Galley Beggar Press acquires Henry Sutton’s 'page-turner'

Galley Beggar Press has acquired Mother by Henry Sutton, with co-directors Sam Jordison and Eloise Millar acquiring world rights from Caroline Wood at Felicity Bryan Associates. Publication is scheduled for spring 2028.

Mother is a book inspired by Sutton’s own mother, which the publisher says “puts its readers deep inside the consciousness of Romy, a middle-aged woman trying to come to terms with who she is, what she has done and where she is heading”.

The blurb reads: “Romy has escaped to a remote Catalan villa to reckon with a life fractured by trauma, guilt and disappointment. Alone for the first time in years, she hopes to detach from the roles that have defined her – wife, mother, failure, burden – and instead embrace aimlessness and quiet. But the past proves inescapable.

“The novel traces Romy’s days and thoughts in looping, lyrical prose, alternating between caustic humour and deep vulnerability. Her encounter with a stranger in a supermarket, and a surprise visit from a kindly neighbour, stir the possibility of connection and transformation. But the real movement in this novel is interior: a woman finally confronting the question of whether she can forgive herself – not for one single act, but for the accumulated sadness of a life half-lived."

Jordison said: “Henry’s skill as a crime fiction writer has allowed him to build a narrative of unusual suspense and tension while he also goes deep into the interior of a wonderfully complicated woman. Mother is also both a page-turner and intellectual tour de force, as well as a beautiful act of tenderness and empathy. We’re delighted and honoured to be publishing it."

Millar commented: "One of the things that I loved most about reading Mother was the immediate connection I felt to Romy, and just how real she was. As soon as I started turning the pages, I thought here is a character that (just like the closest of friends) I can feel sympathy for, delight with – pity, love, patience, at moments total impatience… And that Henry has been able to create a character like this, someone who evokes the whole gamut of human emotions, is a true mark of just how fine a writer he is. I wanted to stay with Romy until the end, and now, we can’t wait to publish it, in order to give readers that same experience."

Sutton has had 15 novels published, including My Criminal World and Get Me Out of Here (both Vintage). He is professor of creative writing at the University of East Anglia, where he directs the MA in Prose Fiction. He is also the author of Crafting Crime Fiction (Manchester University Press, 2023), and is a series editor for Elements in Crime Narratives, Cambridge University Press.

He said of the deal: “I’m delighted to be joining Galley Beggar Press, whose bold and singular list I’ve long admired. Mother contains everything I know about writing and everything I’ve wanted to achieve, and it comes from a place very close to my heart. It’s a huge honour to see this novel find such an inspiring and important home, and to work with Sam and Elly.”