We’re thrilled to be longlisted for the CWA Dagger award for the Best Crime and Mystery Publisher!
The prestigious CWA Daggers are the oldest crime fiction awards celebrating the greatest authors and publishers in the crime writing genre. We’re truly honoured to be part of such a fantastic list.
The shortlists for the awards will be announced at the CrimeFest convention on 10th May and the winners will be revealed on 4th July. For more information, visit the website.
As Joffe Books celebrates its tenth year, we are delighted to announce the hiring of Emilie Marneur as our new Managing Director. Emilie is currently Director of audience and business development at Bonnier Books UK. Previously Editor in Chief at Amazon Publishing, she has an immensely impressive track record in digital publishing and was originally hired by Bonnier to set up their highly successful new digital-first imprint Embla Books, launching the careers of many bestselling authors including Patricia Wolf and Sarah Yarwood-Lovett.
Emilie’s new remit will see her propelling Joffe Books’ ambitious plans for further growth into global markets as well as continuing to seek new acquisitions and strategic opportunities.
CEO Jasper Joffe says: “I wanted one person for the job, and I am so delighted she said yes. Emilie brings tremendous experience which can help us continue our journey to becoming a global publishing force with an unerring focus on delivering great books to readers.”
Emilie Marneur: “I’ve been watching Joffe Books grow for the past ten years with admiration, and have always loved their focus, passion and dedication. I am thrilled to be joining the team at such an exciting point in their journey. I couldn’t be prouder of Embla Books and am deeply grateful for all the opportunities Perminder and the team at Bonnier Books UK have given me since I’ve joined. I will miss them all but know they will continue to thrive and am really looking forward to this new adventure.”
Perminder Mann said: “Since joining us in late 2020, Emilie’s contribution to Bonnier Books UK has been exceptional. As a key change maker for our group, her audience and data-driven approach has helped our digital and audio publishing soar to new heights, and our marketing and publicity teams flourish. We will miss her enormously as she embarks on this exciting new chapter of her career, and we extend our heartfelt thanks and best wishes for the future.”
Emilie will take up the position on September 4th.
ABOUT JOFFE BOOKS
Joffe Books was founded in 2014, when Jasper Joffe agreed to publish his mum’s much-rejected romance novel — and turned it into a bestseller. Ten years on, Joffe Books has grown from just one employee to a team of twenty. We’re extremely proud to publish some of the very best writers in the world, including Joy Ellis, Faith Martin, Caro Ramsay, Helen Forrester, Simon Brett and Robert Goddard. Everyone at Joffe Books loves reading and we never forget that it all begins with the magic of an author telling a story.
We won Trade Publisher of the Year at the Independent Publishing Awards in 2023. We have been shortlisted for Independent Publisher of the Year at the British Book Awards for the last five years, and were shortlisted for the Diversity and Inclusivity Award at the 2022 Independent Publishing Awards. In 2023 we were shortlisted for Publisher of the Year at the RNA Industry Awards. In 2021, we founded the largest prize in the UK for crime fiction by under-represented authors.
For media enquiries or further information, please contact: Hanna Myers. hanna@joffebooks.com
Joffe Books will celebrate its tenth anniversary in May with a fabulous garden party at the Royal Over-Seas League in London for authors, agents and all those who have contributed to our incredible journey over the past decade. Attendees will receive exclusive tenth anniversary Joffe tote bags and mugs.
The celebrations include a specially commissioned Bookseller cover by renowned contemporary artist Adam Dant, released on 12 April. We will also be offering a competition for readers to win a year’s worth of books.
The Bookseller cover highlights the company’s phenomenal revenue growth of 3,350% since it was founded by Jasper Joffe in 2014.
In 2023, we became Britain’s largest independent publisher (by title count) with the acquisition of Lume Books and Choc Lit, publishing across all genres of fiction, as well as non-fiction.
With 100,000 loyal readers on our mailing list, we never forget that they are at the core of everything we do. We are asking readers to share fifty words describing their favourite Joffe book of the last ten years. The best one will receive a fantastic prize of £500 worth of books (a year’s worth of captivating reading).
Founder and CEO Jasper Joffe says: “As we celebrate this remarkable milestone, we remain committed to our founding principles of championing exceptional books and fostering meaningful connections with our readers. Our ten-year anniversary is a testament to the passion and dedication of our incredible team, as well as the loyalty of our readers who have joined us on this extraordinary journey. And finally, I want to say thank you to our amazing authors for trusting us with their precious books. It’s an honour to publish you.”
