Magpie signs Howe’s ‘unputdownable’ pirate adventure

Oneworld’s Magpie imprint has signed an “unputdownable” pirate adventure entitled A True Account by Katherine Howe.

Publisher Juliet Mabey acquired UK and Commonwealth rights excluding Canada from Suzannah Ball at WME. A True Account will publish on Oneworld’s new book club fiction imprint, Magpie, in November 2023. Henry Holt will publish in North America.

A True Account tells the sweeping tale of Hannah Masury, a female pirate who inspires fear and admiration among her fellow seafarers in equal measure. As the Golden Age of piracy draws to a close in 1726, Hannah watches the hanging of infamous pirate William Fly. Rumours surround the whereabouts of his hidden treasure, concealed somewhere in the Caribbean, and Hannah sets out to discover the truth for herself. His death, it turns out, is only the start of Hannah’s own adventures.

Two centuries later, history professor Marian Beresford begins to piece together Hannah’s incredible story. As she learns more about her seafaring adventures, Marian recognises something of her own yearning for freedom, and confronts a secret that Hannah was determined to take with her to the grave.

Howe is the author of The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane, The House of Velvet and Glass (Hachette Books), and The Daughters of Temperance Hobbs (Henry Holt & Co.) as well as the young adult novels, Conversion and The Appearance of Annie van Sinderen (both published in the UK by Oneworld’s children’s and young adult imprint, Rock the Boat). She is also the editor of the forthcoming Penguin Book of Pirates (Feb 2024).

Mabey described the book as a “phenomenally exciting addition to the Magpie list". “The team at Oneworld were swept away by Katherine’s immersive storytelling, deft characterisation and the sheer power of imagination on display here."

Howe commented: “I could not be more excited to be back at Oneworld for A True Account. I am so honoured and delighted to have an opportunity to share Hannah Masury’s sojourn amongst the pirates with UK readers.”