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Maddalena Cavaciuti

An agent with David Higham Associates (see other agents at this agency).

About

I studied English Literature at the University of Bristol and joined David Higham Associates in 2017 after a spell working in marketing and events. As well as building my own list, I work with our Managing Director Lizzy Kremer and help to run DHA’s Open Days for Under-Represented Writers.

Country

United Kingdom

AI Policy

Human-created work only; no AI use allowed
13 members set this agent as a Favorite.

Fiction Open

I am building a list of commercial and genre fiction from romance and romcoms to young adult and adult fantasy, to crime, thrillers and mysteries. Across the board I am looking for hooky pitches, compelling characters and page-turning drama.

I am an obsessive reader of romance. Give me all your cowboys, mafia dons, shadow daddies, ice hockey captains, campus heartbreakers, bikers and billionaires. If your writing builds on a familiar trope (soft spots include enemies-to-lovers, fake-dating and love triangles) then I would be delighted to see it but I am particularly excited to find projects which surprise me with a new spin on these formulas. Right now I am especially looking for books which marry romance and thriller, darker-edged love stories, romcoms which thrive on chaos and romance with a clever twist of magic like Rebecca Serle’s In Five Years – one of my favourite books of all time. I would love to represent more work in this space by under-represented voices.

In fantasy I still need a heavy dose of romance (read: spice) along with a gripping hook, an imaginative world and a strong female character facing impossible decisions. I’ve never met a book with trials that I didn’t like, particularly when paired with a deadly premise or an intriguing magic system. Series and standalone submissions are welcome. Recently I’ve loved Anathema by Keri Lake, Nisha J. Tuli’s Artefacts of Ouranos series and Direbound by Sable Sorensen.

When it comes to crime fiction, my favourite writers include Ruth Ware, Lisa Jewell and Lucy Foley. I am looking for fast-paced standalone thrillers which press on bruises, unmask unthinkable villains and are immaculately plotted. Most of all, I want crime stories that are told through engaging narrative voices that are pacy and feel effortless to read. I love working through the mechanics of a good murder plot and want novels which do this from ambitious and creative new angles like Gillian McAllister’s Wrong Place Wrong Time or Keigo Higashino’s The Devotion of Suspect X. Most recently I’ve become obsessed with Uketzu’s Strange Pictures and Strange Houses, so if you’re working on anything like that then please send it my way.

Audience:

Open to a broad Audience.

Genres:

General Subgenre: Women's Fiction
Fantasy Open to all/most Subgenres
Horror Open to all/most Subgenres
Mystery/Crime Open to all/most Subgenres, including: Crime, Police Procedural
Science Fiction Open to all/most Subgenres
Suspense/Thriller Open to all/most Subgenres, including: Psychological

Lengths:

Novel

Styles:

Open to all/most Styles, including: Literary, Mainstream.

Topics:

Open to all/most Topics.

Submissions:

Method: Email.
Simultaneous submissions: Simultaneous submissions are allowed.

Always check guidelines for details and restrictions. If you aren't familiar with these terms, see our glossary.

No recent cover image of a book represented by Maddalena Cavaciuti available.

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Social:
Instagram @davidhighambooks
X (Twitter) @DHAbooks

For the Agent:
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Maddalena Cavaciuti Submission Statistics

The statistics in this section are compiled from submission reports sent to us through our submission tracker. They are not provided by the agency or by Duotrope's admins. Information in this section is updated a few times per day. Learn more about the statistics.

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Accuracy
We have received 1 report within the past 12 months. The more responses reported, the more accurate the information.

Other Information

Most recent response reported was received on 11 Feb 2026.
Responses have been received for submissions sent as recently as 05 Feb 2026.
Date compiled: 15 Sep 2026 10:00 UTC (less than a minute ago).

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Dates

Last Updated: 23 Aug 2026

We check their guidelines for changes every four weeks, and we audit the listing twice a year.

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