Radka Třeštíková halts release of her new book over old name on the cover

Czech author Radka Třeštíková has put the release of her new book, "Někdo to udělat musel" ("Someone Had to Do It"), on hold. The reason: bookshops have continued advertising the title under her former name, even though the writer announced months ago that she was switching to a new pen name, Velichovski. The news was confirmed by publisher Albatros Media.

"We can confirm that distribution of the new book has been temporarily suspended. This does not mean the release has been cancelled — work on the book continues. As we have said before, neither the author nor the publisher wants the name change to become the central topic of discussion," the publisher said in a statement issued on Friday evening.

According to Albatros Media representatives, the suspension is temporary, though no exact timeline for the book's release has been given yet. The publisher is now looking for a way to accommodate the author's wish to be associated solely with her new name, Velichovski, which refers to her maiden name.

Why the book didn't come out on schedule

Třeštíková announced her switch to the name Velichovski back in the summer, stressing that all her future works would appear exclusively under the new name. Her new novel — a dark story set in the south of France — was meant to be the first to be published under this pen name, on September 3.

The release didn't happen, however: the author was upset that bookshops ignored her request and kept promoting the new title as a work by Radka Třeštíková rather than Velichovski.

The publisher stressed that it greatly values its partnership with bookshops and hopes that together they can shift the focus back to where it belongs — the book itself and its story.

Around Prague, based on reporting by novinky.cz