Bruno Blog

Christmas is over, it’s already February, and we’re filled with good resolutions to start the year with. Among those resolutions, many of my friends agree on three: go to the gym (which they have already paid, even though they haven’t been able to attend it yet), start the diet because summer season is around the corner (and if you start in May, you’re already late to the party) and, for the ones who smoke, to quit it.

They’re not original resolutions, but they’re three of the things that matter to us, and I’d say, that matter to men as well. That’s LA DIETA DE LOS COLORES, by Dra. Folch, published in Catalan and in Spanish by Penguin Random House, is an ideal book to help accomplish your dieting goals, obviously, and I’d also dare to say it’s related to going the gym, as dieting and exercising go hand in hand.

So now that Valentine’s Day is approaching, a good present is to love yourself, as well as the people around you, and do something that you believe in and feel passionate about. So, for all of us who always think about having a hipbone too wide, a flabby stomach and thighs that are never too toned, we can opt for an easy read in which Montse Folch gives us a funny diet. We’ll learn how to eat healthily, which is what’s important and the heart of the matter, because if we eat healthier, our body will respond.

With this diet we’ll learn to distinguish each food group: proteins, vegetables, carbohydrates and fats (the healthy ones!). It’s an easy and varied diet, and one of its core ideas is to make food enjoyable, never sad or boring, so eating healthily becomes a habit and you never have to think about restricting yourself ever again. You’ll only have to combine well your food. I know it looks like a typical book, but I can assure you that with this, I’ve learnt a lot about losing weight, and because we all do have to eat, it’s vital to do it properly. Montse, luckily for us, shows us just that in a fun and entertaining way.

This week Barcelona holds the BCN NEGRA (The Dark Week). There are conferences, round tables and events regarding the crime genre, which has always had a space in literature and in readers who have been supporters of it. The fine line between thriller, crime and mystery is really thin, but there are authors that have always been ‘noir’ and have become classics, like Ian Rankin, Philip Kerr, Harlan Coben or Connelly. However, there are also Spanish authors that have left a mark, like Andreu Martín, Carlos Zanon, Teresa Solana, Empar Fernández, Rosa Ribas and Sebastià Bennasar, who with his last novel El imperio de los leones brings us a novel about corruption based in a true story that has taken him several years of researching.

It’s a novel that gets you hooked, that captivates you and that brings out the best in this author, who has always been in his element with this genre and has published in very specialized publishing houses.

It tells the story of Jean Neige and his gang, who prepare the hit that has to establish them as one of the most dangerous criminal groups of France. But taking control of the Lyon mafia is a long path filled with blood that they’ve just started to wander and that will lead them to urbanize the Costa Brava, control the prostitution in half of Europe and the traffic of hash, among other things. The gang, always with one foot in illegal business and the other in the suspicious construction business, finds itself in a crossroads in 2006. Keeping the clan at the peak of power can be a hard task for Neige’s son, the heir.

It’s a tricky subject, of which we know very little about, and although it is fiction, it’s really interesting to find out what happened in the 70s with the mafias that came to our shore. Under Bennasar’s signature, this novel is synonym for a well written story, which will get you addicted to a real plotline that’s not going to leave you feeling indifferent. An ideal book to give as a present to all ‘noir’ lovers, and to those who want to know more about corruption and mafias, which are closer to home than what we think.

Being an agent is not an easy job. It looks good, it’s pretty, but if I’m being honest, every day I find it more difficult, because you never know which book will stand out and why. Many times I think that it will be ‘that’ one, because you’ve fallen head over heels in love with it, it has kindled a thousand emotions in you… but, at the end of the day, that novel goes unnoticed. As an agent, you must always be on alert, not miss a thing and, furthermore, take care of your authors on a daily basis, to whom you can’t always give them good news and that’s why you must be flexible and handle things deftly. However, these things happen and instinct is the one that takes charge. That’s why sometimes you get it right, and sometimes you don’t. That’s also part of the magic of this crazy business. There are publishers that have missed opportunities that have become bestsellers, agents that have said no to authors that, later, found a good place in the publishing market and have sold millions of copies, and when these things happen, you’re left feeling like a stupid for not having been able to detect it. But it happens, because no one can know for sure if a story is going to work and you’re going to be selling it to everyone. You have to risk, and bet and, most of all, BELIEVE in what you do and why you do it. If you do it like this, with determination, things will come to you, but not everyone has the patience to wait.