THE JOFFE BOOKS STORY
Joffe Books was founded in 2014, when Jasper Joffe agreed to publish his mum’s much-rejected romance novel — and turned it into a bestseller. Ten years on, Joffe Books has grown from just one employee to a team of twenty. We’re extremely proud to publish some of the very best writers in the world, including Joy Ellis, Faith Martin, Caro Ramsay, Helen Forrester, Simon Brett and Robert Goddard. Everyone at Joffe Books loves reading and we never forget that it all begins with the magic of an author telling a brilliant story.
We won Trade Publisher of the Year at the Independent Publishing Awards in 2023. We have been shortlisted for Independent Publisher of the Year at the British Book Awards for the last five years, and were shortlisted for the Diversity and Inclusivity Award at the 2022 Independent Publishing Awards. In 2023 we were shortlisted for Publisher of the Year at the RNA Industry Awards. In 2021, we founded the Joffe Books Prize, the largest prize in the UK for crime fiction by under-represented authors.
Despite our incredible growth, we are proud to maintain our fiercely independent spirit, flexibility and resolutely author- and reader-focused approach.
We are bursting with pride to announce that Editorial director Emma Grundy Haigh has been shortlisted for Editor of the Year at the 2024 British Book Awards! Many congratulations on this well-deserved recognition for your dedication to shaping incredible stories!
The Bookseller wrote: “Editorial director Emma Grundy Haigh was at the heart of an exceptional year for Joffe Books. She took on romance imprint Choc Lit after it was acquired in early 2023, reassuring authors, revitalising marketing and multiplying sales. She also found time to edit elsewhere at Joffe and run its Books Prize.”
The winners will be announced at The British Book Awards ceremony at Grosvenor House, London, on 13th May 2024. For more information, visit the website.
We're honoured to be shortlisted as Independent Publisher of the Year at the 2024 British Book Awards! We would like to extend a huge thank you to our incredible authors for entrusting us with their stories and to our amazing readers for their unwavering support!
The Bookseller wrote: '“Joffe Books is shortlisted for the fifth time in a row. After acquiring romance list Choc Lit and digital publisher Lume in 2023 it can claim to be the UK’s largest independent publisher by title count. Other massive numbers in 2023 included 3.5 million books sold in digital and print and more than one billion pages read on Kindle Unlimited. “
The winners will be announced at The British Book Awards ceremony at Grosvenor House, London, on 13th May 2024. For more information, visit the website.
We are absolutely delighted to share that Joffe Books author Joy Ellis has been listed in the top 50 downloads through Audible in 2023 with gripping crime thriller Guard Her With Your Life.
The brand-new standalone title from Ellis has been described by readers as ‘a strong mystery’ with ‘suspense, intrigue, action, and great detective work’ and follows the unputdownable story of Detective Sam Helsdown.
GUARD HER WITH YOUR LIFE IS OUT NOW.
PURCHASE YOUR COPY OF JOY ELLIS’ LATEST BEST-SELLING TITLE THE BAG OF SECRETS HERE
Joffe Books is thrilled to announce the winner of the Joffe Books Prize 2023: Renita D’Silva, for her compelling psychological thriller, The Neighbour. She receives a two-book publishing deal with Joffe Books, a £1,000 cash prize, and a £25,000 audiobook deal from Audible for the first book. This is one of Britain’s biggest crime prizes.
The Joffe Books Prize for Crime Writers of Colour was established in direct response to the paucity of diverse voices being published in crime fiction. Its explicit aim is to actively seek out writers from communities that are underrepresented in our genre and support them in building sustainable careers, while simultaneously discovering brilliant new talent to join our bestselling list.
Since its launch in 2021, the Joffe Books Prize has been enthusiastically received. This year, submissions included gritty climate thrillers and wrenching domestic suspense, pharmaceutical thrillers to cyberpunk detective mysteries.
The judges, including bestselling author Nadine Matheson, literary agent Nelle Andrew and Joffe Books editorial director Emma Grundy Haigh, considered each manuscript in terms of both the strength of the writing and marketability. The judges unanimously awarded the Joffe Books Prize 2023 to Renita D’Silva.
