THE MEMOIRS of VALMIKI RAO de Lindsay Pereira

A masterful retelling of the ancient Sanskrit epic, the Ramayana, THE MEMOIRS of VALMIKI RAO explores themes of religious and political hypocrisy and how the disadvantaged are used as pawns to fight the wars of the powerful.

THE MEMOIRS of VALMIKI RAO
by Lindsay Pereira
Vintage Books/Penguin Random House India, August 2023
(via The Rights Factory)

Madeline Miller’s Circe meets Rushdie’s Midnight Children with a dash of the whimsy and caper of Wes Anderson, THE MEMOIRS of VALMIKI RAO is about young love and the loss of innocence set against the backdrop of one of the most tumultuous periods of modern Indian history. In a nondescript apartment in a corner of Mumbai, a retired postman, Valmiki Rao, reflects on a month in 1992. A month in which a mosque burned and religious extremism reigned. A month in which young men took up arms against their brothers and made enemies of neighbours. A month which would have long-lasting effects on modern India. It was a time when blood flowed on the streets and men and women gave up their lives for invisible gods.

In writing his memoirs of this period, Valmiki Rao tells the story of Rameshwar, a neighbourhood hero, and the young woman he loves, Janaki, who is also coveted by the local thug Ravindra. As the city burns around them, Rameshwar must risk everything to rescue Janaki from Ravindra’s grasp, an act which will ultimately impact the lives of everyone in the neighbourhood forever.

Lindsay Pereira is a Toronto-based journalist and editor. He studied at St. Xavier’s College and the University of Bombay and holds a PhD in literature. He was co-editor with the late Eunice de Souza of Women’s Voices (Oxford University Press). His first novel, GODS and ENDS (Penguin Random House India) was shortlisted for the 2021 JCB Prize for Literature, and Tata Literature Live! First Book Award for Fiction. His short story collection SONGS OUR BODIES SING (Penguin Random House India) will be published in 2024. World English Rights excluding the Indian sub-continent are available for both.

THE BLACK HUNGER de Nicholas Pullen

THE BLACK HUNGER by Nicholas Pullen is an electric, nightmare-inducing 120,000-word horror meets historical fiction debut.

THE BLACK HUNGER
by Nicholas Pullen
Orbit, Autumn 2024
(via The Rights Factory)

This expertly interwoven story follows three wellmeaning men and their dealings with a death-worshipping cult, the Dhaumri Karoti, bent upon the absolute destruction of our world.

Almost fifty years after the grisly murder of a respected general, and the subsequent disappearance of the general’s purportedly delusional wife, John Sackville rots in the dark cell of an English asylum, aware that soon he will be forever changed. He bears two wounds: the one that festers underneath his skin, and the one deep within his heart. In his last testament, Sackville chronicles the story of his life. It is a story steeped in history and myth, scattered across India, Tibet, and Mongolia, and interweaving his secret, passionate affair with the man he has loved since boyhood with his stand against the leaders of the Dhaumri Karoti.

With a rich atmosphere influenced by Stoker and Shelley, this epistolary blend of Gothic and Lovecraftian horror has broad appeal. It is a fright-fest perfect for fans of Clarke’s JONATHAN STRANGE AND MR NORRELL and Miéville’s THE LAST DAYS OF NEW PARIS. An exceptional harnessing of madness—and one wild ride.

Nicholas Pullen was born and raised in Toronto, and educated at Oxford and McGill. A writer since early childhood, Nicholas now fashions stories out of shadows, madness, and historical truths. Outside of writing, his professional life has been spent working toward Truth and Reconciliation in the Canadian Public Service, as a treaty negotiator with Indigenous Peoples. He speaks fluent French and enjoys scuba diving on shipwrecks in Georgian Bay. A Canada Council for the Arts Grant Recipient, his short fiction has appeared in the Toronto Star (Famous Blue), the Copperfield Review (Hellulandsaga), and Anti-Heroin Chic (Relapse/Grindr).

