

Radlas 5
602 00 Brno
Czech Republic
www.hostbrno.cz
foreign rights
Dana Blatná Literary Agency
tel.: +420 608 748 157
e-mail: blatna@dbagency.cz
www.dbagency.cz
At Host, one of the largest independent publishing houses in the Czech Republic, we have focused on contemporary Czech and world writing for almost thirty years. The Host brand has become a guarantee of high-quality literature in many genres. We are renowned for the care we take with our editing and the excellence of our graphic design. Our primary aim is to find the right readers for the outstanding books we offer. We take pains to provide ongoing care for our books and their authors after publication.
We currently publish about 150 titles annually, in genres including the following: general fiction, SF and fantasy, crime fiction, the thriller, children’s literature, popular science, specialist literature, poetry.
Host is proud to publish many leading Czech authors. Their popularity with readers and the wealth of literary awards to come their way confirm us in our belief that painstaking care for a book — from manuscript stage through to the last detail — makes perfect sense. Our authors include Alena Mornštajnová and Kateřina Tučková, whose bestselling works account for hundreds of thousands of copies and have been translated into many languages. Our Czech literature programme comprises all the genres mentioned above.
Our literature in translation programme, too, has a great deal to offer. The various stories we take from all over the world are characterized by readability, literary excellence and — last but not least — careful translation. Thanks to us, Czech readers are acquainted with works by authors including Olga Tokarczuk, Fredrik Backman, Chimamanda
Ngozi Adichie, Bernardine Evaristo, Nino Haratischwili and Muriel Barbery
Our crime fiction programme is an integral part of what we do. In their chosen setting of criminal investigation, our authors respond to topical issues — a matter of great
importance to us. We regard the publication of the first part of Stieg Larsson’s Millennium series as a significant moment in our history, for it was this that launched the Nordic noir phenomenon on the Czech market. Our bestperforming authors in this genre currently include Lars Kepler, Jussi AdlerOlsen and Peter May.
In recent years we have strengthened our list by adding SF and fantasy, young adult fiction and children’s literature programmes. As we have no fear of the unexplored, we delight in introducing new trends to the Czech market. The most interesting names on our SFintranslation list include N. K. Jemisin, Ted Chiang, Anthony Ryan and Liu Cixin; our Czech SF authors, notably Pavel Bareš and Petra Stehlíková, have also performed very well. As for children’s literature, our titles include works by successful authors Aleksandra Mizielińska and Daniel Mizieliński, Marianne Dubuc, Emilia Dziubak, Oksana Bula, and Roberto Santiago. Another focus of ours is the high quality Czech book for children, by which we bring together an original story with great artwork.
In terms of society, politics and art, the world is changing in all kinds of ways. Fortunately, we will always have books to capture this change. Some of these you will find on our non-fiction list. In the Klimax series, Host publishes original works on issues of climate change.
The history of Host is associated with the literary review of the same name, which first appeared in 1985 as a samizdat anthology. The Host bookpublishing house was established in the 1990s for poetry and literary theory, genres to which it remains true. Since the Nineties, the publishing house has been owned by Miroslav Balaštík, Tomáš Reichel and Martin Stöhr.
You can view our books and meet our authors and team at regular events, including author’s readings, panel discussions and book fairs. We take part every year in the international book fairs in Frankfurt, London, Bologna and, of course, Prague, as well as fairs in other parts of the Czech Republic.
