Titan Books lands Andrea Stewart's first psychological thriller

Titan Books has landed Andrea Stewart’s "tense" psychological thriller about social-media child stardom, Paper Dolls.

Editor Rufus Purdy acquired UK and Commonwealth rights from Juliet Mushens at Mushens Entertainment in a two-book deal.

Mushens said: "I loved the timely nature of this novel, delving into the dark world of child influencers, and the spiky and gripping voice." 

Stewart is a fantasy author whose previous books include the Drowning Empire trilogy and The Gods Below series. Paper Dolls marks the author’s first foray into the psychological thriller genre. Paper Dolls tells the story of Ellie Campbell, whose "entire childhood was documented and monetised online by her parents".

The synopsis continues: "When she grew up, she changed her name and her hair and cut ties with her family, but when she hears that a family friend and fellow influencer has gone missing and spots some unnerving details in her parents’ videos, she returns to the home she’s tried to forget to make sure that her younger sister is safe." 

Stewart said: “I’m delighted that Paper Dolls has found a home with Titan, and I am so looking forward to working with Rufus on it. I’ve long been fascinated by family influencers and the relationships they have with their children, how every aspect of life is mined for content, and how pervasive the image of the blonde, serene, white-clad smiling mother is online. This story popped into my head over a year ago and I can’t wait to share it.”

Purdy added: “Having recently watched Netflix’s Bad Influence and Apple TV’s Devil in the Family, two fascinating yet chilling real-life stories about the dark side of kid-fluencing, I was struck by how topical and true Paper Dolls felt. Fantasy readers already know Andrea as a fabulous writer from her novels in The Drowning Empire and The Gods Below trilogies, but I can’t wait for thriller readers to discover just how good a storyteller she is too.”

Paper Dolls will be published in autumn 2026 simultaneously with Sourcebooks in the US.