Minotaur Goes to Denmark

Marcia Markland, at Thomas Dunne, pre-empted two thrillers from the Danish publisher Gyldendal. The books, by siblings Lotte and Søren Hammer, are both set in Denmark. The first title, The Beast Within, which kicks off a series about a detective and his colleagues, is slated to publish in Europe this spring. The second title in the deal, A Price for Everything, was one of the buzzed-about books at Frankfurt and has been sold in France, Germany, Holland, and Norway. Markland made the acquisition for Minotaur; the Macmillan imprint is planning to release Beast in winter 2012.

'Southern-Fried’ Memories

Walla Walla, Wash., resident Sam McLeod sold his memoir, Big Appetite: My Southern-Fried Search for the Meaning of Life, to Trish Todd at Touchstone Fireside. The deal, for U.S., Canadian, and open market rights, was brokered by Liv Blumer who has her own eponymous agency. In the book, McLeod, who’s self-published three other titles, discusses his childhood in Nashville and his fateful return trip to a neighborhood reunion in Tennessee. Todd, who is also a Nashville native, has a unique marketing pledge from the Southern restaurant chain Waffle House, where her brother is an executive. Waffle House, which has 1,600 locations throughout the South, has promised to promote the title in its stores and on its Web site, and host signings, because, per Touchstone, McLeod has a “down-home style that resonates” with the chain’s customers. The title is set for a June 2010 publication.

Europa Inks Weldon

Europa Editions has taken U.S. rights to Fay Weldon’s latest, just published in the U.K. by Corvus, Chalcot Crescent. The dystopic work, set in London in 2013, is told from the point of view of an 80-year-old novelist and, according to Europa, is an unusual blend of memoir and sci-fi that offers “an eerie vision of where the current economic situation could lead.” Europa’s Kent Carroll struck the deal with British agent Georgina Capel, and the indie is planning to publish Chalcot as its lead title for fall 2010.

Harmony Plays 'Dead’

Harmony’s John Glusman acquired North American rights to John Lloyd and John Mitchinson’s The Book of the Dead. Glusman struck the deal with Jason Cooper at Faber & Faber UK and is planning a September 2010 publication for the title in the U.S. Lloyd and Mitchinson also wrote The Book of General Ignorance (2007) and If Ignorance Is Bliss, Why Aren’t There More Happy People? (Aug. 2009), both of which Harmony published stateside. The new book, according to Glusman, is a collection of “pithy and provocative” bios of both famous and not-so-famous people who share one commonality: they’re dead.

Briefs

Renee Sedliar at Da Capo nabbed world rights to Jenn Shagrin’s Veganize It! from Meg Thompson at LJK Literary. Sedliar is planning to pub the title in fall 2010. Multitalented Shagrin—she’s a chef/comedian/actress who’s had minor roles on a handful of shows, including a recurring arc on Reno 911!—delivers recipes that Da Capo says are intended for “true foodies” and demonstrate how to “veganize” such un-vegan-sounding dishes as “Jumbo Lump Jack Fruit Crab Cakes with Spanish Garlic Mayonnaise and Warm Saffron Nage.”

Correction

In last week’s Deals column, Billy Kings-land’s agency was incorrectly identified as Kuhn Properties; it’s Kuhn Projects. And Orbit took world English rights, not world rights, in its three-book deal with Kim Stanley Robinson.