From the judges: “A wide ranging, ambitious cast of characters and stories that interlock but don't overwhelm. It’s varied and interesting and above all controlled and the clear stand-out in terms of both what it promised and what it was aiming to achieve. I really wanted to know about Gemma, Sapna and Edith and above all I cared about what would happen to them and why. The slow boil of discovering each woman's past while the present unfolded, the complex relationships and the hidden histories: it was a joy.”
Renita D’Silva fell in love with stories at the age of six when her father presented her with her very first story books: Andersen and Grimm Fairy Tales. She's published ten historical fiction novels, the most recent of which is The War Child. Her short stories have been published various magazines and anthologies, and been nominated for the Pushcart prize, shortlisted for the LoveReading Very Short Story award and longlisted for the BBC National Short Story award. The Neighbour is her first psychological thriller.
Renita says: “I'm beyond thrilled to win the Joffe Books Prize 2023 and very excited to be signing with Joffe. I feel humbled and privileged to have such a brilliant team backing my books and to be joining such an amazingly talented cohort of writers.”
Emma Grundy Haigh says: “It’s a privilege to have been able to read so many submissions with such fantastic potential, but it was Renita’s brilliant domestic thriller that shone out to me straightaway. It’s immediately hooky, with a breath-taking opening scene. Renita’s forte is in her strong, relatable, well-drawn characters and that delicate prose which effortlessly carries the tension through a web of secrets, lies and betrayal.”
Synopsis: “Newlyweds Amir and Sapna move into an all-white, middle-class neighbourhood on the edge of a bustling town. Their arrival causes a flutter of disquiet among the residents of the quiet cul-de-sac, exposing long-held secrets and upending the fragile harmony that binds them.”
Joffe Books author Caleb Stephens has been awarded Best Psychological Thriller in the 2023 Best Thrillers Book Awards .com with his gripping brand-new title The Girls in the Cabin.
The addictive thriller has been described by readers as “a true tour-de-force, delivering a thrilling and suspenseful ride that will leave you breathless . . . gripping and unforgettable.”
Set in the stunning wilderness of the Colorado Flat Tops, this breathtaking thriller packed with shocking twists will make you question everything you think you know about family.
Many congratulations to Caleb for this award!
We are absolutely thrilled to announce that Joffe Books has been shortlisted for Publisher of the Year at the RNA Industry Awards.
The awards celebrate the work and talent of any person, group or organisation that has championed the broad genre of romantic fiction.
Laura James, the RNA Industry Awards organiser, commented, ‘For the past five years as Industry Awards Organiser, I’ve witnessed many changes in the world, including the role of social media within the publishing industry, but the passion for romantic fiction remains. It grows stronger by the letter; by the chapter; by each book.
In both self-published and traditionally published novels, industry professionals work together to produce quality happy ever afters, from writers to editors, cover designers and publishers, book bloggers, reviewers and social media experts, narrators, agents, booksellers and librarians. The RNA Industry Awards are our way of thanking and celebrating the hard-working industry professionals. Congratulations to all our finalists.’
The winners of the 10 awards will be announced during the Romantic Novelists’ Association’s Winter Party and Industry Awards ceremony on 13th November 2023. Many congratulations to all shortlisted!
We are utterly thrilled to announce two of our incredible authors took home a clean sweep of awards at the annual Romantic Novelists’ Association (RNA) Conference.
A big congratulations to Katy Turner for winning the Joan Hessayon Award for New Writers with her novel LET'S JUST BE FRIENDS!
And a massive congratulations to Sally Jenkins for winning the Elizabeth Goudge Award for her one-thousand-word opening for a novel on the theme: Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder.
Poker, poverty, and the power of storytelling: 2023 Ngaio Marsh Award longlist revealed
A poker-playing sleuth, a poet’s gritty take on life on Aotearoa’s poverty line, a rural mystery entwined with heart-wrenching exploration of dementia, and the long-awaited return of a master of neo-noir are among the diverse tales named today on the longlist for the 2023 Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Novel.
Now in their fourteenth season, the Ngaio Marsh Awards celebrate excellence in New Zealand crime, mystery, and thriller writing. They are named for Dame Ngaio Marsh, one of the Queens of Crime of the Golden Age of Detective Fiction, who penned bestselling mysteries that entertained millions of global readers from her home in the Cashmere Hills. “I’d like to think Dame Ngaio would be proud of how our modern Kiwi storytellers are continuing her literary legacy, bringing fresh perspectives and a cool mix of fascinating tales to one of the world’s most popular storytelling forms,” says awards founder Craig Sisterson. “In recent years we seem to be going through our own golden age, with our local writers offering a treasure trove of terrific stories for readers at home and all over the world.”
