Nicolas Barreau: Feltrinelli acquires second novel and Russian offer

The first novel by Nicolas Barreau published in Italy (Das Lacheln der Frauen/The Smile of Women) is still doing very well there, where it was published by Feltrinelli in September 2011. “Gli ingredienti segreti dell'amore” (Das Lacheln der Frauen) is at its third reprint in 2 months and is still in the bestseller lists - it has been in the foreign fiction top10 bestseller list no-stop since publication at the beginning of September. After these two months sales are now up to 30.000 copies in trade (and increasing week after week).

Given this success, we are glad to announce that Feltrinelli has acquired rights of a previous novel by the author, “You'll Find Me at the End of the World” (Du findest mich am Ende der Welt).

But this is not all, as this week we have received an offer from Russia for 'Das Lacheln der Frauen/The Smile of Women'. More info on this soon!

Apart from Italy/Feltrinelli, Das Lacheln der Frauen (originally published in Germany by Thiele Verlag in hardcover and Piper Verlag in paperback) will also be translated by: St. Martin’s Press (English World Rights), Espasa/Planeta Group (Spanish), Quinta Essencia/Leya Group (Portugal), Verus Editora/Record Group (Brazil), Columna (Catalan), The Enthusiast (Bulgarian) and soon Russia (to be announced).

For plot info about Das Lacheln der Frauen/The Smile of Women' click (here).

***

You'll Find Me at the End of the World (Du findest mich am Ende der Welt), by Nicolas Barreau (Thiele V., 2008 / Piper V., 2010), 248 pp.

Jean-Luc is determined to track down the capricious author of the most seductive love letters in the world. He doesn’t know anything about her, except that she has captured his heart

Jean-Luc Champollion owns an Art Gallery in Paris, and is what the French call a ‘homme à femmes’. The charming gallery owner has always been a hit with the ladies and he wants nothing more than to live out his days in the company of beautiful women and his faithful dalmatian, Cézanne. One day he receives a mysterious and delightful love letter. The problem is it doesn’t say who it is from. And Jean-Luc’s life changes course.

Jean-Luc is baffled, but he decides to play along. The writer has given him an email address, so he sends a message, hoping to unmask the identity of the mysterious stranger who seems to know him so well. Searching through his past like a detective, he follows up the clues in the stranger’s letters not realizing that he is beginning to fall in love. The object of his passion exists only in words and in his imagination, but he comes to know this woman better than the pictures in his gallery, even though he has never seen her face. Or has he?

Rights sold to: Feltrinelli (Italy). And previously to: The Netherlands (Uitgeverij Arena) and Czech Republic (Albatros).

(Rights handled on behalf of Thiele Verlag)

'The Antiques Dealer' sold to Norway (Pantagruel Forlag)

'El anticuario' (The Antiques Dealer), by Julián Sánchez and published in Spain by RocaEditorial, will be published in Norway by Pantagruel Forlag. The novel has already been sold to 11 languages!

About El anticuario:

- ‘A compelling novel (...) in many ways superior to The Davinci Code’ Library Journal (USA)

- ‘A lesson of good writing’ La Gazetta del Mezzogiorno (Italy)

- ‘A thriller that stands by the Barcelona of Ruiz Zafón and Falcones’ L’Unione (Italy)

This is a novel about a secret, a murder, a search, a love story and an adventure all over the streets of a mysterious Barcelona. A story of intrigue, suspense and search of the truth.

Playing with past an present, Julián Sánchez has written a fascinating novel of mystery and adventures in which the reader is literally swept away by the plot. The building of the Cathedral of Barcelona, a cold and ambitous killer, the kabbalistic tradition and the many secrets hidden in 15th C. Barcelona’s Jewish quarter will take the reader’s breath away to the very last page.

Rights sold:

German (RH/Limes Verlag), Dutch (Uit. Q), Italian (Einaudi Stile Libero), Portuguese/Brazil (Record), Polish (Swiat K.), Greek (Livanis), Russian (AST), Czech (Jota), Romanian (Allfa), Chinese (Shangai 99) and Norwegian (Pantagruel).

************************

El Anticuario (The Antiques Dealer), by Julián Sánchez - Starred review from Library Journal (USA):

Sánchez prefaces this compelling novel with the assertion that some of the events described are real, which, combined with Sánchez’s fine writing, lends this book a delicious plausibility. Antiquarian Artur Aiguader’s confidential connections enable him to corner the market on superb acquisitions in Barcelona, but now is the time of reckoning. Artur is murdered, but shortly beforehand he had sent a letter to his adopted son, the acclaimed writer Enrique Alonso, directing him to a certain book in the event of his death. Determined to find both the murderer and the secret of the book for which Artur gave his life, Enrique soon finds himself caught up in a race to solve a perilous historical mystery before other forces do.

