Hachette Ireland, NZ and UK team up for first time after discovering Tiernan’s ‘astonishing’ début in open submission

Hachette Ireland, Hachette New Zealand, and Headline UK are teaming up for the first time to publish Anne Tiernan’s “astonishing” début novel, The Last Days of Joy.

Ciara Doorley, publishing director, Hachette Ireland; Kate Stephenson, senior publisher, Hachette New Zealand; and Sherise Hobbs, publisher, Headline UK, jointly acquired world rights in two books by Tiernan, an Irish novelist based in New Zealand.

The Last Days of Joy will be released in trade paperback, e-book and audio on the 30th March in Ireland, with New Zealand and Australia launching in first format in May 2023, and the UK publishing in paperback original in March 2024.

The novel tells the story of Joy Tobin, an Irish immigrant in New Zealand, who  suffers a catastrophic injury. When Joy’s children receive the news that she has only days to live, they rush to her side, bringing with them all the dysfunction and hurt they’ve been carrying since childhood. Each is at a crossroads in their lives, but there’s one last secret they need to learn about Joy…

Anne Tiernan was born in Zambia and grew up in Navan, Ireland, a small town 30 miles from Dublin. She worked in banking for several years before travelling the world and moving to New Zealand in 2005.

She said: “I feel incredibly excited and grateful that Kate, Ciara and Sherise along with the teams at Hachette NZ, Hachette Ireland and Headline UK are publishing my novel.

“Their enthusiasm for the book, along with their support, wisdom and insight, has made the entire process both fun and painless for this slightly clueless début author. I feel very privileged to be able to share this story and while it owes its origins to my own personal experience, I hope that it will also resonate with readers.”

Stephenson, who discovered Tiernan’s novel through Hachette NZ’s open submissions inbox, said: “I couldn’t believe such a brilliant, assured début had landed in my inbox, set to be the launch title of our new imprint. This is a story about motherhood, mental health, marriage, failure and the lingering presence of the past.

“It’s darkly funny, desperately sad, and completely wonderful. I’m honoured to be working with Anne on her deeply personal novel – it takes enormous courage to travel back to the darkest days of one’s life and write honestly and openly about some of the issues Anne’s characters grapple with.

“But the brilliant thing is that Anne handles the most sensitive content with grace and good humour and, ultimately, she delivers a message of hope. It really is a triumph – I can’t wait to share it with the wider world and am delighted that Hachette Ireland and Headline UK have fallen in love with Joy and the Tobin family, too.”

Fern McCauley, head of media development at Hachette UK is handling the film and TV rights. Sarah Brooks at Hachette ANZ is handling subrights.