U.K. Debut Novel Sees Flurry of Sales
Aitken Alexander Associates has just finalized a U.K. deal--after an auction-- with Francine Toon at Sceptre for the debut novel Saltwater by Jessica Andrews. Agent Chris Wellbelove is representing the book, and deals have also been made with Hoffmann und Campe (Germany) and Seix Barral (Spain). The novel is a coming of age story about a girl who moves to her grandfather's cottage to try to learn more about her family's history.
Italian Thriller Sells in Pre-empts
The debut thriller Flowers Over the Inferno by Ilaria Tuti has been pre-empted by Alfaguara/ Penguin Random House (Spain), Penguin Verlag (Germany), and Xander (the Netherlands). Longanesi, which controls all rights, will publish the novel in January 2018. The book introduces police inspector Teresa Battaglia, who is searching for a serial killer who mutilates his victims while she also deals with her personal battle against diabetes. Flowers is the first book in a planned "Battaglia Trilogy."
Swedish Novel Sells in Multiple Countries
1793 by Niklas Natt Och Dag was published by Forum in Sweden in September, and U.K. & Commonwealth rights have just been sold to John Murray Press by Salomonsson Agency. Among the publishers who have acquired rights are Einaudi (Italy), Piper (Germany), and Prometheus (the Netherlands). The novel is an historical crime work set in Stockholm in 1793, and is about a member of the Stockholm police who investigates a body found in a lake.
Swedish Nonfiction On Sheep Farming Sells in Quick Sales
Bonniers Rights Sweden is controlling rights to Counting Sheep: My 1021 Days in the Field by Axel Lindén and rights have recently sold to Germany's Ullstein Buchverlage (after an auction), Quercus Books (U.K.) and Ediciones B (world Spanish). Albert Bonnier Forlag published Counting Sheep in Sweden on October 6. The book is about a graduate student who moves back to his family's farm, where he is responsible for a group of sheep.
Norwegian Novel Sells in Germany & Czech Republic
The Hills by Matias Faldbakken has sold to Heyne/Encore (Germany) and Euromedia (Czech Republic). Norwegian publisher Oktober published the novel in September. The book centers on a restaurant called The Hills, and the narrator is a veteran waiter of the restaurant. Salomonsson Agency controls all rights. The author is a visual artist and he currently has an exhibit at the Astrup Fearnley Museum in Oslo.
Novel from Norwegian "Bees" Author Draws Interest
Blue by Maja Lunde, the new novel by the author of The History of Bees, will be published this month by Aschehoug Norway, and has already sold in Denmark, Sweden, Germany, and Lithuania. The novel has two story lines--one takes place in 2017 and another in 2041 when water is scarce. Oslo Literary Agency controls rights.
