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Head of Zeus signs Scott's third novel about life in rural England
Aria, an imprint of Head of Zeus, has signed a third novel by Victoria Scott, author of the 2021 title Patience (Bloomsbury).
Aria’s editorial director Rachel Faulkner-Willcocks acquired world English language rights to The Women Who Wouldn’t Leave from Hannah Weatherill at Northbank Talent Management (Weatherill has since left the agency). The title will publish in hardback, e-book and audio in August 2023.
The synopsis reads: "The Women Who Wouldn’t Leave follows the story of Connie Darke and Matilda Reynolds, two very different women whose worlds collide when their rural council estate comes under threat from developers. It’s a gripping and uplifting story of community and friendship that explores life in rural England from a unique angle."
Faulkner-Willcocks said: “Victoria Scott is such a brilliant writer whose characters and their stories feel incredibly real – and no less gripping for it. In this new novel, she explores the experience of life in a rural council estate and the pressures placed on these communities by cash-strapped councils, ambitious developers and gentrification. We’re very excited to be publishing more books from Victoria.”
Scott added: “I’m thrilled that Aria will publish my third novel in August. I grew up in rural Worcestershire, where the novel is set, and writing The Women Who Wouldn’t Leave felt like a love letter to the landscape and people I know so well. The novel is about the joy of friendship, the healing power of nature and why you should fight for what you believe in. In these troubled times, I think that message is so important.”
Scott is a journalist who has worked for outlets including the BBC, Al Jazeera, Time Out and the Telegraph. She lives on a Thames island with her husband and two children and a cat called Alice. When she’s not writing she’s a university lecturer, freelance journalist and copywriter. Her first novel, Patience, was the Booksellers Association Book of the Month and LoveReading Debut of the Month.
