Sarah Rivens and Morgane Moncomble.
These names are little known in German-speaking circles.
However, these two young authors aged 24 and 27 have ranked their new novels
Lakestone
(Hachette) and
Unhiver pour te resist
(Hugo Publishing) at the top of book sales at the beginning of January, ahead of Sylvain Tesson, Michel Bussi or David Foenkinos.
Far from being their first attempt – Morgane Moncomble already has 7 novels to her credit – the two novelists embody a powerful wave which has carried the book market into 2023: that of romance.
Illustration of this frenzy, Hugo Publishing is currently obliged to limit Morgane Moncomble's signing sessions to 200 people.
“At the beginning of January, French fans drove more than two hours to meet her in Geneva and Lausanne
,” relates Olivia Debarge, who organizes these events.
“They say that young people no longer read, but they are capable of traveling miles and waiting hours for these meetings
,” adds her colleague Elena Goni.
Whether “new” (contemporary love stories) or “dark” (toxic and abusive relationships), romantic literature saw its sales double last year with 6 million books sold, i.e. one purchase of a novel on nine.
According to GfK, the segment now represents 7% of the book market, not including digital sales.
“Market dynamics come from demand, visible in fund titles as well as new products,”
GfK analysts explain to Le Figaro.
Some 106 titles thus exceeded 10,000 sales in 2023 compared to 56 the previous year.
American Colleen Hoover alone sold 1.2 million.
Enough to satisfy its publisher Hugo Publishing, behind eight of the ten best sellers of the genre.
“Our 2023 turnover will be 80 million euros, an increase of 95%”
, indicates to Le Figaro its CEO Arthur de Saint Vincent.
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