Sarah Barley Books has had an auspicious start, with the first two offerings from the Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers imprint going on to become bestsellers.
Beth Is Dead, the debut from Katie Bernet, was the inaugural selection for Sunnie Reads, the new YA book club from Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine media brand, in January. Barley acquired the novel as part of a two-book deal from Sara Crowe at Sara Crowe Literary, in a six-house auction. In this modern murder-mystery twist on Little Women, Beth’s death is not due to lingering illness; her body is found in the woods on New Year’s Day, and no one is above suspicion, including the March sisters.
Barley attributes the book’s early popularity to a number of factors. “It’s a combination of a really good title, an arresting package, and a story that delivers for readers on a few different levels,” she says. “It’s a coming-of-age story, a family story, a thriller, a commentary on writing and who can write what. There’s a lot to dig into.”
Released just a few weeks later to similar success was Love Me Tomorrow by Emiko Jean (Tokyo Ever After)—the first installment in a YA time-travel romance duology. The book follows 17-year-old Japanese American Emma Nakamura-Thatcher, who makes a wish when she attends the festival of Tanabata, a celebration of star-crossed lovers. Her wish for proof that real love exists seems to be fulfilled when she starts receiving letters from someone who claims to be her true love writing to her from the future. “It’s a book that makes a lot of people very happy,” Barley says, adding that it’s been a hit with indie booksellers.
Still to come in March is Heiress of Nowhere by Stacey Lee (The Downstairs Girl), another story that defies easy categorization. Set in Washington state in 1918, it centers on orphan Lucy Nowhere, who is poised to leave the isolated seaside estate where she grew up when she learns her employer has been murdered. In addition to the mystery, there are elements of myth and magic.
Barley says she fell in love with the book in the first 20 pages. “It’s really atmospheric, with a gothic quality, but it’s also a meditation on loss and on the environment. It’s witty and funny, and has a love triangle.” Barley thinks Heiress of Nowhere will appeal to adult historical fiction readers as well.
Set for an August release, Local Gods by Melinda Salisbury (The Sin Eater’s Daughter) is a return to dark contemporary fantasy for Barley, who edited Melissa Albert’s The Hazel Wood and Our Crooked Hearts at Flatiron. Interweaving myth and contemporary elements, Salisbury spins the tale of a small-town girl who is blamed for her father’s crimes and driven into the woods, where she encounters a mysterious god. It’s a “spiky” novel that’s “resonating in a different way” and getting positive word of mouth, Barley says.
Karen Foxlee’s The Wondrous Tale of Lavender Wolfe is the imprint’s first standalone middle grade title, an adventurous pirate story with a dash of magic, due out this fall. And the imprint’s first middle grade series will be announced this summer. Barley describes it as “similar to what I’ve been doing for teens, but with a younger audience.” The author already has a wide fan base—but that’s all Barley will reveal at the moment.
Barley began her career at Random House Children’s Books, later serving as senior editor at HarperCollins Children’s Books before moving to Flatiron in 2014. She started that publisher’s YA program in 2016, publishing bestsellers including Stephanie Garber’s Once upon a Broken Heart and Caravel series, Somaiya Daud’s Mirage, and award winners such as If I Was Your Girl by Meredith Russo. She’s currently the only editor at Sarah Barley Books and hopes to keep her list small with 10 books per year.
Barley is particularly excited that the books she’s publishing have been embraced by indie bookstores. “Books that work at indies aren’t always the splashiest at the beginning, but they can sell for a really long time,” she says.
