OUR
WRITERS MEAN BUSINESS OUR
WRITERS MEAN BUSINESS 
Carolyn
Jess-Cooke was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Following a BA, MA, and
PhD at Queen's University, she took up a lectureship in Film Studies at
the University of Sunderland.
She has published four non-fiction books in the field of Film Studies and
Shakespeare, and her poetry collection, INROADS, is being published by Seren
in 2010. She has received a number of significant awards for writing, including
a Northern Promise Award, the Tyrone Guthrie Prize for Poetry,
a major Arts Council Award, an Eric Gregory Award from
the Society of Authors, and a prize in the Cardiff International Poetry
Competition. She is Poetry Advisor for Mslexia and a Senior Lecturer
in Creative Writing at Northumbria University.
She now lives in the north east of England with her family.
The Guardian Angel's JournalTo be published by Little Brown/Piatkus, spring 2011.
When Margot Delacroix dies at forty-two years old, she is sent
back to earth as a guardian angel – to herself. Renamed Ruth, she
is forced by divine mandate to re-experience and record her biggest mistakes
and fiercest regrets from the beginning of her life to her untimely death.
Returning to the moment of her birth, Ruth gets her first glimpse of her
angelic abilities, for when baby Margot dies, it is Ruth who revives the
child and brings her back to life.
Forced from this point to witness the cogs of fate and the stuttering engine
of free will, Ruth sets out to change the course of her life, and, ultimately,
to prevent her premature death. When she realises that the reasons behind
her teenage son’s descent into drugs and murder lay within her own
actions as Margot, she makes a pact with a demon – she will give up
her place in Heaven in exchange for the opportunity to save her son from
his fate. But the changes she makes result in consequences no one could
expect…
An intriguing, visually gripping story that navigates the pitfalls of humanity
and the labyrinths of the spiritual world, THE GUARDIAN ANGEL’S JOURNAL
is about love, regret, hope, and the opportunity to beat all odds.
‘Everyone at Little, Brown was swept away by the author’s
amazing innovation. This is a novel about love, regret and hope and delves
into that huge question of what we would change about the life we’ve
already lived. It’s complex, intelligent but beautifully accessible
and, with angels never so much in vogue, we’re delighted to be making
this into our super-lead fiction title of 2011. With its massive commercial
appeal, it’s certainly a book that’s going to get everyone talking.’
- Emma Beswetherick, UK editor
| Territory | Publisher/Agent |
|---|---|
| World | Darley Anderson Agency |
| UK & Commonwealth | Little Brown/Piatkus |
| Brazil | Rocco |
| China | Beijing Book Company |
| Croatia | Naklada Ljevak |
| France | JC Lattes |
| Germany | Piper |
| Italy | Longanesi |
| The Netherlands | AW Bruna / Orlando |
| Poland | Otwarte |
| Portugal | ASA |
| Russia | Eksmo |
| Serbia | Alnari |