Downes' debut Fire starts two-book deal with HQ

HQ has signed a two-book deal with NHS audiologist Kerry Downes, beginning with a "remarkably asute" debut novel.

Editorial director Clare Gordon acquired world all-language rights from Viola Hayden at Curtis Brown. The first book, That Time Everything Was on Fire, is slated for publication in May 2025. 

The title is "a remarkably astute novel about the pains of being a young woman" following best friends Sam and Daisy who go down different roads when the hit their 30s: Sam with a husband and new baby, Daisy with an inability to stick with one man or plan for the future. 

Downes grew up in East Yorkshire and has spent the last decade in south London, working as an NHS specialist audiologist. She completed the three-month novel writing course with Curtis Brown Creative in 2020, and went on to be shortlisted for the 2021 TLC Pen Factor Prize.

Downes said: “That Time Everything Was on Fire is a very personal project and I can’t wait to see Daisy and Sam come to life in print.” 

Gordon said: “As soon as That Time Everything Was on Fire landed in my inbox I had that sneaking, warm feeling that you’re about to read something very special. And I was right. It’s charming and joyful and beautifully crafted, and it speaks to that all-important right of a woman to bodily autonomy, to choose whether motherhood is the right path.”