Blake Friedmann Literary Agency

19/12/2025

We’re delighted that the first two novels in Joseph O’Connor’s acclaimed Escape Line trilogy, MY FATHER’S HOUSE and THE GHOSTS OF ROME, are both in the Irish Top Five! 📚🌟🎉

THE GHOSTS OF ROME is No.5 in the Original Fiction and No.4 in the paperback charts, while MY FATHER’S HOUSE is No.4 in the paperback charts.

Read more here: https://blakefriedmann.co.uk/news/my-fathers-house-the-ghosts-of-rome-bestsellers

18/12/2025

As we wind down at the end of another busy year at Blake Friedmann, it's time to look back at some of our favourite moments of the year away from the office - once again, we present our Blake Friedmann Cultural Highlights!

📚🎶🎬🎭🎨

Read more on our website: https://blakefriedmann.co.uk/news/blake-friedmann-cultural-highlights-2025

12/12/2025

COVER REVEAL: Two sisters she's never met… A first love who's impossible to forget...

Introducing SECRETS OF THE ITALIAN GUESTHOUSE - the start of a brand-new trilogy filled with new beginnings and second chances by bestseller Sue Moorcroft!

💙💚💙💚

Perfect for fans of Sarah Morgan and Milly Johnson, and published by Renegade Books on 2 July 2026!

Pre-order now: https://geni.us/ItalianGuesthouse

For Jade, life in Lake Como is la dolce vita. Until her beloved grandmother passes, leaving Jade not just the family's bustling guesthouse to run, but two life-changing secrets to confront...

The pensione hasn't just been left to Jade, it's also been inherited by her sisters - who she had no idea existed. As Erin and Rosalie arrive in Italy, Jade is forced to face the heart-wrenching prospect of sharing her last remaining tie to the woman who raised her.

Jade is desperately trying to hold on to the past, but there's one person she would prefer to leave firmly behind: her first love, Leo. He's back in the city that is filled with the memories they once made together. But as Jade fights to take control of her future and her heart, why do all cobbled roads lead back to Leo?

12/12/2025

The biggest congratulations are in order for Joseph O’Connor – his astonishing novel THE GHOSTS OF ROME has won the overall An Post Irish Book of the Year Award 2025! 🏆🎉🥳

Read more here: https://blakefriedmann.co.uk/news/joseph-oconnor-the-ghosts-of-rome-irish-book-awards

28/11/2025

Huge congratulations to Joseph O’Connor for winning the Listeners’ Choice Award at the An Post Irish Book Awards 2025 for THE GHOSTS OF ROME!

🎧🏆📚

For more, read our news story: https://blakefriedmann.co.uk/news/joseph-oconnor-ghosts-of-rome-an-post-book-awards-win

21/11/2025

NEWS: We’re delighted to announce that Ailbhe Malone’s spellbinding anthology of Irish mythology, BANSHEE, has been won at auction by Dialogue Publishing

Featuring contributions from Jane Casey, Naoise Dolan, Salma El-Wardany, Wendy Erskine, Nikita Gill, Anne Griffin, Sarah Maria Griffin, Jess Kidd, Megan Nolan and Sheila O'Flanagan, BANSHEE will be published in hardback, audio and eBook on 26 February 2026

☘️🧜📚

Read more: https://blakefriedmann.co.uk/news/banshee-ailbhe-malone-john-murray-announcement

‘Sharply-written and urgent, BANSHEE conjures a dazzlingly modern mythology of our oldest stories, richly imagined by the very best of Irish writers. I loved every page.’ – Doireann Ní Ghríofa

‘I can’t tell you how much I enjoyed it. I was immersed in it. A mystical, magical, empowering modern re-imagining of the Irish Goddesses. A unique and compelling read, I LOVED these superb stories.’ – Patricia Scanlan

20/11/2025

NEWS: Bestselling author secures an incredible two-book deal with for SECRETS BETWEEN FRIENDS and an upcoming untitled contemporary novel.

SECRETS BETWEEN FRIENDS, scheduled for publication in March 2026, is a superb new contemporary novel. Set in Ireland, Italy, and France, the story follows the intergenerational friendship between three women. In her unique, insightful, life-affirming way, Sheila weaves their stories together, creating the perfect mix of light and shade for her audience.💚💙❤️📚

Read more here:

Headline Publishing Group has just announced a new two-book deal with multi-million-copy-selling author Sheila O’Flanagan. Executive Publisher Marion Donaldson acquired World English Language rights to SECRETS BETWEEN FRIENDS and one untitled contemporary novel from Isobel Dixon at Blake Friedm

14/11/2025

NEWS: Deon Meyer’s SKORPIO shoots to the top of the South African bestseller lists

Out now in Afrikaans ifrom Human & Rousseau – with English editions to follow from next year from Pan Macmillan and Grove Atlantic

🌠🌠🌠

Read more: https://blakefriedmann.co.uk/news/deon-meyer-skorpio-tops-sa-chart

‘I love Deon Meyer novels. It’s global storytelling at its best, with the undeniable hallmarks of gritty realism and deep character building. If Harry Bosch had to pick someone to go through a door with, it would be his brother from another mother, Benny Griessel.’ – Michael Connelly

14/11/2025

And that’s it – the end of this this year’s ! We hope you’ve had fun (we certainly have!) or found it useful in some way or another. All our material will remain available on our website – and best of luck in your publishing/writing journey! 📚✍️

Open Week is an annual project dedicated to demystifying publishing and agenting, and supporting writers seeking representation. Our aim is to offer helpful insights into what an agent does, how to navigate the submission process to find an agent, how an author and agent work together, understandin...

14/11/2025

All the giveaways are now closed. We’ll announce the winners over on Instagram shortly!

14/11/2025

It’s time for the final Question of the Day, in which we ask our team to look beyond the books at the people behind them: What qualities do you look for in a client?
📖✏️📖✏️
Thank you for following us throughout this year’s Open Week – and don’t forget you can read everyone’s answers to each question in full at https://blakefriedmann.co.uk/open-week!