The longlist for the 2023 Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Novel includes a mix of past winners and finalists, several first-time entrants and new voices, and the long-awaited return of one of the leading lights of the early 2000s New Zealand literary scene. “In crime and thriller writing it’s natural for authors to make it really tough on their characters,” says Sisterson, “but our entrants made it tough on our judges too. This year’s longlist is a wonderful showcase of Kiwi creativity, with a great range of stories that explore some deep and very important issues in among the page-turning intrigue and thrills.”
The Ngaio Marsh Awards have celebrated the best New Zealand crime, mystery, thriller, and suspense writing since 2010. The longlist for this year’s Best Novel prize is:
TOO FAR FROM ANTIBES by Bede Scott (Penguin SEA)
EXIT .45 by Ben Sanders (Allen & Unwin)
REMEMBER ME by Charity Norman (Allen & Unwin)
BLUE HOTEL by Chad Taylor (Brio Books)
POOR PEOPLE WITH MONEY by Dominic Hoey (Penguin)
THE DARKEST SIN by DV Bishop (Macmillan)
THE DOCTOR’S WIFE by Fiona Sussman (Bateman Books)
MIRACLE by Jennifer Lane
BETTER THE BLOOD by Michael Bennett (Simon & Schuster)
IN HER BLOOD by Nikki Crutchley (HarperCollins)
THE PAIN TOURIST by Paul Cleave (Upstart Press)
BLOOD MATTERS by Renée (The Cuba Press)
THE SLOW ROLL by Simon Lendrum (Upstart Press)
PAPER CAGE by Tom Baragwanath (Text Publishing)
The longlist is currently being considered by an international judging panel of crime and thriller writing experts from the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand. Finalists for Best Novel, Best First Novel, and Best Non-Fiction will be announced in August, with the finalists celebrated and the winners announced as part of a special event held in association with WORD Christchurch later in the year.
For more information on this year’s Best Novel longlist, or the Ngaio Marsh Awards in general, please contact ngaiomarshaward@gmail.com, or founder and judging convenor Craig Sisterson, craigsisterson@hotmail.com
The Joffe Books Prize is looking for a talented new crime fiction writer of colour, with one of the UK’s largest literary prizes for the winner.
The judging panel includes Nadine Matheson, bestselling author of The Jigsaw Man, and literary agent Nelle Andrew.
The prize invites submissions from unagented authors from Black, Asian, Indigenous and minority ethnic backgrounds writing in crime fiction genres including: electrifying psychological thrillers, cosy mysteries, gritty police procedurals, twisty chillers, unputdownable suspense mysteries and shocking domestic noirs.
The winner will be offered a prize package consisting of a two-book publishing deal with Joffe Books, a £1,000 cash prize, and a £25,000 audiobook offer from Audible for the first book.
The submission period ends at midnight on 30 September 2023.
HOW TO ENTER
Entrants are invited to submit their full-length manuscript, written in English, along with a synopsis of the book and author biography, to prize@joffebooks.com.
This prize is open to UK residents and British citizens (including those living abroad) only. The opening date for entries is 1 June 2023. The competition closes 30 September 2023, 23.59 GMT. No entries received outside this period will be accepted.
Read the full Terms & Conditions here.
ABOUT THE PRIZE
The winner will be offered a prize package consisting of the following: a two-book publishing contract with Joffe Books on its standard author agreement terms; a £1,000 cash prize; a two-year membership to the Society of Authors; a £25,000 audiobook contract with Audible for the first book. The prize is a package and can only be accepted in its entirety.
The prize will be offered to the selected winner. Joffe Books may choose an alternative winner if acceptance is not confirmed within one week.
Northumberland-based Christie J. Newport won the inaugural prize in 2021, followed by Sam Genever in 2022. Christie’s winning entry and debut novel, The Raven’s Mark, is available online and in all good bookshops now!
THE JUDGES
The 2023 judges are Nadine Matheson, Nelle Andrew, Emma Grundy Haigh, Jasper Joffe and Kate Lyall Grant. The winner of the competition will be selected by these judges based on the quality and commercial potential of the work.
