Costa winner Penney's love story to Quercus

Quercus has acquired a new historical novel and "epic love story" by Costa winner Stef Penney.

Under a Pole Star will be published in November 2016 in hardback, after world English rights were acquired through Diana Tyler at MBA Literary and Script Agents. 

Jane Wood, publisher at Quercus, said: "Under a Pole Star marks Stef Penney’s triumphant return to historical fiction with a soaring, epic love story. Set during the late 19th century in the snowy wilds of the Arctic, it tells the story of Flora Mackie who becomes a polar explorer at a time when such a thing was unheard of for a woman. It is a novel that is as vast and beautiful as the landscape it inhabits and only Stef Penney, author of The Tenderness of Wolves, could have written it."

Tyler added: "I am delighted to be working again with Jane Wood and the wonderful team at Quercus on Stef Penney’s exciting new novel."

Quercus will be running an "attention-grabbing teaser" campaign for the book, plus full consumer, sales and publicity support on publication.

Penney is the author of two previous novels, The Tenderness of Wolves and The Invisible Ones. Rights for The Tenderness of Wolves sold in 33 territories and won the Costa Book of the Year award in 2007.