Petra Dvořáková
Wild Cherry Trees / Pláňata novel; 7
Petr Šesták
Burnout / Vyhoření novelistic pamphlet; 8
Markéta Hejkalová
A Century on the Waves / Století na vlnách novel; 9
Simona Bohatá
Cowardly Heroes / Zbabělí hrdinové short stories; 10
Pavel Bareš
Jimmy the Sloth and His Backup Band / Lenochod Jimmy & jeho backup band fantasy novel; 11
Jitka Ládrová
Dumb Souls / Němé duše fantasy novel; 12
Jan Kucin
The Everlasting Step / Nekonečný krok fantasy novel; 13
Highly recommended 14
Selected backlist 18
Petra Dvořáková (born 1977) is the author of two books of non-fiction, three books for children and six books of fiction for adults. She has won or been shortlisted for many prizes, having established herself as a best-selling author with the novel The Surgeon / Chirurg (2019) and the novella Crows / Vrány (2020), winning the Book of Year award in the Literary Prose category for the latter. Her next novel The Garden / Zahrada appeared in 2022. Her books have been published in six languages. She is also a best-selling author in Poland. published in October
An ordinary family in an ordinary village. Two girls of school age whose parents are in ordinary jobs. Grandparents too, in a rather too snug, patchedup, otherwise perfectly ordinary house. It is 1989, and the old, communist regime of Czechoslovakia is moving silently towards sudden collapse. Pavlína, the main narrator of this multivoiced narrative, shares her parents’ euphoric illusions of a different, better life, projecting them onto the white walls of her secret wishes and desires. These concern her relationships as well as ideas about freedom and its attractions. It occurs to the girl that her family is like a heath covered with a scrubby vegetation of misunderstanding, emotional hangups and, in some cases, aggression.
‘From an outsider’s view, in thematic terms this is perhaps the least striking of this highly successful author’s books. Yet it is one of her most impressive,’ says Martin Stöhr, editor of the book.
336 pages
isbn 978-80-275-1761-9
‘I’m of the generation that the late Eighties / early Nineties caught on the cusp of puberty. It’s unlikely that such a time will come again. Above all, this book is about how no outside change can solve personal problems and demolish differences of opinion,’ claims the author.
Petr Šesták (born 1981) is a graduate of Charles University in Prague. He lives mainly in Prague. He runs an analogue photo booth and organizes cultural events in a small border town. His third book, Continuity in the Park / Kontinuita parku (2021), attracted excellent reviews and resonated very strongly with readers. In parallel with his new novel, the author will be presenting his book for children The Road Is a Dog / Cesta je pes, also published by Host.
Kam čumíš, kreténe! Tady mi nikdy nedáš přednoSt zprava. Počítám S tím a nejedu naplno. Střihneš to těSně přede mnou, ale ujedeš jenom dvacet metrů a muSíš zaStavit v koloně. Dojedu tě a kloubem ukazováčku ti Ťukám na okýnko. Držíš volant, ležérně poklepáváš prSty na kůži, kterou je pošitý, je ti mezi padeSáti a šedeSáti, prošedlé vlaSy, chariSmatický typ, jedeš z kanceláře do vily na předměStí, možná ti uvnitř hraje vážná hudba nebo klaSický rock, neuhneš pohledem, díváš Se přímo před Sebe, přidáváš plyn, pouštíš Spojku. S celou kolonou ale popojedeš jenom dva metry. Znovu tě dojedu, klepu na okno, geStikuluju, ukazuju pravou ruku, přednoSt zprava! Snažím Se nekřičet, ale i kdybych křičel, přeS neprodyšné Sklo byS mě neSlyšel. Uvnitř máš příjemné klima, v zimě v létě Svých dvaadvacet Stupňů, lehké vrnění motoru, příjemné hučení větráku. Zaklepu Silněji, ale ty Se díváš jen dopředu, bezpečně víš, že tvoje Sklo vydrží víc než moje pěSt. nedíváš Se na mě nikdy. ani když ti doručím jídlo až ke dveřím. Díváš Se na papírovou tašku S logem Platformy, ve které ti ho podávám. Díváš Se na účet, na přenoSný platební terminál, jeStli čáStka Sedí. nikdy Se nedíváš
Oscillating around the axis of polemic—novel—allegory, this text argues against fetishization of the car as a symbol of progress, independence, power and privatization of the world. All cars have an allegorical undercurrent. The narrator is a courier who delivers food around town, pedals too much, thinks as much as he pedals, and spends much of his day exchanging insults with other road users. Our delivery boy stands on one side of the barricades in the civil war of the streets. His harrowing travels through enemy territory and his implacable fight for justice (whether real or imagined) lead towards callousness and hatred.
The followup to Petr Šesták’s memorable novel Continuity in the Park / Kontinuita parku is another work that defies the reader’s expectations. A cross between a polemic and a novel, it presents its opinions with unabashed clarity. Why should literature address a matter from all sides when this matter is unambiguous? This story of a delivery boy who brings food to the luckier and less considerate among us really gets a move on!
