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Hodder & Stoughton has acquired the first two novels by debut women’s fiction author Emma Garcia. Senior editor Isobel Akenhead bought British Commonwealth rights, including Canada, for the first two books in the “Never Google” series from Madeleine Buston at the Darley Anderson Agency.

Hodder plans to publish the first title, Never Google Heartbreak, in August 2012 as a trade paperback original, and in mass market paperback in spring 2013. The second book, Never Google Baby, will follow a year later. Never Google Heartbreak tells the story of Vivienne who, having been dumped by her fiance Rob for the third time, Googles heartbreak and sets up her own relationship website.

Akenhead said: “Everyone here at Hodder is enormously excited about this novel-and rightly so. It’s almost painfully funny, but more than that-it’s completely original, and readers won’t be able to help seeing themselves and their friends in it, nor will they be able to resist recommending it to everyone they know.”

(Taken from The Bookseller.com)

I love the sound of this series and I definitely can’t to see the proper synopsis and cover. It definitely sounds unique and in a time when Chick Lit is said to be stale, well, acquisitions like this rather prove the doubters wrong!

I’m thrilled to bring Chick Lit Reviews readers the latest news about an author I’ve come to love both in her writing and online! Sarah Jio, author of The Violets of March, one of my favorite reads this year has just shared that she’s signed another two novels!

From Publishers Marketplace:
Author of THE VIOLETS OF MARCH, and the forthcoming novel, THE BUNGALOW, Sarah Jio’s BLACKBERRY WINTER, about the fateful late-season Seattle snowstorm that hits the city in 1932 and on the same day in 2010, connecting the lives and losses of two women in unforeseeable ways; along with Jio’s fourth book, THE LAST CAMELLIA, to Denise Roy at Plume, in a good deal, by Elisabeth Weed at Weed Literary (NA).

Congratulations Sarah! I can’t wait to read them both as well as your upcoming novel, The Bungalow which I also heard has been bumped up and is now coming this December!

The Bungalow, due out December 2011:
A sweeping saga of thwarted love, murder, and a long-lost painting… In the summer of 1942, twenty-one-year-old Anne Calloway, newly engaged, sets off to serve in the Army Nurse Corps on the Pacific island of Bora-Bora. More exhilarated by the adventure of a lifetime than she ever was by her predictable fiance, she is drawn to a mysterious soldier named Westry, and their friendship soon blossoms into hues as deep as the hibiscus flowers native to the island. under the thatched roof of an abandoned beach bungalow, the two share a private world–until they witness a gruesome crime, Westry is suddenly redeployed, and the idyll vanishes into the winds of war. A timeless story of enduring passion, The bungalow chronicles Anne’s determination to discover the truth about the twin losses–of life and, and of love–that have haunted her for seventy years.

Headline has acquired two novels from debut Irish author Nicola Doherty, who currently works as a copywriter for The Folio Society.

Associate publisher Sherise Hobbs bought British Commonwealth rights for The Out of Office Girl and a second book from Rowan Lawton at PFD.

Hobbs said: “Headline has always specialised in finding and nurturing new talent in the area of women’s fiction and when we read Nicola’s novel, we all knew we had discovered someone very special. She has absolutely captured the hilarious highs and excruciating lows of a young woman just starting out in her publishing career in London, and The Out of Office Girl will be a major paperback launch for us next summer.”

Doherty began her publishing career working for Anne-Louise Fisher, before becoming an editor at Hodder and then joining The Folio Society.

Taken from The Bookseller

It’s always great to hear about publishers obtaining new and exciting authors in the chick lit world, and this sounds like no exception! I’ve had a little look on Amazon and it’s scheduled for a release date of 15th March 2012, and by the sound of synopsis, it’s going to be one to look out for!

Alice Roberts may work on celebrity autobiographies, but her life is anything but A-list. She’s stuck in the office in rainy London for the summer, overlooked by her terrifying boss Olivia and she’s just been dumped by text message. Things couldn’t really get much worse. But her life takes a dramatic u-turn when Olivia is suddenly taken ill and Alice finds herself on a plane to Sicily to work with Hollywood film star Luther Carson on his book. Luther is perfect pin-up material: he’s beautiful, brooding and looks fabulous without his shirt on. But he’s also secretive; what is he hiding about his past? And when will Luther’s arrogant, yet infuriatingly attractive, agent, Sam, let Alice get on with her job? Alice has just days to come up with the book, or Olivia will make sure her career is over before it’s begun. Suddenly summer in Sicily doesn’t seem so dreamy after all. But maybe Alice is due her own Hollywood ending?

