Roanhorse Strikes Lightning at Saga
Joe Monti at Simon & Schuster’s Saga Press took world rights to two books by debut author Rebecca Roanhorse, in a preempt, from agent Sara Megibow at KT Literary. The first book under contract, Trail of Lightning, is set on a Navajo reservation in the near future, after the collapse of society. It follows a young Navajo woman who, Megibow said, “hunts monsters with the help of an untested medicine man.” The book was pitched, she added, as “an indigenous Mad Max: Fury Road.” Trail of Lightning is scheduled for publication in summer 2018.
NBA Finalist Reynolds to Marvel Press
In a world rights deal, teen/middle grade novelist Jason Reynolds signed with Marvel Press to write a YA novel featuring the Marvel superhero Miles Morales, who debuted in 2011 and is the first African-American and Puerto Rican character to become Spider-Man. Reynolds, a Coretta Scott King Award winner and National Book Award finalist, was represented by Elena Giovinazzo at Pippin Properties; she brokered the agreement with Emily Meehan, associate publisher at Disney-Hyperion (which Marvel Press is an imprint of). The book is slated for summer 2017.
Steiger Takes Her ‘Heart’ To HC
At HarperCollins Kristen Pettit nabbed North American rights to the contemporary YA novel When My Heart Joins the Thousand by A.J. Steiger. Claire Anderson-Wheeler, the Regal Hoffmann & Associates agent who represented Steiger, said the book is about a girl named Alvie with Asperger’s syndrome, who falls in love with another young outcast. Alvie must then, Anderson-Wheeler explained, “test her strength against a society that doesn’t understand her, and a past that’s coming back to bite her.”
Minotaur Re-ups Castillo
In a three-book world rights agreement, Linda Castillo signed a new deal with her longtime publisher, Minotaur Books. Andrew Martin, v-p at Minotaur, and executive editor Charles Spicer brokered the deal with Nancy Yost, who has an eponymous shingle. The deal covers three more titles in the author’s bestselling Kate Burkholder series, which is set in Amish country; Minotaur has, to date, published eight Burkholder books.
Mira Tackles ‘Forever’ by Hunt
In a six-figure deal, Denise Zaza at Mira Books took world English rights to two books by Margot Hunt. The first book in the agreement, Best Friends Forever, is a dark thriller that, the publisher said, “explores how powerful the friendships that women form can be, and how devastating it is when those friendships fall apart.” Agent Ethan Ellenberg, who has eponymous shingle, represented the author.
Norwegian Instagram Sensation Goes to Adams Media
Cartoonist Line Severinsen sold a book based on her popular Instagram account to Eileen Mullan at Adams Media. Jennifer Weltz at Jean V. Naggar Literary represented Severinsen in the North American rights deal. The book, I’m So Pregnant, is based on the author’s Instagram feed, which has more than 130,000 followers and features cartoons about the often-not-so-pleasant side of pregnancy. The book will be, Weltz said, a collection of “irreverent cartoons about pregnancy.” The author, who is from Norway, has been featured on a number of media outlets, including Mashable and The Doctors. I’m So Pregnant is set for publication in May 2017, timed for Mother’s Day.
Flatiron Nabs Aussie’s YA Novel
Sarah Dotts Barley at Flatiron Books took North American rights to Australian author Shivaun Plozza’s Frankie. The publisher called the YA novel “darkly funny” and “genre-hopping”; it follows a girl from a gritty suburb of Melbourne who goes looking for answers about her family. The heroine, Flatiron explained, “has only one person in her life willing to help [her]—a boy with stupidly blue eyes, a criminal record, and plenty of secrets of his own.” Barley acquired the title from Allison Hellegers at Rights People, who brokered the deal on behalf of Penguin Random House Australia. Flatiron is planning to publish Frankie in fall 2017.
