Hodder acquires Hope Meadows series by Animal Ark author Lucy Daniels

Hodder & Stoughton has acquired a trilogy of seasonal countryside-set romance novels about a newly-qualified vet by Lucy Daniels.

Carolyn Mays and Emily Kitchin bought British and Commonwealth rights to three books – Summer at Hope Meadows, A Hope Meadows Christmas, and Springtime at Wildacre – from Charles Nettleton at Working Partners.

The series follows a newly-qualified vet, Mandy Hope, as she leaves a big practice in the bustling city of Leeds to return to Welford, the rural village in the Yorkshire Dales where she grew up. The character featured in Daniels' Animal Ark books, about the adventures of a younger Mandy and her best friend James with animals of all shapes and sizes. According to Hodder, the new novels will satisfy the urge to know what happened next.

A spokesperson for Hodder said: "The chance to take the beloved Animal Ark series, and explore the lives of a grown-up Mandy and James, was simply irresistible. Lucy Daniels, with over 20 million sales worldwide, is already a bestselling brand name, and Hope Meadows is a gorgeously warm, rustic and romantic series sure to charm and thoroughly entertain readers with its themes of animals, love and life in the country."

Working Partners said: "Animal Ark’s enduring popularity has been a constant boon over the last 25 years and we are delighted that Hodder & Stoughton has the vision to allow readers the chance to see what happened to Mandy, James and many other characters a quarter of a century on. But whether they are familiar with Animal Ark or not, we hope these books will provide much enjoyment to readers everywhere."

Summer at Hope Meadows, A Hope Meadows Christmas and Springtime at Wildacre will publish in paperback and e-book in June 2017, November 2017 and May 2018 respectively.