NADINE MATHESON, BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE JIGSAW MAN: “I’m beyond excited to be judging the Joffe Books Prize. There are so many talented writers and the Joffe Books Prize is the perfect way for the voice of an exciting new writer to be heard. I’m looking forward to being part of the journey.”
NELLE ANDREW, AWARD WINNING LITERARY AGENT: “I am really excited to be part of the judging panel for this prize. It had such a stellar year last year and I can't wait to discover the next cohort of new voices this year.”
EMMA GRUNDY HAIGH, EDITORIAL DIRECTOR AT JOFFE BOOKS: “I am thrilled to see the Joffe Books Prize enter its third year — it’s been amazing to see how much it has grown. The prize underscores our commitment to amplifying a far greater diversity of talent, and we’re reaching more crime writers of colour than ever before. With Audible’s involvement, we now also offer the largest prize package for crime fiction in the UK. I can’t wait to dive into this year’s submissions!”
ABOUT NADINE MATHESON
Nadine Matheson lives in London and is a criminal solicitor. In 2016, she won the City University Crime Writing Competition and completed the Creative Writing (Crime/Thrillers Novels) Master’s Degree with distinction in 2018. In 2019, Nadine signed with A.M. Heath Literary Agents and her debut crime fiction novel, The Jigsaw Man, was won by HQ (HarperCollins) in a six-publisher auction. The Jigsaw Man was published in 2021 and has been translated into fifteen languages and optioned for television.
ABOUT NELLE ANDREW
Nelle Andrew represents an array of internationally bestselling and award-winning authors across both fiction and non-fiction. Among those on her list are Sara Collins (winner of the Costa Debut fiction award), Jing-Jing Lee (a longlistee for the Women’s Fiction Prize and Walter Scott prize), Beth Underdown (HWA Goldsboro Award winner) and six Richard and Judy book club picks, such as the bestselling Heidi Perks, Bryony Gordon and Elizabeth Day.
Nelle was crowned Literary Agent of the Year in 2021 at The Bookseller Awards; the most prestigious accolade for a literary agent in the UK. Before then, Nelle was a Bookseller Rising Star in 2016. She is now a Trustee for the Royal Literary Fund.
ABOUT JOFFE BOOKS
Joffe Books is one of the UK’s leading independent publishers of excellent commercial fiction, especially crime and mystery fiction. Joffe Books is renowned for working closely with authors from across the world to create fantastic books and turning them into bestsellers. Since 2014, Joffe Books has published more than 500 books by more than 70 authors and has sold over 10 million books. The publisher’s roster of award-winning authors and New York Times, USA Today and Amazon bestsellers includes Joy Ellis, Faith Martin, Robert Goddard, Rick Mofina, Volker Kutscher, Simon Brett and Stella Cameron. Joffe Books won Trade Publisher of the Year at the Independent Publishing Awards in 2023 and was shortlisted for Independent Publisher of the Year at the British Book Awards in 2023 for the fourth year in a row.
While Joffe Books maintains open submissions for all authors, this competition is designed to offer an opportunity to Black, Asian and minority ethnic writers, who are particularly underrepresented in crime fiction publishing.
Click here to go to our submissions page.
We are absolutely delighted to announce that our beloved bestselling author Gretta Mulrooney has been longlisted for the CWA Historical Dagger award with the gripping historical murder mystery Death at the Dolphin.
Created in 1955, the prestigious CWA daggers serves as the oldest crime fiction awards and honours the greatest authors and publishers in the genre. Past winners include Ian Rankin, Ruth Rendell and Chris Whitaker.
The shortlist will be announced at a reception at CrimeFest in Bristol on Friday 12 May and winners on Thursday 6 July.
Sam Genever has won the second Joffe Books Prize for Crime Writers of Colour with the "thoroughly gripping" first instalment in a brand-new psychological thriller series.
The annual competition aims to champion authors from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds, who are particularly underrepresented in crime fiction publishing, and is open to debut, previously published or self-published writers.
Ten writers were longlisted, judged by award-winning author of My Sister, the Serial Killer, Oyinkan Braithwaite, literary agent Ella Diamond Kahn, Joffe editorial director Emma Grundy Haigh and press founder Jasper Joffe. Genever’s book, which has the working title Savage Terrority, is set in Johannesburg and follows detective Segert Berger as he tries to find a woman and her son who have gone missing. But all is not as it seems . . .