Author of the highly acclaimed The Poisonwood Bible, Prodigal Summer, and Animal, Vegetable, Miracle Barbara Kingsolver has just announced via Publishers Marketplace that she’ll have another book for publication in Fall, 2012 with HarperCollins. Her newest, Flight Behavior is described as the following:

Set in a small town in Tennessee, about a young woman who happens upon a forested valley filled with silent red fire, and whose attempt to share the wonder and find an explanation throws her into a spiraling confrontation with her family, her church, her town, her continent, and finally the world at large.

Perhaps I’m missing out, but I have yet to read a Kingsolver novel and though her following is rather strong I’ve never been drawn to any of her titles. That is, until now. Flight Behavior sounds wonderful and I love the setting as well. It’s definitely got huge potential and may be the book that finally has me taking the plunge into Kingsolver territory.

What about you? Have you read a Kingsolver novel? The Poisonwood Bible is likely her most recognizable due to the fact that it was at one point picked as an Oprah Book Club novel. Have you read it? What do you think and will you be picking up Flight Behavior?

Photo by Annie Griffiths.

With numerous titles to her name including a major motion picture made based off of her book Must Love Dogs (which is adorable by the way), Claire Cook is in familiar territory with her new two-book deal with Simon & Schuster Touchstone Books. According to the Publishers Marketplace announcement the synopsis for The Family Dance is as follows:

About a woman unexpectedly chosen to appear on a popular reality TV show, which enables her to finally shed her lifelong role as family wallflower and experience the double-edged sword of her fifteen minutes of fame.

I’m a huge fan of Claire’s and though I wasn’t in love with Seven Year Switch I have loved every other book by her. The Family Dance sounds wonderful and I’m incredibly excited for Claire to publisher another fantastic novel. Her latest book, Best Staged Plans, was recently released with numerous high praises. I’ll definitely be picking up The Family Dance when it’s released in the near future!

Will you be picking up The Family Dance? Do you have a favorite Claire Cook novel? I’d love to know!

In the recent past both Leah & I have reviewed and loved Sarah Pekkanen’s books, The Opposite of Me and Skipping A Beat. So, when I saw one of her recent tweets I couldn’t help but get excited!

Now not only will we have her upcoming novel These Girls coming in April of 2012, but we’ll have three more immediately after that. I’m definitely thrilled beyond belief for Sarah and cannot wait to read all four of her upcoming novels!

Jenny Geras, Senior Commissioning Editor for Fiction, has bought two new books by Lucy Diamond from agent Lizzy Kremer at David Higham Associates. Lucy Diamond’s latest The Beach Café has been a top 50 bestseller and her previous novel Sweet Temptation was a Bookseller Heatseekers no. 1 and shortlisted for the Melissa Nathan Award for Comedy Romance. Lucy Diamond is a pseudonym for bestselling children’s writer Sue Mongredien.

Jenny Geras said: ‘Sweet Temptation and The Beach Café have taken Lucy’s sales to a whole new level and we’re all thrilled to have bought two new books. Lucy occupies a very special place on our women’s fiction list; she writes about the lives of real women, and their lives and problems, with warmth, charm, and humour.’

Pan Macmillan will publish Lucy Diamond’s next novel Summer with My Sister in June 2012, and these two new novels will follow in Summer 2013 and Summer 2014.

(Taken from booktrade.info)

Great news for Lucy Diamond fans, we’ve loved a lot of her books and think the cover makeover has certainly updated her books! Congratulations to Lucy/Sue on the new deal!

Some of you may or may not be familiar with Deborah Voight. For those of you who are not you should, at a bare minimum, get to know her beautiful music. As stated in her own biography Voight, “is one of the world’s leading dramatic sopranos, internationally revered for her performances in the operas…”. Personally, as someone who is passionate about not only music, but also women’s issues I was extremely to see the following announcement in the NY Times late last week and announced in Publishers Weekly on Tuesday…

Deborah Voigt, the renowned soprano, has sold her autobiography to HarperCollins, the publisher announced. The book, tentatively titled “True Confessions of a Down to Earth Diva,” is scheduled for publication in 2013. The memoir will detail Ms. Voigt’s dramatic ups and downs throughout her career, including her famous battles with her weight.

Ms. Voigt, 50, said in a statement, “It’s time for me to step up and share my story because I know there are lots of other people, especially women, who are out there suffering in silence.” Jonathan Burnham, the publisher of HarperCollins, called the book an “unbelievably honest narrative of a woman caught in a dangerous cycle of addiction and illness who overcame her demons in an utterly triumphant way.” Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

This is a story I’m eagerly awaiting and absolutely cannot wait to get my hands on. As someone who has also struggled with weight (who hasn’t?) as well as being a huge fan of hers I cannot wait to hear her side of this tremendous journey. For me, definitely a memoir worth reading. What about you?