130 pages
‘This work is about growing irreconcilability of antagonisms in society and its systems, amplified by technology. Are we users of technology’s tools or the tools themselves?’ wonders the author.
Markéta Hejkalová (born 1960) is a writer and translator from the Finnish. She has worked as a consulate officer at the Czech Embassy in Helsinki and is a former member of PEN International. She lives in Havlíčkův Brod, where she holds the annual Autumn Book Fair. Her books have been published in six languages. Her most successful titles include the novel The House before the Square / Dům pod náměstím, which was published in 2022.
200 pages
isbn 978-80-275-1760-2
Love determined by historic change is often of the nonromantic kind. The knotted thread of Czecho Finnish relations runs through the life of CzechGerman writer Dorothea Illing, to dramatic effect. As it does through that of Carl Gustav Emil Mannerheim, one of the founders of independent Finland.
Inconspicuous decisions can become entangled with great moments of history to affect the lives of whole generations. In the eye of major events, people remain concealed — along with their most ordinary wishes and desires, not least in respect of safety, home and understanding. Heroes, however, must often choose between courage and cowardice, resolution and resignation, sacrifice and selfishness. Consequences of their decisions will reverberate long after the lives of the protagonists have been washed away on the waves of time.
Set against a backdrop of Czecho Finnish relations as they truly were, this absorbing fiction is told against the stream of time.
If a Finnish general were to meet a Czech woman writer, what might happen?
Simona Bohatá (born 1965) spent her adolescent years in Žižkov, the famous Prague suburb. Máňa and the Rest of Us / Máňa a my druzí (2017), Simona Bohatá’s first work, is a gently ironic description of her childhood and adolescence in 1980s Žižkov. Her novella Everybody Sucks / Všichni sou trapný (2019) was very well received. Her next book, novel Lucky Beny / Klikař Beny (2021) is a loose continuation of this book and was nominated for the Magnesia Litera prize in the prose category.
Each of us is the guilty party in our own life
published
short stories
hardback
200 pages
Any love can end in infidelity, any relationship between neighbours in a crazy dispute, any dream of success in going bust. It matters little how much the husband and wife loved each other at first, what lies at the root of their squabbles, or how much true talent there is in each of them. Simona Bohatá’s book of short stories shows the lives of the protagonists without mercy but with insight and understanding — as though she were still sitting at the old carpetbeating rack among the tenements. There will always be cowardly heroes, because we are they, stumbling over the roots of our own doubt, inadequacy and — curiously enough — occasional heroism. Is not the term ‘fate’ just a compassionate excuse for human weakness?
‘Simona Bohatá captures in inimitable style a Prague that is on the way out or already gone. The grotty, vividly rendered environment of her “progressive Czechoslovakia” is populated by many memorable characters whose faults make them lifelike and likeable. Though at times harsh and cruel, the world of her fictional heroes is always deeply human. This work’s flavour of nostalgia makes each return to its pages a pleasure,’ says Přemysl Krejčík, the writer.
Cowardly Heroes / Zbabělí hrdinové
Pavel Bareš (born 1994) made his literary debut in 2016 with the novel The Cronos Project / Projekt Kronos which was very well received and published in two editions. In 2019, a continuation of this book, Children of Cronos / Kronovy děti, was published. The third part of the series, The Cronos Legacy / Kronův odkaz, appeared in 2021. In addition to this highly successful series, he is author of the hit superhero thriller Meta / Meta (2020), which was twice shortlisted in the 2020 Humbook Awards (for Best Book for Young Adults and Best Czech Book).
455 pages
isbn 978-80-275-1770-1
Jimmy the Sloth and His Backup Band never made it onto the radio. Their career in the music industry ended exactly as it began: as a belowaverage highschool garage band incapable of giving fans anything of lasting value but chronic whistling in the ears.
Fifteen years later, Dylan is damaging his back in an office job, Jess is fraying her nerves as a teacher at her alma mater, and Casper is trying and failing to take the reins of family life. Nothing remains of their wild youth on the stages of smokefilled clubs but blurry, bittersweet memories. But then former bandmate Ollie is back with an idea too absurd to refuse: Jimmy the Sloth and His Backup Band should reform and return to the festival where everything went wrong all those years earlier, turn back time, and realize the dreams of their youth before every last one of them becomes a zombie in the grip of adult responsibilities.