Emma Grundy Haigh, editorial director at Joffe Books, says: "I'm delighted that Sam has joined Joffe Books as our second prize winner! From the moment I picked up Sam Genever's South Africa-set thriller I couldn't put it down. The opening scene took my breath away. The cat-and-mouse between Augustine -- desperate, on the run and not afraid to pack a knife if it means protecting her son -- and detective Segert Berger is so tantalising. And then there's ruthless, vicious Teddy . . . The novel tackles some of the most deep-seated issues that remain pervasive in South African society with depth and nuance."
Notes from the judges: "Such an intriguing work, raw and lyrical in one. The opening scene is powerfully dramatic. The excellent setting and tense atmosphere combine with an ambitious plot to create a novel with massive potential."
From Sam Genever: "I never thought I would win -- never in a million years, I was really happy to be shortlisted and told my friends and family that's good news to get to this stage, but not to get too excited about winning, please! It's great to be recognised for my craft and it's great to introduce myself as an author. I stopped writing for a while when I was in the corporate world, but I always felt writing is my calling and I'm glad I'vemade my way back home to it.
JASPER JOFFE, CEO of leading independent publisher Joffe Books, has acquired Lume Books from previous owner Matthew Lynn for an undisclosed sum. This second acquisition in a matter of weeks means Joffe becomes the UK’s largest independent fiction publisher by title count.
Founded in 2018, Lume Books boasts a wide-ranging and eclectic list featuring many award-winning authors of both fiction and non-fiction including A.J.P. Taylor, H.R.F. Keating, Keith Waterhouse and many more.
All Lume members of staff will be moving over to Joffe Books. Joffe will be taking over the Lume list of approx. 5,000 titles by 800 authors, and with a laser-like focus on marketing and design, will be relaunching the books to a whole new gamut of readers.
JASPER JOFFE: “I couldn’t be more delighted to take over the Lume mantle. Matthew Lynn is a true pioneer of digital publishing and has built one of the largest lists of digital books in the UK, with a focus on the genres that Joffe excels in. With this acquisition, Joffe Books becomes the largest independent publisher in the UK by title count. And our aim will be to increase sales in the same way we’ve achieved with Robert Hale. Lume authors will benefit from the scale we will offer and the superb attention to detail our editors and marketers bring to every single book. There is no backlist at Joffe, just great books people haven’t read yet.”
MATTHEW LYNN: “Jasper Joffe has proved himself the most ambitious and innovative publisher in the UK over the last decade. Joffe Books will be a fantastic home for Lume’s brilliant staff and authors. By putting the two businesses together, Joffe Books will not only create the largest independent publisher in the UK by title count, but a genuine challenger to break into the Big Five that dominate the industry. Joffe Books is a new force in British and world publishing, and I am immensely proud that Lume will be a part of that.”
In 2019, Joffe Books acquired the Robert Hale backlist from Crowood Press, reissuing and revitalizing the sales of authors including Roger Silverwood, Frances Lloyd, David Hodges and Bill Kitson. And in 2022, Joffe Books acquired Ostara Publishing, reissuing and rebranding such classic crime writers as D.M. Greenwood, V.C. Clinton-Baddeley, Frank McAuliffe and Ian Morson. These authors’ works now regularly feature in the Top 100 UK Kindle chart. The overall digital sales of ex-Hale and Ostara titles have increased tenfold since the acquisitions. Joffe Books also took over Choc Lit, the award-winning romance publisher, last week.
About Joffe Books
Founded in 2014, Joffe Books is proud of its history of innovative publishing. Thanks to the unflagging passion and dedication brought by everyone at Team Joffe, we have built a reputation for crafting great books for readers, long-term relationships with authors and agents, and fleet-footed marketing. We are now the largest independent publisher of e-Books in the UK. In 2022, Joffe sold over 3 million books across crime, mystery, thriller, romance and historical fiction (and another 6 million through Kindle Unlimited). Joffe was shortlisted for Independent Publisher of the Year at the British Book Awards in 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and won Independent Trade Publisher of the Year at the IPG Awards in 2023. The Joffe Books Prize aims to increase the diversity of voices in crime writing and has become one of the UK’s most valuable literary prizes.
Jasper Joffe, chief executive officer of independent publisher Joffe Books, has acquired Choc Lit from previous owner Lyn Vernham for an undisclosed sum.
