You are viewing your 1 free article this month. Login to read more articles.
Orion Fiction has signed a two-book deal with author and journalist Hannah Beckerman.
Harriet Bourton, publisher at Orion Fiction, has acquired World rights in all languages for If Only I Could Tell You by Beckerman in a two-book deal struck by Sheila Crowley at Curtis Brown.
If Only I Could Tell You is a "poignant" story about one family who have been keeping secrets and growing further and further apart. After years of silence between two sisters, and a mother who is caught in the middle, the truth that’s about to surface will either split them apart for good or bring them back together.
Bourton said: "I’ve hoped to work with Hannah for several years now and when I first read If Only I Could Tell You I knew it was something special. It’s about family and forgiveness and is sure to strike a chord with readers across generations. All of us can think of an ‘if only…’ moment from our past, when a different choice could have changed the path our life then took. Hannah’s novel shines with beautiful prose, emotion and dilemma, and has a half-point twist that you genuinely don’t see coming – not to mention the most life-affirming ending I’ve read for a long time. I cried so much I couldn’t see! We can’t wait to publish it."
Beckerman said: "Every family – even the seemingly functional ones – has their secrets and I’m intrigued by the way they impact on people’s lives: on personalities, relationships and how the effects ripple through the generations. I find family estrangement endlessly fascinating and hope that in the story of Audrey, Lily and Jess, readers will find both the pain of regret and the possibility of forgiveness. I’m thrilled to be working with the dynamic and creative team at Orion on If Only I Could Tell You."
Beckerman previously spent 12 years working in television, first as a producer for the BBC and subsequently as a commissioning editor for arts and documentaries at Channel 4 and the Discovery Channel USA. Beckerman is now a full-time author and journalist, writing literary reviews and features for the Observer, the FT Weekend Magazine and the Sunday Express. She is also a regular chair at literary festivals and events, interviewing bestselling authors such as Paula Hawkins, Rachel Joyce, Maggie O’Farrell and Robert Harris. She has been a judge for numerous book prizes including the Costa Book Awards.
If Only I Could Tell You will be published by Orion Fiction in February 2019 in hardback, trade paperback, e-book and audio, with the mass-market paperback in Summer 2019.