Jimmy the Sloth and His Backup Band is a book about music and the power that slumbers within it, adulthood and fear, friendship, loss, pain and reconciliation. It is also about the need for the bass to keep time with the drums and the belief that playing well is less important than playing loud.
the younger generation
Jitka Ládrová (born 1991) lives in Jablonec nad Nisou. She loves to be surprised in her reading and does her best to provide surprise for readers of her fantasy stories. Her greatest successes so far are the story Law of the Pack / Zákon smečky (2016) and her editorship of the anthology City of Kings / Město králů (2021). Dumb Souls / Němé duše is her first novel.
495 pages
isbn 978-80-275-1790-9
Omden’s father is a brothel owner, an occupation Omden hates with a passion and is determined to avoid. He intends to go to university and start a new life with his sister Namia, so saving her from the fate of a girl for hire. He must not fail in this.
Maargelus is the crown prince of the mighty Maer dynasty, and as such raised to appreciate his duties as future king. His father tasks him to maintain diplomatic relations with ambassadors of the empire. A letter from his uncle makes clear that this job will be far from easy.
In Beast Claws — the city in which Omden and Namia live — corpses keep appearing in mysterious circumstances. What if the killer is not the tiger, as humans call him, but something or someone else?
In the heart of the jungle lives an evil that must be given a name.
‘Jitka Ládrová works consciously with elements of classic fantasy, and Dumb Souls is imbued with its atmosphere. Yet she is not afraid to surprise the reader with an unexpected twist or reversal of a genre cliché. Lovers of intrigue and characters of dubious morals are sure to find something to their liking,’ says Jiří Štěpán, editor of the book.
Original Czech fantasy novel, where nothing is as it seems
Jan Kucin (born 1990) comes from Brno, where he is likely to stay forever. He has always been a reader, and the older he gets, the more he reads. In recent years, his love for the fantasy genre in all its forms — book, film, computer game — has inspired him to write. He is a keen sportsman whose life is inseparable from the baseball club Hroši Brno and he works as a grammar-school teacher. His first novel When Stars Fell / Když padaly hvězdy was published in 2021; it is the first part of the fantasy series Crown of Dreams / Koruna snů.
540 pages
isbn 978-80-275-1745-9
Tragic events in the city of Last Wish have forced Erik and his companions to flee for their lives as well as closing the door on a return to the Hunters’ Settlement for siblings Deva and Kerin. The group embarks on a harrowing journey to the Sea Gate, where they hope to find safety. But many forces in the kingdom are on the move. War has broken out in the Willow Tree Highlands. Fed by superstition and cruelty, fear has the human heart in its grasp. The Hunters are beginning to understand that their greatest struggles will be with the past, the future, and what they allow themselves to do.
At the Sea Gate, Dorian and Vladimír Berton must come to terms with the consequences of their actions, which are sullied with blood, drugs and magic. It is becoming ever harder to keep the network of intrigue and power together. Meanwhile, the demon’s influence is creeping up on them from all sides.
Solomon sets out for the other end of the world without knowing why or precisely where he is headed, and torn about what to do next. After thousands of years of unreality, should he let everything go at last? No, he must go on, even if his journey should tear his body and soul apart.
