Rhian MacGillivray

Rhian joined Birch Literary in July 2025. She worked for more than thirteen years as a Spanish-English translator, editor, and proofreader.

I’m looking for adult fiction that falls under the following genres (no YA or children’s, please):

Book club fiction

I’m looking for books with emotional depth and human connections, or ones that will open up a new world to me. For example, I loved diving into videogames in Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin, ice skating in The Favourites by Layne Fargo, and tennis in Carrie Soto Is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid.

I also enjoy books that explore the relationships between sisters (Blue Sisters by Coco Mellors), and those that explore motherhood and female friendship (So Thrilled For You by Holly Bourne).

Commercial fiction

I’d love to find something with the humor and heart of Jesse Q. Sutanto’s Vera Wong books or Maz Evans’ That’ll Teach Her and Over My Dead Body. Anything that makes me laugh and forget about the real world for a while.

Historical fiction

Historical fiction is one of my first loves. I want to be immersed in another time period through a sense of place and excellent characterization.

Two of my favorite books of all time are In Memoriam by Alice Winn and The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. More recently, I loved Tracy Chevalier’s The Glassmaker with its speculative element and Venetian setting.

Romance

In romance, I want to see complexity: conflicts, great pacing, and characters with goals beyond the romance. I’d love to find a really funny romcom. My favorite romance book would have to be Beach Read by Emily Henry.

I’m not a good fit for the fake dating trope as I’ve never been able to get into it. Spice is okay, but it shouldn’t feel gratuitous. No erotica please.

Romantic fantasy

I generally prefer romantic fantasy over romantasy – basically, I want tight pacing in a plot that shines and where the romance is secondary. Think One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig, with its unique magic system.

Fantasy

I love clever fantasies like Babel by R.F. Kuang and The Book of Doors by Gareth Brown, and I appreciate intriguing worldbuilding like that in S.A. Chakraborty’s The City of Brass trilogy.

Not the best fit for steampunk, portal fantasy, or vampires.

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I am not a good fit for: sci-fi, horror, crime, thriller, suspense.

I do not represent non-fiction, memoirs, screenplays, novellas, or short story collections.

Submission Guidelines

Submissions should be emailed to rhian@birchliterary.com

Please send a short query letter along with the first three chapters or 10,000 words of your manuscript, and a 1-2 page synopsis, all in the body of your email, to rh***@***********ry.com.

Guidelines & Details