Transworld snaps up 'delightfully sinister' mystery thriller in six-figure pre-empt

Transworld has snapped up You Are Fatally Invited, a "delightfully sinister" locked-room mystery thriller, in a six-figure pre-empt. 

Deputy publishing director Thorne Ryan acquired UK and Commonwealth rights from Hannah Schofield (LBA) in the book by Ande Pliego in a two-book pre-empt. Transworld will publish You Are Fatally Invited as a lead debut on the Bantam list in hardback, e-book and audio in February 2025.

Jenny Chen at Ballantine also acquired North American rights from Schofield in a pre-empt ahead of a seven-way auction. The agent turned down three other pre-empt attempts in a whirlwind week. Rights have been sold to Blanvalet in Germany and Editrice Nord in Italy already; ILA [Intercontinental Literary Agency] is handling translation.

The synopsis for You Are Fatally Invited says: "And Then There Were None meets The Sanatorium by way of Eight Detectives in this twisty, up-all-night love letter to mystery thrillers. When legendary author J R Alastor hires struggling events co-ordinator Mila del Angél to host a murder mystery writers’ retreat on his private island, she jumps at the chance.

"On the guest list are six thriller writers, all masters of the genre. Alastor has told them to expect a week of party games, trope-fuelled riddles and maybe a jump-scare or two. But when one of the guests turns up dead, it seems Alastor’s real plan for the week is much more sinister.

"With a storm cutting off the island and the body count rising, Mila must work out how to escape a killer who knows literally every trick in the book."

Ryan commented: "As soon as You Are Fatally Invited landed in my inbox, I knew I wanted to publish it. On top of a chef’s-kiss pitch and premise, Ande packs in a haunting atmosphere and setting, a genius narrative structure, multiple point-of-view characters with irresistible voices, a tear-your-hair-out mystery and a truly visceral reading experience.

"I am so thrilled to be working with Ande, Hannah and Jenny to bring to market this deliciously sinister celebration of crime fiction, and could not have wished for a more exciting first acquisition in my new role at Transworld."

Pliego added: "Stunned, thrilled, incredibly grateful – words aren’t enough! Thorne’s enthusiasm and vision blew me away from our first call, and the Transworld team’s track record is striking. Paired with my passionate, fearless agent Hannah and our US editor Jenny, it’s a true dream team, and I know we’re going to have so much fun bringing my murderous story about authors, thriller tropes and revenge to bookshelves."

Schofield said: "From the moment Ande pitched me her ‘dark Knives Out’ novel I have been desperate to share its sheer brilliance with the world. Thorne’s lightning-fast response and enormous enthusiasm, plus the Transworld team’s incredibly exciting plans, showed us they were the perfect publisher to launch Ande Pliego’s career in the UK."