Posts Tagged ‘acquisition announcement’

Acquisition Announcement: THE DAUGHTERS OF IZDIHAR by Hadeer Elsbai

Orbit UK is delighted to announce that we’ve acquired The Daughters of Izdihar by debut author Hadeer Elsbai, a powerful feminist fantasy set in an Egyptian-inspired world with breathtaking elemental magic and Sapphic romance, perfect for fans of The Jasmine Throne and The Once and Future Witches.

The Daughters of Izdihar hits shelves in January 2023, with the second book in the Alamaxa duology coming the following year!

Orbit UK assistant editor Nadia Saward acquired UK and Commonwealth rights from Caspian Dennis at Abner Stein on behalf of DongWon Song at the Howard Morhaim Literary agency, Harper Voyager will be publishing in the US. Find out more about The Daughters of Izdihar below and make sure to follow Hadeer Elsbai on Twitter for updates: @HadeerElsbai!

Photo of the author, Hadeer Elsbai

Trapped in an arranged marriage to a man she does not love, Nehal dreams of attending the Weaving Academy. There, she can take control of her powers, bending any water to her will, and pursue a glorious future on the battlefield with the first all-female military regiment. Her husband, indifferent and secretive, is in love with another woman, a poor bookseller named Giorgina.

Giorgina has her own secret. She is an earthweaver with dangerously uncontrollable powers. Her only solace comes from meetings with the Daughters of Izdihar, a women’s rights group fighting for freedom. They come from very different means, yet Nehal and Giorgina have more in common than they think.

Enticed by the group’s enigmatic leader Malak Mamdouh, the two women are drawn into a web of politics, violence and threats of war as they find themselves fighting to earn – and keep – a lasting freedom.

 

 

Acquisition Announcement: HALF A SOUL by Olivia Atwater

We are thrilled to announce that we’ve acquired Olivia Atwater’s charming, whimsical and thoroughly romantic Regency Faerie Tales series, beginning with Half a Soul (UK|US), followed by Ten Thousand Stitches (UK|US) and Longshadow (UK|US).

If you ever thought Bridgerton would be perfect if only it had a dash of magic, or that Pride and Prejudice meets Howl’s Moving Castle is the ideal mash up. . . or, if you’re simply longing for your next read to be a warm, witty, delicious escape—these are the books for you. The eBook editions of these previously self-published novels are available from Orbit now, with brand new paperback editions coming this summer!

Check out the gorgeous trifecta designed by Matthew Burne below! Half a Soul hits shelves in June 2022, with the following books available in July and August.

an image with all three Regency Faerie Tales books

Read on for a taste of what’s in store in Half a Soul. . .

It’s difficult to find a husband in Regency England when you’re a young lady with only half a soul.

Ever since she was cursed by a faerie, Theodora Ettings has had no sense of fear or embarrassment – a condition which makes her prone to accidental scandal. Dora hopes to be a quiet, sensible wallflower during the London Season – but when the strange, handsome and utterly uncouth Lord Sorcier discovers her condition, she is instead drawn into dangerous and peculiar faerie affairs.

If Dora’s reputation can survive both her curse and her sudden connection with the least-liked man in all of high society, then she may yet reclaim her normal place in the world. . . but the longer Dora spends with Elias Wilder, the more she begins to suspect that one may indeed fall in love, even with only half a soul.

Praise for the Regency Faerie Tales:

‘Whimsical but never frivolous, sweet but not sugary, deeply kind rather than merely nice. I loved it’ Alix E. Harrow

‘A delightful, romantic romp. . . Half a Soul is the definition of a comfort read’ Hannah Whitten author of For the Wolf

‘Half a Soul is a perfect historical fantasy romance: warm, sparkling with magic, dangerous and delightful. I absolutely adored it.’ Tasha Suri, author of The Jasmine Throne

‘A hugely enjoyable take on the Regency. . . I wolfed this down with great pleasure.’ KJ Charles

‘Smart and subversive, these charming romances will ignite your heart – and your hope’ Shelley Parker-Chan, author of She Who Became the Sun

‘Whimsical, witty, and brimming over with charm. . . Dora and the Lord Sorcier have a place amongst my favourite fantasy romance couples ever‘ India Holton, author of The Wisteria Society of Lady Scoundrels

‘Half a Soul is exactly the comfort read we all need. . . it sweeps you off your feet in the swooniest way possible‘ Megan Bannen, author of The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy

Christabel McKinley at David Higham Associates sold World English rights to Assistant Editor Nadia Saward at Orbit UK. Senior Editor Priyanka Krishnan at Orbit US has secured North American rights.

