Euan Thorneycroft

I love novels with propulsive stories, fascinating characters, and great heart, whether it is commercial fiction or something more literary. I want first-in-class storytelling. And I want to be made to care. 

I love crossover literary/commercial fiction (Bookclub fiction). I want to read novels which start conversations and tap into the zeitgeist such as Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid or The List by Yomi Adegoke. And I want immersive, transporting novels which take me on a journey to a time and place, and where I step into other people’s shoes such as Still Life by Sarah Winman, or Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason. 

I read a lot of crime and thrillers from police procedurals to spy fiction, psychological suspense and full-throttle action adventure, and if they have a really unusual and imaginative hook, so much the better. I want to be on the edge of my seat and engrossed. Here are just a few authors I love – Mick Herron, Cara Hunter, MJ Arlidge, TM Logan, Chris Whitaker.  I also love those crime novels which push the boundaries of the genre , such as My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite, Eight Detectives by Alex Pavesi and The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton. 

Historical fiction is also a big passion of mine, and that might be a historical crime series along the lines of Laura Shepherd Robinson or Elodie Harper, or something stand-alone in the vein of The Confessions of Frannie Langton by Sara Collins or The Leviathan by Rosie Andrews. I want to be transported to the time and place depicted in these novels – setting is a key ingredient. And I want characters who are complex – greedy, empathetic, selfish, noble – often all at once! 

In non-fiction, I love memoirs in all shapes and sizes. Writing a memoir requires many of the skills of a novelist (which is one of the reasons I like it) – you have to shape your story, immerse the reader in your world and above all, get them to care. Some stand-outs for me are Educated by Tara Westover, The Shepherd’s Life by James Rebanks, and Do No Harm by Henry Marsh. I am also interested in working with experts in their field and helping them turn their ideas into something that will appeal to a broad readership. I am most interested in those ideas which can be told through stories and narratives, in the areas of history, science, technology, politics and nature. 

I also represent the Estate of Flann O’Brien who, along with Joyce and Beckett, makes up the Holy Trinity of modern Irish literature. 

My list is open so do send me your novels and ideas. 

I am a former committee member of the Association of Authors Agents. I also help to judge the Peggy Chapman First Novel Award as well as the Bridport Memoir Prize. I speak regularly about publishing at Creative Writing courses and Book Fairs.