A YELLOW HOUSE for their annual ‘Best First Novel Award’! The Best First Novel prize is open to any debut novel written in English and published in the UK between 1 Jan and 31 Dec 2022.
Rajasree Variyar’s THE DAUGHTERS OF MADURAI has been chosen by The Barnes & Noble Book Club in the US as one of their picks for March! The Barnes & Noble book club books are picked by expert booksellers who choose the best upcoming books being published to recommend to their readers.
Jessie Burton has been picked to be on the judging panel for this year’s BBC National Short Story Award with Cambridge University (NSSA). Alongside her on the judging panel will be BBC News journalist and presenter Reeta Chakrabarti, who is chairing the BBC NSSA’s for the 18th year; Booker Prize winner Roddy Doyle; award-winning writer Laura Dockrill; and TV presenter and children’s author Konnie Huq.
Susan Stokes-Chapman and Saara El-Arifi have both been longlisted for the Goldsboro Glass Bell Award with PANDORA and THE FINAL STRIFE! Now in its seventh year, the Glass Bell Award is judged by David Headley (co-founder of Goldsboro Books) and his team. The award is awarded to “a compelling novel with brilliant characterisation and a distinct voice that is confidently written and assuredly realised”. The shortlist will be announced on Thursday 27th July and the winner is to be announced on Thursday 28th September 2023.
Recent bestsellers:
Claire Douglas and Richard Osman are German bestsellers, hitting top 10 on Der Spiegel’s Paperback Bestsellers List. Claire Douglas debuted in Germany at #1 on the paperback List with THE COUPLE AT NO 9. Meanwhile, Richard Osman’s THE BULLET THAT MISSED was at #10 on the same list.
The paperback of Richard Osman’s THE BULLET THAT MISSED has been number 1 in the Sunday Times bestseller chart for seven weeks in a row after being published in the UK on 11th May. Furthermore, THE BULLET THAT MISSED has now sold over 1,000,000 copies across all formats in the UK alone!
LR Lam’s DRAGONFALL appeared at #4 on the Sunday Times Bestseller list during its first week of publication.
THE BONE SHARD WAR by Andrea Stewart appeared at #4 in the Sunday Times’ bestsellers in May.
GODKILLER by Hannah Kaner surpassed 50,000 copies in sales. It charted at #1 in its first week of sales and in its second week, it charted at #6, with 10,000 copies sold within 10 days of being published.
Susan Stokes-Chapman’s PANDORA also charted at #20 on the paperback list upon paperback publication. PANDORA has been a number 1 Sunday Times bestseller and a Sunday Times Historical Fiction Book of the Month. It has now sold over 50,000 copies in the UK across all formats!
Robert Gold’s debut thriller, TWELVE SECRETS has now sold over 100,000 copies across all formats in the UK. On the week of Robert Gold’s hardback publication, ELEVEN LIARS ranked at #16. Robert Gold also charted at #16 upon paperback publication with TWELVE SECRETS.
Jennifer Saint’s ATALANTA was a #1 Sunday Times bestseller in the hardback charts in April following its publication. ELEKTRA debuted at #18 following its paperback publication in January this year.
In its first week of publication, Saara El-Arifi’s THE BATTLE DRUM stormed into the Sunday Times’ #13 hardback spot.
Summer publications:
1st June - THE MOON REPRESENTS MY HEART by Pim Wangtechawat (Oneworld publications, UK hardback)
6th June - THE MOON REPRESENTS MY HEART by Pim Wangtechawat (Blackstone, US hardback)
20th June - THE BULLET THAT MISSED by Richard Osman (Pamela Dorman, US paperback)
22nd June - MIDNIGHT by Amy McCulloch (Michael Joseph, UK hardback)
23rd June - IT ALL STARTED WITH YOU by Debbie Howells (Boldwood, UK e-book)
29th June - THE CHEMICAL CODE by Fiona Erskine (Point Blank, UK paperback)
6th July - THE HOUSE OF FORTUNE by Jessie Burton (Picador, UK paperback)
6th July - THE WOMAN WHO LIED by Claire Douglas (Michael Joseph, UK paperback)
11th July - THE JUDAS BLOSSOM by Stephen Aryan (Angry Robot, UK hardback)
11th July - MEREDITH ALONE by Claire Alexander (Grand Central, US paperback)
20th July - THE HONEYMOON by Kate Gray (Welbeck, UK hardback)
20th July - THE LIE by Mary Chamberlain (Oneworld, UK hardback)
3rd August - THE GOOD DAUGHTER by Laure Van Rensburg (Michael Joseph, UK hardback)