Quercus to publish Emma Pei Yin’s ‘extraordinary’ debut novel When Sleeping Women Wake 

Quercus Fiction has acquired the rights to Emma Pei Yin’s debut, When Sleeping Women Wake, and one other novel. 

Publisher Cassie Browne bought UK and Commonwealth rights in a joint acquisition with Rebecca Saunders at Hachette Australia, from Laurie Robertson at PFD. North American rights were acquired by Natalie Hallak at Ballantine, in a pre-empt, and When Sleeping Women Wake will publish in summer 2025. Italian rights have been sold to Garzanti, again in a pre-empt. 

When Sleeping Women Wake is set in 1941, during the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong and tells the story of three interconnected women, as they embark on a journey of sacrifice, resilience and survival. 

Browne said: “This is a heartbreaking and hopeful book, at once epic and intimate, which explores the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong through the lives of three women. It is also a story of female resistance and untold bravery, and in Emma Pei Yin’s hands makes for a gripping read. I feel privileged to be working with Emma.” 

Pei Yin said When Sleeping Women Wake “was born from a love of Asian literature and familial stories”. A former bookseller, she writes for publications including the Mekong Review, Being Asian Australian, HerCanberra, Aniko Press, Hong Kong Review and Books + Publishing Australia. She describes herself as a UK-born and raised writer of Hong Kong Chinese descent, who now resides in Australia.