Usborne wins four-way auction for journalist Sanghani's middle-grade debut in three-book deal

Usborne has snapped up a three-book deal with journalist Radhika Sanghani in a "closely fought" four-way auction. The deal includes her middle-grade debut, The Girl Who Couldn’t Lie.

Fiction editor Alice Moloney acquired UK, Republic of Ireland and Commonwealth rights, excluding Canada, from Chloe Seager at Madeleine Milburn Literary Agency. The Girl Who Couldn’t Lie will be published in paperback on 9th May 2024 with the next two books following in 2025 and 2026. 

"Radhika writes with rare, natural humour and heart for the age group," said Seager. "She is such a talent and it’s been a joy to place her with Usborne, who love Priya as much as I do." 

The Girl Who Couldn’t Lie is a "fresh, funny story about white lies, brutal honesty and magic bangles". The narrative follows Priya Shah who lies about her home and school life, but when she puts on a bangle left to her by her Ba – the only person she hasn’t lied to – Priya is suddenly incapable of lying. 

The synopsis continues: "Priya is mortified. She tells her dad how much she hates his cooking, she reveals her huge crush on Dan Zhang to her little sister, and she shares Sami and Mei’s secrets with her bully. She has no idea what’s happening – until she realises the bangle forcing her to tell the truth. As more things go wrong, and Priya’s truth-telling spirals out of control, can Priya learn to be honest without hurting the people she loves?"

Moloney commented: “Everyone at Usborne fell in love with Priya Shah as soon as we met her. Radhika’s writing is fresh and funny, warm and relatable, and The Girl Who Couldn’t Lie is the kind of book that turns children into lifelong readers. Radhika is a major middle-grade star of the future and we’re honestly delighted to welcome her storytelling’s unique blend of contemporary life and a sprinkle of magic to the Usborne list.”

Sanghani added: “It was a complete joy to write The Girl Who Couldn’t Lie and I can’t believe it took me this long to discover how much I love writing for children. Priya is the exact heroine I would have loved when I was her age, and I am so excited to share her story with readers.”