You are viewing your 1 free article this month. Login to read more articles.
Transworld has pre-empted The Playdate from Irish author Andrea Mara, as well as a second title.
Commissioning editor Tash Barsby acquired world all languages rights in a two-book deal from Diana Beaumont at Marjacq Scripts. The Playdate will be published in hardback, e-book and audio in summer 2021.
The thriller opens with Marissa Irvine picking up her young son Milo from his first playdate with a boy at his new school. But the woman who answers the door isn’t a mother she recognises. She isn’t the nanny. She doesn’t have Milo.
Barsby said: "The Playdate is, quite simply, an extraordinary novel. Under Andrea’s incredible talent and poised writing, what starts as a familiar set-up quickly turns into one of the smartest thrillers that has landed on my desk in a long time. Not only will this satisfy a hungry crime audience, the way Andrea interrogates motherhood, and how people act in the most desperate of situations, makes this a compelling offering for a reading group market, too. I’m so excited to launch The Playdate next summer, and to have Andrea on the Transworld list."
Mara said: "I think most parents have moments when they think, 'Should I really let my child do this?' and that’s what’s teased out in The Playdate—that 'what if' moment. I’m absolutely thrilled to be working with Tash and the team at Transworld, who have been so passionate and enthusiastic about this novel since day one."
Mara has published several novels including The Other Side of the Wall (Poolbeg Press Ltd, 2017) and The Sleeper Lies (Poolbeg Press, 2020).