Founded in 2009, Choc Lit is an independent publisher of romance and women’s fiction. Joffe will be taking over Choc Lit’s list of around 250 titles, and relaunching the books specifically for the digital market, with a focus on marketing and design.
Joffe said: “We love Choc Lit and are delighted to acquire the company from Lyn Vernham. Lyn has built one of the most outstanding publishers of women’s fiction and romance in the UK. It’s an honour to take forward this brilliant publisher with its unique tasting panel of readers who help select the books to publish.
"We aim to build on the list’s exceptional quality and to find new opportunities to reach even more readers. It’s a great fit for our future as an all-genres commercial publisher.”
Vernham added: “I’m delighted to see my baby go to such a good home in Joffe Books. It has been almost 14 years of absolute fun and an honour to help so many authors. We set out to create a romance brand that would support debut and lesser known authors on the road to publication.
"We have launched over 60 authors, two-thirds of which were debuts. Some have gone on to be very successful in our genre. I’m very proud of them all and what the team has achieved. I wish Jasper every success as they continue to develop the brand.”
In 2019, Joffe Books acquired the Robert Hale backlist from Crowood Press, reissuing authors including Roger Silverwood, Frances Lloyd, David Hodges and Bill Kitson. The publisher went on to acquire Ostara Publishing in 2022, reissuing and rebranding crime writers as D M Greenwood, V C Clinton-Baddeley, Frank McAuliffe and Ian Morson.
We are absolutely delighted to announce that Joffe Books won the Trade Publisher of the Year Award at the IPG Awards yesterday. This was very much a team effort, and is testament to the extremely high quality of the books we've been privileged to publish this past year and our wonderful readers who we appreciate.
Thank you to the IPG judges and a massive well done to the Joffe Books team!
We’re delighted to announce #JBPitch, the Joffe Books Twitter pitch party series, on 14 March, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. GMT. Pitch your unpublished novels in 280 characters or less directly to the Joffe Books acquisitions team. If we ‘like’ your pitch, we’ll request three chapters and a synopsis to read more closely. And one lucky writer will receive a 30-minute consultation.
We’re looking for our next bestselling author — and it could be YOU!
At Joffe Books, we want to see many more diverse voices in commercial fiction! If you are or are writing commercial fiction with characters that are BAME, LGBTQ+, working class and/or have disabilities, we especially want to hear from you!
HOW IT WORKS
On 14 March, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. GMT, tweet us your pitch in 280 characters or less, using the #JBPitch hashtag. You can also indicate your novel’s genre by using the optional hashtags listed below.
If we ‘like’ your pitch, that means we want to see more and welcome you to send three chapters and a synopsis to info@joffebooks.com.
WHO CAN SUBMIT
We would like to read a pitch from any writer working on a novel in one of our favourite genres of commercial fiction (see below), who has written at least three complete chapters and a synopsis, ready to submit if we ask for it.
We especially want to invite writers from communities typically underrepresented in the publishing industry to participate. If you identify as a writer from an underrepresented community and would like to flag this in your pitch, please feel free to use the hashtag #UC in addition to any genre hashtags below.
WHAT TO SUBMIT
The pitch tweet should be no more than 280 characters. If we ask to see more from you by ‘liking’ your tweet, please submit three chapters and a synopsis of the whole story, including spoilers (no more than a page).
WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR
We want to see punchy pitches that immediately grab us, whatever the genre. We want to be excited by pitches that reveal an addictive plot and fresh voice, and characters we want to root for.
We are looking for pitches in one of our favourite genres, including:
· Cosy crime
· Chiller thriller
· Crime thrillers
· Domestic noir
· Historical mystery/romance
· Murder mystery
· Police procedural
· Psychological thriller
· Reading group
· Romance contemporary/romcom
· Saga
· Traditional mystery
· Women’s fiction
· WWII mystery/romance
To get a great feel for what we publish, head to our books page.
THE PRIZE
The prize for pitches we have liked is editorial and marketing feedback on your first three chapters and a synopsis of the whole story. So if we have ‘liked’ your pitch, please send your chapters and synopsis to info@joffebooks.com. We will return feedback within a week of the receiving your email. From the submissions we receive, we’ll choose one author to receive a 30-minute online consultation with an editor from the Joffe Books acquisitions team. We’ll email the winner within a week receiving their email to set up a date and time.
