Dinsdale moves to Pan Mac with magical Minotaur tale

Pan Macmillan has snared a reimagining of the Minotaur story by Robert Dinsdale, in a deal which sees him reunite with publishing director Gillian Green.

Green bought world rights from Euan Thorneycroft at A M Heath. Once a Monster will publish in hardback, export trade paperback, audio and e-book in September 2023. 

The synopsis states: "Once a Monster is a dark and magical reimagining of the Greek legend of the Minotaur, transported to Victorian London and revolves around a young orphan, Nell who belongs of a gang of mudlarks who trawl the banks of the Thames for abandoned treasures. Until one day Nell come across a strange body washed up on the shore…"

Dinsdale, author of The Toymakers (Del Rey) and Paris by Starlight (Del Rey), said: “It’s been a pleasure to spend the last year lost with the Minotaur in the seamier back-streets of Victorian London. Once a Monster began as a single image — Nell, the mudlark, standing over a body washed up by the tide — and grew, from there, into my dream of a big Dickensian fable with a legend at its heart. I couldn’t be happier to be working with Gillian, who spun such publishing magic for The Toymakers, again. And I can’t wait to begin work in earnest with the wider team at Macmillan."

Green added: “The Toymakers remains one of my favourite books I’ve ever published and, while Once a Monster is a very different beast, it is similarly extraordinary and enchanting, filled with magic and wonder and Rob’s beautiful storytelling will appeal to the legion of readers who love historical fiction with a thread of mythology running through it. It’s also, at its heart, a story about family and friendships and what it really means to be human.”