THE HOUSEHOLD de Stacey Halls

From the Sunday Times bestseller and winner of the Women’s Prize Futures Award, the captivating, highly anticipated new novel, inspired by real historical figures and events..

THE HOUSEHOLD
by Stacey Halls
April 2024
(via Mushens Entertainment)

In a quiet house in the countryside outside London, the finishing touches are being made to welcome a group of young women. The house and its location are top secret, its residents unknown to one another, but the girls have one thing in common: they are fallen. Offering refuge for prostitutes, petty thieves and the destitute, Urania Cottage is a second chance at life – but how badly do they want it?

Meanwhile, a few miles away in a Piccadilly mansion, millionairess Angela Burdett-Coutts, one of the benefactors of Urania Cottage, makes a discovery that leaves her cold: her stalker of 10 years has been released from prison . . .

As the women’s worlds collide in ways they could never have expected, they will discover that freedom always comes at a price.

Stacey Halls has worked as a journalist at The Bookseller and Fabulous Magazine, and has written for publications including Stylist, Psychologies and The Independent. She has won the Women’s Prize Futures Award. Her debut novel, The Familiars, was a Sunday Times Bestseller and was a Richard and Judy pick. Her second novel, The Foundling, was a Sunday Times Bestseller.

THE WOMAN IN THE WALLPAPER de Lora Jones

A propulsive historical debut for fans of The Miniaturist and The Doll Factory, following three women living at a textiles factory in late eighteenth-century Paris.

THE WOMAN IN THE WALLPAPER
by Lora Jones
Sphere, 2025
(via Mushens Entertainment)

After the death of their father, gentle Lara and headstrong Sofi find work at a factory renowned for the intricate illustrations on their wallpaper. They quickly notice that the same woman appears in every idyllic vignette: the former mistress of the house, who met an untimely death years before and who bears more than a passing resemblance to Lara.

As the sisters adapt to the rhythms of life at the factory, Lara attracts the attention of the factory owner’s son, Josef, and the scorn of his unhappy wife, Hortense. Lara soon realises there is something uncannily familiar about her interactions with Josef and that her life is mirroring the scenes illustrated on the wallpaper that lines her bedchamber.

As the strange occurrences surrounding the wallpaper become ever more unnerving, Lara finds herself wondering: is history is repeating itself and, if so, will she share the same tragic fate as her doppelgänger, a fate that seems to be, literally, written on the wall?

After studying English Literature at the University of Durham, Lora Jones began her career in the TV industry, reading scripts and writing for ITV, the BBC, Channel 4 and others. Lora lives in the rugged, myth-steeped hills of North Wales. The Woman in the Wallpaper is her first novel.

THE VOICES de Natalie Chandler

They say it was an accident, but you can hear every word they say, and they aren’t telling the truth. Then again, before the crash, neither were you.

THE VOICES
by Natalie Chandler
HarperNorth, Spring 2025
(via Mushens Entertainment)

Tamsin Shaw’s doctors describe her condition as a permanent vegetative state and say she has no chance of recovery. After three years in limbo, her husband Jamie is given the option of withdrawing her treatment. To save her own life, Tamsin must somehow prove that, unbeknownst to those around her, she has full awareness. When it becomes clear Jamie may have his own reasons for allowing his wife to slip away, Tamsin, trapped inside her own mind, fears she may never be able to communicate with the outer world.

In her old life, Tamsin was an eminent psychiatrist, specialising in treating sex offenders. Her final client before the crash was the charming, aristocratic Richard Mandeville, who insisted he was innocent of the horrific crimes he had been convicted of. As his retrial now looms, Tamsin’s boss Dan suspects her notes indicate she may have fallen under Mandeville’s spell.

With no memory of the day of the crash, Tamsin is convinced those lost recollections hold the key to understanding exactly what her brain is trying to protect her from. If it wasn’t an accident, who would want to harm her, and why?

Natalie Chandler was educated at St Chad’s College, Durham and currently works in behavioural education, specialising in social, emotional and mental health issues. She is a Curtis Brown Creative alumna and was previously selected to be part of the WoMentoring scheme.