FAQ
Do I have to have completed my full manuscript to enter?
No. All you need are three chapters and a synopsis ready to share.
Can I pitch multiple novels?
No. Only your strongest work, please.
Can I give multiple pitches for the same novel?
No. Please only tweet one pitch for your novel.
If I’ve already submitted my book to the Joffe open submissions, can I pitch it?
Absolutely!
If my book was previously self-published, can I pitch it?
Yes, go for it.
Can I participate even if I don’t live in the UK?
Yes, we are a global publisher with authors from all over the world. So long as the manuscript is written in English, we will happily consider your pitch.
Can I pitch outside the requested genres?
No. We do not publish sci-fi, fantasy, novellas or short story collections, YA or children’s, non-fiction, or anything paranormal. Please do not pitch any of these genres.
I can’t be on Twitter on that day, what do I do?
You can schedule your pitch tweet, so you don’t miss out.
My pitch was ‘liked’! What’s the next step?
Please email your first three chapters and synopsis to info@joffebooks.com. We will return feedback within a week of the receiving your email. We can guarantee that we write back to everyone who submits.
My pitch wasn’t ‘liked’. What should I do?
Don’t be defeated! There are still ways to get your book noticed. You can also submit via our open submissions. What we connect to during the pitch party depends on a host of factors. Some pitches are more in line with what the acquisitions team are looking for right at that moment. Some writers are more practiced at pitching than others. Some books are simply easier to pitch than others.
We actively encourage you to keep writing, keep honing your pitch and keep trying to get published.
OPTIONAL HASHTAGS TO DESCRIBE GENRE/THEME
Please find a list of hashtags below, to help identify your pitch’s genre at a glance.
#CC = Cosy crime
#CHT = Chiller thriller
#CT = Crime thrillers
#DN = Domestic noir
#HMR = Historical mystery/romance
#MM = Murder mystery
#PP = Police procedural
#PT = Psychological thriller
#RG = Reading group
#RCR = Romance contemporary/romcom
#S = Saga
#TM = Traditional mystery
#WF = Women’s fiction
#WWMR = WWII mystery/romance
We are very sad to announce the death of our author, Gretta Mulrooney. She will be missed by her many readers as well as by everyone lucky enough to work with her at Joffe Books. She was a brilliant writer who dazzled both in psychological insight and at the level of the sentence. She was a wonderful person who brought laughter and warmth wherever she went.
Gretta Mulrooney (1952–2023) was born in London to Irish parents, Hugh and Peg. She took a degree in English at the University of Ulster, Derry, and lived for a few years in Dublin, working various jobs. Gretta returned to England to teach before taking up social work and started writing in her thirties, publishing for children and young adults with Poolbeg Press, Dublin. She was commissioned by BBC Radio Four, who broadcast her short stories. These were followed by five novels of literary fiction, published by HarperCollins, Robert Hale and 4th Estate. The first of these, Araby, gained critical acclaim for its accurately observed characters and pathos. Margaret Forster wrote, ‘I loved it. It’s such a sweet story, without being in the least sentimental. There are moments when the reader is absolutely there, so acute is this novelist’s ear and eye.’
It was when Gretta began working with Joffe Books in 2015 that her focus moved to crime fiction and psychological thrillers, which had long been her passion. She developed Tyrone Swift, a detective who appeared in a series of books, in parallel with DI Siv Drummond in another series. Tyrone allowed her to explore a character with a complicated personal life, while Siv is grieving and lonely — a fighter, but smart. She introduced a new character with Daisy Moore. These books excited her, and, like many authors, she spoke through her protagonists. Her commitment to both character and plot was testament to her skill as a writer.
Gretta died suddenly but peacefully in January 2023. She leaves behind four siblings — Mary, Jim, Kath and Hugh — who, in her own words, were her very own diaspora. The space she leaves behind is mischief-shaped, adventurous and caring. Gretta loved a stomp along the coast (but never beaches) and spent time with family in Ireland, Wales and Cornwall. She was acutely perceptive in her understanding of people and never lost her good sense of fun. With her son, Darragh, she was a part of every corner of a large and scattered family.
Gretta — never Margaret — was a remarkable person; she shaped so many lives for the good and she will be much missed. To use her own words, spoken by Tyrone Swift, “May you live as long as you want to, and want to as long as you live . . .”
