Hodder snares ‘dazzling Dickensian fantasy of illusion and charm’ from King

Hodder & Stoughton has signed The Curator, a new novel by Owen King, described by the publisher as a “Dickensian fantasy of illusion and charm” in which “cats are revered as religious figures, thieves are noble, scholars are revolutionaries, and conjurers the most wonderful criminals".

Publisher Nick Sayers bought UK and commonwealth rights excluding Canada from Jenny Meyer of the Jenny Meyer Literary Agency, representing Amy Williams of The Williams Company. The Curator will be published in hardcover, trade paperback, e-book and audio on 7th March 2023.

The Curator tells the story of Dora, a young woman working as a maid in a great city convulsed by revolution. Dora finds herself looking after the Museum of the Worker, a strange, forgotten edifice occupied by waxwork tableaux of miners, nurses, shopkeepers and other disturbingly lifelike figures.

The synopsis reads: "As the turmoil outside unleashes forces of love, betrayal, magic and terrifying darkness, Dora’s search for the truth behind a mystery that she has long concealed will unravel a monstrous conspiracy and bring her to the very edge of worlds".

Sayers said: “In The Curator, Owen King has created an extraordinary time and place – historical, fantastical, yet compellingly real, and a heroine who is courageous, curious and utterly memorable. We can’t wait to bring this astonishing novel to readers in the UK and beyond.”

Sleeping Beauties, by Owen and Stephen King, was a Sunday Times bestseller for Hodder in 2017. He is also the author of Double Feature (Scribner) and We’re All in This Together: A Novella and Stories (Bloomsbury). He is also co-author of Intro to Alien Invasion (Scribner) and the co-editor of Who Can Save Us Now? Brand-New Superheroes and Their Amazing (Short) Stories (Free Press).