Mercier Press acquires UK and Irish rights to Heresy Press List
Publishing Ireland member Mercier Press has secured the exclusive UK and Irish publishing rights to the Heresy Press list.
Heresy Press is a US-based publisher and imprint of Skyhorse Publishing that “seeks to champion literary merit over ideological considerations”. Its catalogue includes the anthology Nothing Sacred: Outspoken Voices in Contemporary Fiction.
Under the agreement, Mercier Press will publish new UK and Irish editions of the Heresy Press list. The first titles will launch in May 2025.
Titles in the acquisition include Unsettled States by Tom Casey, Animal by Alan Fishbone and The Devil Take It by Daniel Debs Nossiter, “an ironic moral fable where the Devil himself descends upon Washington DC, challenging political and social conventions”.
Set in a coastal Connecticut town rocked by tragedy, Unsettled States is described as a literary thriller with “sharp social commentary and unexpected humour”. Animal is described as a work of autofiction that “explores life’s raw edges”.
Dee Collins, head of books at Mercier Press, told The Bookseller: “At a time when echo chambers and algorithmic bubbles increasingly narrow our worldview, literature remains one of the most powerful tools we have for developing empathy and understanding perspectives different from our own.”
Referencing Mercier Press’ historic struggles against censorship in Ireland, she said: “Just as we once pushed back against institutional censorship, we now stand against the more subtle forces of self-censorship and ideological conformity in publishing.”
She added that “in an era where many publishers increasingly rely on sensitivity readers and ideological litmus tests, we’re proud to bring these uncompromising works to our markets”.
