Colgan moves to H&S in 'major' five-book deal after over a decade with Sphere

Bestselling author Jenny Colgan will move to the Hodder & Stoughton fiction list in 2024 as part of a “major” five-book deal following more than a decade with Sphere.

Hodder will publish a new summer romance called Close Knit in August 2024, the paperback edition of Midnight at the Christmas Bookshop (other editions are published by Sphere) in October 2024 and has acquired three further novels after that. Executive publisher Jo Dickinson bought UK and Commonwealth rights from Jo Unwin at JULA in what H&S dubbed a “major” deal.

Close Knit is set on a small Scottish island and centres on a group of women who bond over their shared love of knitting. The blurb reads: “Gertie has always had her head in the clouds, wondering what her life might be like if she could only pluck up the courage to leave the remote Scottish island where she was born.

“It’s the only place she knows, but you can’t do anything there without everyone knowing – the glue of this close-knit community is the Knitting Circle, a group of strong, capable and frankly nosy women who work hard, gossip, knit and support each other through thick and thin.

“When the chance comes to make changes – a new job working with old schoolfriend Morag on the local airline, new friends and even a possible new romance – a world of possibilities opens up before Gertie. Is this the way to make her dreams come true?”

Dickinson said: “I’m delighted to be reunited with the amazing and brilliant Jenny Colgan. Her novels are full of heart and joy. I am ambitious for growth and look forward to working closely with all Jenny’s international publishers. I can’t wait to get started.”

Colgan said: ‘This is such a fabulous chance to reach new readers while staying under the wonderful umbrella of Hachette."

Unwin said: “It’s a pleasure to reunite Jenny with Jo Dickinson, knowing how successful and happy that partnership was. Growing Jenny’s readership internationally alongside the fabulous team at [literary agency] C&W has been a personal career highlight, and as we approach 10,000,000 books sold Jenny and I were excited by Hodder’s aim to work ever more closely with her translation publishers.

“With ITV Studio’s Happy Prince developing Jenny’s Little Beach Street Bakery as escapist, wish-fulfilling television we’re excited to see what we can all achieve over the next few years.”

Colgan has written over 40 novels and her titles regularly in international bestseller charts. The publisher said she has sold 12.6 million copies across all formats worldwide. In the UK she has sold 2.3m copies for £10.8m through Nielsen BookScan.

Dickinson and Colgan worked together previously on titles including the bestselling Meet Me at the Cupcake Café (2011, Little, Brown).