Lim Gets Six Figures at Berkley

Cindy Hwang at Berkley paid six figures for Roselle Lim’s debut, Natalie Tan’s Book of Luck Fortune. Jenny Bent at the Bent Agency sold U.S., Canadian, and translation rights to the novel in a two-book deal. Berkley called the book a “heartwarming” tale about a chef who returns to her hometown of San Francisco after the death of her estranged mother. There, the publisher continued, the heroine “must master a series of enchanted recipes in order to revive her family’s old Chinatown restaurant.” The manuscript for the book was submitted to Bent via #DVPit, a Twitter event that highlights books by, per its creators, “marginalized voices.” The novel is set for a summer 2020 release.

MG Debut to Aladdin
In a deal for North American rights, Amy Cloud at Aladdin nabbed Jennifer Camiccia’s middle grade debut, The Memory Keeper, from Stacey Glick at Dystel, Goderich & Bourret. The book, Glick said, is a “sweet” and “heartfelt” tale about a 12-year-old named Lulu who develops a photographic memory as her grandmother begins losing her memory. Wondering whether she is “stealing her grandmother’s memory,” Lulu becomes obsessed with a finding that posits that memory loss can be attributed to an unaddressed trauma. Lulu then goes about excavating her grandmother’s personal history in order to try to save her. Comparing the book to titles such as The Thing About Jellyfish and Walk Two Moons, Glick said the novel will make young readers “think about the power of words and memory.”

Bestseller’s YA Adaptation to Delacorte
For Delacorte Press, Beverly Horowitz bought world rights to Just Mercy (Adapted for Young People) by Bryan Stevenson. The YA book, subtitled A True Story of the Fight for Justice, is based on the author’s adult bestseller, Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption (Random/Spiegel & Grau, 2014), and examines the U.S. justice system. Stevenson, a lawyer, chronicles, the publisher said, the “many challenges” he has faced in court, “especially on behalf of America’s most marginalized people.” Doug Abrams at Idea Architects handled the sale of the book, which is set for a fall release.

Seal Takes on U.S. Gymnastics Scandal
Journalist Abigail Pesta sold a book about the trial of USA Gymnastics team doctor Larry Nassar and his conviction on hundreds of accounts of sexual abuse. Agent Lynn Johnston, who has an eponymous shingle, represented the author, who covered the story for Cosmopolitan and, she said, was “one of the first” journalists to write about it for a national publication. Johnston said the title will capture “the tight-knit Michigan community where a group of brave young women found their voice and came together to bring down a serial predator.” World English rights to the book, tentatively titled The Team, were acquired by Stephanie Knapp at Seal Press. The Team is slated for a 2019 publication.

Briefs
Carrie Regan, an executive at HGTV and DIY, sold her currently untitled debut novel to Dan Meyer at Seventh Street Books. Grace A. Ross at Regal Hoffmann & Associates, who sold world English rights to the mystery, said it follows a “young master forger of high-end wine.”

A romantic comedy called Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston was bought by Vicki Lame at Wednesday Books. The world English rights deal for the debut was handled by Sara Megibow at KT Literary, who said the title is about what happens when the U.S. president’s son falls for the prince of Wales, after “an incident of international proportions forces them to pretend to be best friends.”

For more children’s and YA book deals, see our latest Rights Report.

Correction: An earlier version of this article included the incorrect subtitle for Just Mercy (Adapted for Young People); it's A True Story of the Fight for Justice, not A True Story of Justice and Redemption.