UK author Cesca Major's debut novel The Silent Hours is set for release on June 4 through Corvus, an imprint of Atlantic Books.

The book, which has been praised by fellow authors including Rowan Coleman and Wendy Wallace, charts the 'love and loss' of three people living in wartime France. A former TV presenter and history teacher, Major was runner up in the annual Daily Mail Writing Competition for the best opening paragraph to a novel in 2005, and has since taken part in a number of short story competitions, including those for Women and Home and Wells Festival of Literature. In addition to this the budding scribe has written reviews and features for the popular women's fiction website Novelicious, and posts a weekly vlog for the Writers and Artists website.