HarperCollins Children's Books pre-empts 'vibrant' middle-grade debut by O’Brien

HarperCollins Children’s Books has acquired Wolf Siren, the middle-grade debut by Beth O’Brien. World rights were pre-empted by Michelle Misra, publishing director at HCCB, from Becky Bagnell at the Lindsay Agency. Wolf Siren will publish in paperback original in April 2025 and will be accompanied by a major marketing and publicity campaign.

The synopsis reads: “In Wolf Siren we meet Red, a 14-year-old visually impaired girl who lives in an isolated village surrounded by an enchanted wood, a place where wolves and magic are possible. Her grandmother disappeared without trace four years previously and Red longs for her return. When the female woodcutter fails to return home one night and wolves are seen close to the perimeter fence, fear drives a deep, dangerous divide between the villagers and the nature they live alongside. Only Red seems to hold the key to both places, but exposing Red’s secret could ruin her family forever…”

Misra said of the title: “This book is astonishing in its prose and depth of field and is quite simply a brilliant read. I devoured it in one sitting and am not ashamed to admit that I shed a bucket-load of tears by the end of it! I lived and breathed Red’s magical story from the moment I stepped into the woods with her. HarperCollins Children’s Books have a brilliant track record of successful middle-grade debut launches such as The Last Bear by Hannah Gold, Fireborn by Aisling Fowler and Pages & Co by Anna James. Beth O’Brien heralds a new and exciting voice and I can’t wait to add Wolf Siren to the growing HarperCollins Children’s Books fiction list."

O’Brien added: “Red’s story is important to me for so many reasons, but predominantly because she sees the world the same way I do – through blurs of colour, movement, and a lot of guesswork! That Red would find such a wonderful home with HarperCollins is more than I ever dared to hope for. But Michelle’s enthusiasm for this book completely blew me away and I feel incredibly lucky to be working with her.”

O’Brien is an English Literature BA and Creative Writing MA graduate from the University of Birmingham. She is also the author of four adult poetry books, including I Left the Room Burning (Wild Pressed Books, 2021). Having been born visually impaired and with an upper-limb difference, Beth has a long-standing interest in the representation of disability in  literature and is currently studying for a PhD in creative writing funded by Midlands4Cities, researching the (mis)representation of disability in contemporary fairytale retellings. She is the founder and editor of Disabled Tales, a website dedicated to discussing disability in fairytales and folklore.