Second part of the original Czech fantasy series Crown of Dreams, about a world from which magic has disappeared
The Everlasting Step / Nekonečný krok Jan
Alena Mornštajnová
750,000 copies sold books published in 20 languages (Arabic, Bulgarian, Croatian, Dutch, English, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Japanese, Latvian, Macedonian, Persian, Polish, Russian, Serbian, Slovak, Slovenian, Turkish and Vietnamese), rights sold to Armenia, Azerbaijan, Denmark, Finland, Italy, Lithuania and Romania
Kateřina Tučková 415,000 copies sold books published in 21 languages (Arabic, Belarusian, Bulgarian, Croatian, English, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Macedonian, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovak, Slovenian, Spanish and Ukrainian), rights sold to Taiwan (traditional Chinese)
Jan Němec 30,000 copies sold books published in 14 languages (Arabian, Bulgarian, Croatian, German, English, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Macedonian, Polish, Russian, Serbian, Slovenian and Spanish)
Petra Soukupová
210,000 copies sold books published in 14 languages (Albanian, Bosnian, Bulgarian, Croatian, Danish, German, Hungarian, Italian, Macedonian, Polish, Russian, Serbian, Slovenian and Vietnamese), rights sold to South Korea and Switzerland (French world rights)
Viktorie Hanišová 55,000 copies sold
books published in 9 languages (Arabic, Bulgarian, Catalan, Croatian, German, Italian, Latvian, Macedonian and Spanish), rights sold to Greece, India / England (English world rights), Poland and Serbia
Jiří Hájíček 120,000 copies sold books published in 13 languages (Albanian, Belarusian, Bulgarian, Croatian, English, German, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Macedonian, Polish, Slovenian and Ukrainian), rights sold to the Netherlands and South Korea
Antonín Bajaja
Burying the Season / Na krásné modré Dřevnici novel; 2009
Patrik Banga
The Real Way Out / Skutečná cesta ven memoir; 2022
Pavel Bareš
The Cronos Legacy / Kronův odkaz sci-fi novel; 2021
Meta / Meta fantasy thriller; 2020
Children of Cronos / Kronovy děti sci-fi novel; 2019
The Cronos Project / Projekt Kronos sci-fi novel; 2017, 2019
Simona Bohatá
Lucky Beny / Klikař Beny novel; 2021
Everybody Sucks / Všichni sou trapný novella; 2019
Petra Dvořáková
The Garden / Zahrada novel; 2022
Crows / Vrány novella; 2020
The Surgeon / Chirurg novel; 2019, 2020
The Village / Dědina novel; 2018, 2020
Everyone Has a Line to Hold / Každý má svou lajnu children’s book; 2017
The Net / Sítě three short stories; 2016
Flouk and Lila / Flouk a Líla children’s book; 2015
Julie and Words / Julie mezi slovy children’s book; 2013, 2020
I am Hunger / Já jsem hlad non-fiction; 2009, 2013
Transformed Dreams / Proměněné sny non-fiction; 2006, 2013
Jan Folný
A Weekend in London / Víkend v Londýně novel; 2018
Little Queers / Buzíčci short stories; 2013
Anna Beata Háblová
The Shift / Směna novel; 2022
Jiří Hájíček Sailing Ships on Labels / Plachetnice na vinětách novel; 2020, 2021
The Rainstick / Dešťová hůl novel; 2016, 2017
Memories of a Village Dance / Vzpomínky na jednu vesnickou tancovačku short stories; 2014, 2015
Fish Blood / Rybí krev novel; 2012, 2014
Football Diaries / Fotbalové deníky novella; 2007
Rustic Baroque / Selský baroko novel; 2005, 2009, 2013
The Green Horse Rustlers / Zloději zelených koní novel; 2001, 2016
Viktorie Hanišová Sunday Afternoon / Neděle odpoledne novel; 2022
Concrete and Clay / Beton a hlína book of interviews; 2021
A Long Track / Dlouhá trať short stories; 2020
Reconstruction / Rekonstrukce novel; 2019, 2020
The Mushroom Gatherer / Houbařka novel; 2018, 2020
Anežka / Anežka novel; 2015
Markéta Hejkalová
The House before the Square / Dům pod náměstím novel; 2022
Matěj Hořava
Stopover / Mezipřistání novella; 2020
Distilled Spirit / Pálenka novella; 2014
Lidmila Kábrtová
Waiting for the Trigger / Čekání na spoušť novel; 2021
Places in the Dark / Místa ve tmě short stories; 2018
