Viking pre-empts 'brilliant' Lizzy Dent novel

Viking has pre-empted "laugh-out-loud" novel The Summer Job by Lizzy Dent.

The Summer Job tells the story of a woman in her early thirties who pretends to be a sommelier in a Scottish hotel after running away from her life in London, and is a "laugh-out-loud story for fans of [Beth O'Leary's] The Flatshare", said Viking. 

Publisher Katy Loftus said: "Lizzy Dent is the contemporary fiction voice I’ve been looking for: Sophie Kinsella’s The Undomestic Goddess for a new generation. Her protagonist has more than a hint of 'Fleabag' about her, unapologetically dirty and complicated and funny, with the rushes of self-consciousness and insecurity we all feel now and then. She made me honk-laugh. I am so excited to bring this brilliant new writer to the Viking list."

Loftus acquired world rights, excluding Sweden, from Hattie Grünewald at The Blair Partnership. Viking will be publishing the book in summer 2021. 

Grünewald said: "Lizzy Dent and Viking are a match as perfect as sauvignon blanc and seafood. The Summer Job is a real treat and I can’t wait to see it hit shelves in 2021."

Dent added: "I’m thrilled to be working with Katy and the team at Viking/Penguin on The Summer Job, a book inspired by my own misadventures working in hospitality across Scotland. The pressure to have dreams and goals can feel exhausting, and my main character struggles with an instinctive rejection of that ideal. She’s also pretty naughty, which frankly, I relate to. I feel so incredibly lucky and grateful."