It’s not Paz Castelló’s case, an author that we discovered already eight years ago through her wonderful blog. Despite being a good writer and having good ideas, it hasn’t been easy to find a proper publishing house for her, up until Umbriel came and read MI NOMBRE ESCRITO EN LA PUERTA DE UN VÁTER and said to us ‘Yes, I do’. She’s had a lot of patience, and there have also been moments of wanting to give up, but at the end we’ve managed to weather the storm and even enjoy it. Monday was a great day, both for her and for me, because after all the struggles, we found a great publishing house and a great editor for this book, Esther Sanz, to whom I thank for believing in this story and this author, who truly deserves it. As a new part of this odd game, her story is a “criticism” to the publishing business and its way of behaving, but with a darker plotline that keeps you on pins and needles, while showing the hardest part with whom a writer has to live and the solitude, sometimes, with which they walk.

We’ll meet Mauro Santos who, despite his talent, hasn’t been published by any editor. Frustrated, he accepts an agreement with Germán Latorre, a famous TV presenter that turns everything he touches into gold. The deal consists in Mauro selling to him two novels already written –which have been previously rejected by several publishers– and writing for him another two, thus becoming his ghost writer. Under Germán’s name, Mauro’s works turn into international bestsellers, sold worldwide, with dozens of translations and a big response from the critics and the media. It’s then when Germán Latorre’s television channel launches a new program, a talent show to discover new writers. Mauro Sauntos finds there the only opportunity to take back his literary career and start believing in himself once again. But in order to do so he has to turn upside down his life: he must stop writing for Germán Latorre.

A novel with a provoking title, an open criticism weaved in a plotline that you’re not going to stop reading. Perfect for those that like books, crime stories, mystery and the ins and outs of the television world, the show and literary business. You’re going to enjoy it like crazy. A novel that comes after LA MUERTE DEL NUEVE, the first book of the author that lots of people loved, who have always helped us not to give up. Therefore, I want to thank from the bottom of my heart all the readers that each day do your best to help keep books an important part of lots of people’s everyday lives.

The New Year has already begun; we already have it here, brand new. So first of all I’d like to wish you all a wonderful 2017, full of smiles, dreams, great moments and wonderful reads. It’s that time of the year when we all set new goals and think about things we’d love to do but, at the end of the day, we never manage to accomplish. Lots of us are already stressed out just thinking about all the things we need to do, and this year has just started! That’s why my goal is to believe in what I do and live one day at a time, step by step, to avoid this stress that leads us to nowhere. Keep calm.

This advice should be followed by the main character of the first book I want to recommend you today, which we’ll have out in the market by the end of this month, 25^th of January. RESPIRA, REBECCA, RESPIRA… by Bárbara Alves, is a realist and sarcastic novel about the life of a woman who is curvy, married and has three kids. She tries to do everything on her own and is not afraid of fighting for what she wants. Sometimes, she gets a little crazy, like all of us, because daily life can be too much for anyone. A novel that manages to make you smile in every page, and which fans of Marian Keyes, Maitena or Bridget Jones will absolutely love. And, for those of you who haven’t read any of these authors, I ask of you to give a chance to Rebecca, because you’re going to fall head over heels in love with her, I’m sure of that.

One of the things that I love most about my job is being able to find new voices and get them to be published. This has happened with Bárbara, the author of this novel, who has captivated me as much as her protagonist and it’s very exciting for me to start this adventure by her side. I hope you’re going to help us make her a great author. It’s never easy to make people laugh, in any job, and humor in the publishing world is one of the most complicated genres. Only foreign authors have triumphed, but now, we can turn into a reality the success of a born-and-bred Spanish voice, real and captivating. We’re going to cover 2017 with smiles. ¿Are you in?

Today is the last blog of the year. It ends 2016, a year that has had many things, good and bad ones, but I stick to the good ones. We should always do so, keep the best. It has been a year of changes, which sometimes need time, but for the agency, it has been a positive year; with several books that have stood out with many sales abroad, even more than in their own language, with several bestsellers authors in our catalogues and with important prizes. What else can we ask for?

For me, it has been a year of learning, which is what I value the most. Because learning from mistakes, from good and bad things, is what makes you grow, because it makes you think, stop and reflect. So I say goodbye to 2016 with a kiss, and I’m waiting for 2017 with open arms to continue walking and learning, alongside those who want to stay to our side, betting on good stories, and fighting to make our world a better world; where the smile is a flag, and being able to be happy with what we do, our way of living.

So I put my heart in happiness mode and, I wish the same to all of you for this 2017, which will be full of good things. Merry Christmas and a wonderful 2017. If one wants to, one can.

HERE OUR CATALOGUE WITH THE BEST READINGS AND A SMILE.