Whom Foxes Drink Up / Koho vypijou lišky short stories; 2013
Jakuba Katalpa
Zuzana’s Breath / Zuzanin dech novel; 2020, 2021
The Den / Doupě novel; 2017, 2021
Germans / Němci novel; 2012, 2014
Is Soil to Be Eaten? / Je hlína k snědku? novella; 2006, 2021
Petra Klabouchová
By the North Wall / U severní zdi novel; 2023
Sources of the Moldau / Prameny Vltavy detective novel; 2021
Přemysl Krejčík
Chocolate for the Wehrmacht / Čokoláda pro Wehrmacht diesel punk novel / alternative history; 2021
Little NY / Malej NY novel / thriller; 2019
Eugen Liška
The Creation / Stvoření novel; 2017
Petra Machová
Vendetta / Krevní msta fantasy YA novel; 2022
The Bond of Shadow / Pouto stínu fantasy YA novel; 2019
Dragontown / Dračí město fantasy YA novel; 2018
Vratislav Maňák
The Death of the Old Masha / Smrt staré Maši short stories; 2022
Rubik’s Cube / Rubikova kostka novel; 2016
Polythene Clothes / Šaty z igelitu short stories; 2011
Alena Mornštajnová
The Woods in the Home / Les v domě novel; 2023
November Fall / Listopád novel; 2021, 2022
The Years of Silence / Tiché roky novel; 2019, 2021
Hana / Hana novel; 2017, 2018
The Little Hotel / Hotýlek novel; 2015, 2018
Blind Map / Slepá mapa novel; 2013, 2018
Ivana Myšková
White Animals Are Very Often Deaf / Bílá zvířata jsou velmi často hluchá short stories; 2017
Jan Němec
Lilliputin: Stories from a War / Liliputin: Povídky z války short stories; 2022
Ways of Writing about Love / Možnosti milostného románu novel; 2019, 2020
A History of Light / Dějiny světla novel; 2013, 2014
Jiří Padevět 1945 / 1945 short stories; 2022
Republic / Republika short stories; 2020
Dreams and Axes / Sny a sekyry short stories; 2019
Barbed Wire and Nooses / Ostny a oprátky short stories; 2018
Daniel Petr
Reading the Movement of Coordinates / Odečítání pohybu souřadnic novel; 2022
Nurse Death / Sestra smrt detective novel; 2018
The Magpie on the Gallows / Straka na šibenici novel; 2015
Michal Přibáň
Only Twice for Everything / Všechno je jenom dvakrát novel; 2016
Nela Rywiková
Children of Anger / Děti hněvu detective novel; 2016
House No. 6 / Dům číslo 6 detective novel; 2013
Petra Slováková
Memories of Tomorrow / Vzpomínky na zítřek fantasy YA novel; 2022
Lord of the Wizards / Pán čarodějů fantasy YA novel; 2020
Fragments of Time / Střípky času fantasy YA novel; 2019
Petra Soukupová
No One Is Alone / Nikdo není sám novel; 2023
Things Whose Time Has Come / Věci, na které nastal čas novel; 2020, 2021
Weird Kids’ Club / Klub divných dětí children’s book; 2019, 2023
Who Killed Snowy? / Kdo zabil Snížka? children’s book; 2017
Best for Everybody / Nejlepší pro všechny novel; 2017, 2018
Under the Snow / Pod sněhem novel; 2015, 2015
Bertie and the Snuffler / Bertík a čmuchadlo children’s book; 2014
Marta in the Year of the Alien / Marta v roce vetřelce novel / diary; 2011
To Disappear / Zmizet three short stories; 2009, 2011
To the Seaside / K moři novella; 2007
Jakub Stanjura
Augusts / Srpny novel; 2023
Petra Stehlíková
Nasterea / Nasterea fantasy novel; 2021, 2022
Faja / Faja fantasy novel; 2017, 2019
The Listener / Naslouchač fantasy novel; 2016, 2018
Michal Sýkora
A Case for the Exorcist / Případ pro exorcistu detective novel; 2021
Worst Fears / Nejhorší obavy three detective stories; 2020
Five Dead Dogs / Pět mrvých psů detective novel; 2018
It’s Not Over Yet / Ještě není konec detective novel; 2016
Blue Shadows / Modré stíny detective novel; 2013
Petr Šesták
Continuity in the Park / Kontinuita parku novel; 2021
Viktor Špaček
An Impeccable Life in Humility / Čistý, skromný život short stories; 2022
Dita Táborská
Black Tongues / Černé jazyky novel; 2021
Běsa / Běsa novel; 2018, 2021
Malinka / Malinka novel; 2017, 2021
Kateřina Tučková
Bílá Voda / Bílá Voda novel; 2022, 2023
The Last Goddess / Žítkovské bohyně novel; 2012, 2013
Gerta / Vyhnání Gerty Schnirch novel; 2009, 2010
We also have a list of great children’s books. Download our latest catalogue here
www.1url.cz/YrAxA