Black & White acquires ‘glorious festive romance’ by Houlbrook

Ceri Houlbrooks’ debut festive romance, Winter’s Wishfall, has been bought by Bonnier Books UK’s Black & White Publishing Group.

Sam Humphreys, publishing director, acquired world rights from Julie Crisp at the Julie Crisp Literary Agency. Winter’s Wishfall will be published in paperback, audio and e-book on 5th October 2023.

The novel tells the story of Ellie Lancaster who accepts a mysterious archiving job on a remote Scottish island that, according to maps, doesn’t actually exist. The synopsis continues that over the course of a year, Ellie falls in love with both her job and the island – and even begins to see a more human side to her grumpy and antagonistic boss, Cole Jones. But when she decides to break one of his cardinal rules, she risks losing everything she holds dear.

Houlbrook, a folklore and history lecturer at the University of Hertfordshire, said: “This story of love and magic came to me while I was working in some archives. I’d walked through snow to get there, and while one half of my mind was on dusty manuscripts, the other half was on Christmas.

"The two halves met. I wanted to write something that would feel like being wrapped in a warm blanket, and I’m so glad that Julie Crisp and Sam Humphreys enjoyed my story and want to see other people wrapped up in that warm blanket too.” 

Humphreys said: “Winter’s Wishfall is a glorious novel; I first read it when the weather was cold, grey and miserable, and it was the perfect pick-me-up. Incredibly accomplished and engaging, it’s the ideal festive tale for anyone who likes their Christmas books with a hint of magic and romance, plenty of cake, and a very satisfying happy-ever-after.”

Julie Crisp added: “Reading Ceri’s book is a wonderfully uplifting, charming read and I couldn’t be happier that Ceri’s festive romance has found a home with Bonnier and the incredibly talented Sam Humphreys.”