In an exciting debut announcement, Annie Monday’s first novel, The Twelve Dares of Barbara Wilde, has sold in a significant two-book pre-empt to Shannon Criss at Crown Publishing (PRH, US). In addition, Hannah Rossiter acquired UK and Commonwealth rights, whilst German rights were sold at auction to HarperCollins. The publication is scheduled for ‘a major global launch’ in late summer 2027.
The story follows larger-than-life Barbara ‘Babs’ Wilde who may be gone but is still wreaking havoc. Before she died, she saw her four closest friends shrinking in old age and left them one final gift: twelve dares, one for each month of the coming year.
From crashing weddings to skinny dipping on Christmas day, each dare is designed to detonate the unspoken rules society imposed on them, and nudge – correction, shove – them back into the chaos of living.
As their increasingly outrageous escapades make them infamous, the ‘Wilde Ones’ find themselves racing against not just the local beige brigade, but time itself, to save each other from the carefully curated facades they’ve been hiding behind.
Monday said: “I am beyond thrilled to have found such passionate homes with Crown and Quercus. From our very first meeting, it was clear they truly understood Babs and her spirit. Writing this book has been a journey of laughter and tears, and I’m incredibly grateful to Shanika and the team at Madeleine Milburn for enabling me to partner with such ambitious publishers and introduce my characters to readers around the world.”
Congratulations to Annie Monday on this heartfelt and hilarious debut!