This latest addition to the Da Vinci Code readalikes is in many ways superior to it. While the ambit here is literary rather than artistic, the theology is far less controversial (kabbalistic rather than Gnostic), and the hint of magic is a delight. Sánchez respects the reader’s intelligence, reveals the necessary bits and plot twists at precisely the right intervals, and maintains perfect pace with multidimensional characters, which he wisely limits in number. Highly recommended for general interest bookstores and public libraries.

—Carolyn Kost, Stevenson Sch. Lib., Pebble Beach, CA

Citas sobre 'El escondite de Grisha', de Ismael Martínez Biurrun

La nueva novela de Ismael Martínez Biurrun lleva ya un tiempo en las librerías y vamos recogiendo excelentes reseñas. Aquí os ofrecemos una selección de citas sobre la novela, que ha publicado la Editorial Salto de Página (finales de Septiembre 2011).

* “El escondite de Grisha es la cuarta novela de Ismael Martínez Biurrun. He leído todas ellas, en riguroso orden de salida, y una vez más compruebo que Ismael nos ofrece una historia de emociones fuertes, personajes en busca de respuestas y carreras a contrarreloj. (...) Como en algunas historias de Ray Bradbury, Biurrun juega con los fantasmas y las metáforas, la parapsicología y la psicología para tejer una historia compleja con diálogos acertados y bellas imágenes. (...) Esta notable novela afianza un poco más al autor como uno de los referentes insoslayables de la literatura fantástica en castellano.”

- Ociozero.com, Óscar Bribián

* “Ismael Martínez Biurrun ha construido un relato sobrecogedor, a un tiempo hermoso y terrible.”

- conoceralautor.com

* “Con esta novela, el autor de Rojo alma, negro sombra y Mujer abrazada a un cuervo, demuestra de nuevo su capacidad para transgredir géneros, o para utilizarlos como pretexto, sin que lleguen a convertirse en el leitmotiv. Y es que el elemento fantástico no es aquí un vehículo, sino el equipaje de mano al que el autor recurre sólo cuando es imprescindible. Más que fusionar los géneros, los entrelaza con naturalidad (...) una montaña rusa interminable de frases lapidarias; una prosa de belleza incomparable sin necesidad de recurrir a un vocabulario rebuscado. (...) De nuevo, una novela imprescindible, un ejercicio de estilo aplastante, un potente uppercut directo a la mandíbula del lector, que descubrirá con esta obra lo que muchos ya intuíamos: nos encontramos ante una de las voces más personales y reconocibles de la literatura nacional.”

- h-horror.com, Darío Vilas

* “Me ha hipnotizado tanto o más que la mirada del niño de la portada.”

- F. Martínez Gimeno

* “El escondite de Grisha es una novela donde los fantasmas de los muertos persiguen a los vivos. Donde un niño doblemente huérfano se esconde por las noches en una biblioteca. Donde un niño llamado Grisha puede no llamarse Grisha, y los fantasmas, otra vez los fantasmas, de las radiaciones nucleares vuelven una y otra vez como lo que son, fantasmas de la muerte. Ismael Martínez Biurrun es un escritor que hay que leer, porque recupera para sí la capacidad de emocionarnos como el mejor Bradbury. Porque puede decir, como en la última historia de Crónicas marcianas, cuando los niños preguntan dónde están los marcianos y el padre ve en el cielo el estallido de la Tierra: aquí están los marcianos, al tiempo que les muestra su reflejo en el agua. ¿Fantasía? Sí, como en los espejos del Callejón del Gato. Nosotros, nuestra imagen, apenas distorsionada."

- Raúl Argemí, www.sigueleyendo.es

* "El escondite de Grisha es un libro para aventureros de la literatura, ideal para enfrentarse a una manera de escribir poco practicada en español y que se agradece por su frescura y por su manera de ocultar una historia tan oscura en un envoltorio por momentos brillante."

- Alfredo Álamo, Lecturalia

En el siguiente link (aquí) podéis leer la entrevista de Raúl Argemí con el autor, y en éste (aquí) podéis ver un video en el que Ismael Martínez Biurrun nos habla de 'El escondite de Grisha'.