Hot Key buy E Lockhart's We Were Liars

From Book Trade, news of a UK publishing deal for E Lockhart's We Were Liars:

Emma Matthewson, Editor-at-Large at Hot Key Books, has acquired UK and Ireland rights in National Book Award finalist and Printz Award honoree E. Lockhart's YA novel WE WERE LIARS.

The book is already hotly anticipated in the industry as one of the top titles for 2014, and Hot Key Books will publish on 15 May, within days of Delacorte USA. They aim to make this one of the most talked about global launches of the year.

Described as: 'Thrilling, beautiful, and blisteringly smart ... utterly unforgettable' by John Green, WE WERE LIARS is a modern, sophisticated suspense novel that follows the tragic destruction of a wealthy, privileged family in New England.

A major sales and marketing campaign will support publication, including mailing out proof copies which are being produced within a week from the book's acquisition, as well as a big trade buzz-building campaign, including a dedicated helpline that booksellers can call to talk about the ending. The consumer launch will include a 'live read' on Twitter using the hashtag #wewereliars where readers will be asked to tweet as they read, plus blogger and vlogger outreach, promoting the global tumblr site wewereliars.tumblr.com and 'takeovers' on key consumer websites.

Sarah Odedina, Managing Director, says: 'Everyone at Hot Key Books is so excited and energised by having this breathtaking book on the list. It is a one-sitting heart-pounding read. It is quite simply unique and we know we are going to have a spectacular time bringing it to the attention of readers.'

Publishing Deal - Abbie Rushton

From today's The Bookseller, Abbie Rushton's debut, Unspeakable has been bought by Little, Brown and will appear under the Atom imprint:

Unspeakable tells the story of a the relationship between Megan, who hasn’t spoken for a year, and Jasmine, a new girl at Megan’s school.

Atom said it is committed to publishing important YA novels that deal with a range of contemporary and challenging issues, and Unspeakable tackles the themes of selective mutism and same-sex teen relationships.

“When I started to read Unspeakable I was gripped; by the time I had finished I was certain I'd found a fantastic new voice for UK YA,” said Agar [commissioning editor at Atom]. “The writing draws you in immediately and difficult topics are handled with ease. Unspeakable is a thriller, certainly, but it's the assured handling of first love and complicated friendships in this debut that will stay with readers long after they've turned the last page.”