We can’t wait to bring you the Regency Faerie Tales this summer, but in the meantime please join us in welcoming Olivia Atwater to Orbit! Follow for updates on Twitter at @OliviaAtwater2

Acquisition announcement: ITHACA by Claire North

Claire North, author of Ithaca and The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August

We are thrilled to announce the acquisition of a trio of novels from the award-winning Claire North that retell the ancient Greek myth of Penelope, wife of Odysseus.

The first book, Ithaca, is narrated by the goddess Hera. It is a daring, exquisite tale that breathes new life into ancient myth, and tells of the women who stand defiant in a world ruled by ruthless men.

In the words of Jennifer Saint, author of Sunday Times bestseller Ariadne, “Claire North brings a powerful, fresh and unflinching voice to ancient myth – darkly fascinating, raw and breathtaking.”

Orbit UK and Redhook US will publish Ithaca globally this September. Books two and three in the series after will follow in 2023 and 2024 and will be narrated by the goddesses Aphrodite and Athena respectively.

Holding cover for the novel Ithaca by Claire NorthOrbit UK Publisher Anna Jackson says “There is a great hunger for tales set in the classical age right now, but Ithaca is a retelling like no other . . . Claire North is widely recognised as one of the most unique and innovative voices in modern fiction, and her readers will be thrilled to see her turn her hand to ancient Greece – with such flair. This bold, captivating and moving novel tells the story of Penelope and the other women left on Ithaca when the men of their island have sailed off to war. And as the world around them is torn apart by men and gods alike, it is the women who defend their isle and hold a fragile peace. Ithaca is a novel that’s beautiful and brutal, irreverent and utterly devastating all at once, and in the words of author M. R. Carey, feels “urgently contemporary”.”

Claire North says “A lot of stories set in this time write about women as either victims, their agency stripped away, or as mere cyphers to the lives of the men around them. Penelope is not a victim, but if people think she is, she is very willing to use that to further her aims. This book is the secret history of the women the poets ignored, as they plotted, schemed and waged war.”

Claire North is a pseudonym for the author Catherine Webb. Her first book under the Claire North name was the word-of-mouth bestseller The First Fifteen lives of Harry August, which is being adapted as movie by Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Partners and will be directed by ‘Maze Runner’ director Wes Ball.

Notes from the Burning Age by Claire North

North has since published several critically acclaimed novels and won the World Fantasy Award, and has been shortlisted for the Arthur C. Clarke Award, the Philip K. Dick Award, the Locus Award and the Sunday Times/PFD Young Writer of the Year Award.

Meg Davis at the Ki Agency sold World Rights to Publisher Anna Jackson at Orbit UK. Senior Editor Priyanka Krishnan at Orbit US has secured North American rights for publication on the Redhook imprint.

Claire North’s most recent novel, Notes from the Burning Age (UK | US | ANZ), is out in paperback in the UK on 10th February. Ithaca is available for pre-order now (UK | US).

Acquisition Announcement: SOME DESPERATE GLORY by Emily Tesh

Orbit UK is  delighted to announce the acquisition of  World Fantasy Award-Winning author Emily Tesh’s highly anticipated debut novel, SOME DESPERATE GLORY. A thrillingly told queer space opera full of complex characters and boundless imagination. By turns epic and intimate, it’s coming-of-age story about what empires and systems of war do to the young soldiers in their care. It’s about overcoming indoctrination and who you must become when every choice is stripped from you.

Read on for a taste of what’s in store:

Kyr lives in the bowels of Gaea Station alongside the last scraps of humanity, training for the day she can avenge the destruction of planet Earth at the hands of the all-powerful, reality-shifting weapon known as the Wisdom. She trusts and even loves Command, but when they assign the wrong missions – her beloved brother Magnus to a useless suicide and her to bear sons until she dies trying – she knows she has to take humanity’s revenge into her own hands.

But she soon learns that not everything she’s been raised to believe is true and the Wisdom is far more complex and dangerous than she could ever have imagined.

 

Emily Tesh, a two-time Astounding Award finalist, is the author of the World Fantasy Award-winning Greenhollow Duology. She grew up in London and studied Classics at Trinity College, Cambridge, followed by a Master’s degree in Humanities at the University of Chicago. She now lives in Hertfordshire, where she passes her time teaching Latin and Ancient Greek to schoolchildren who have done nothing to deserve it. She has a husband and a cat. Neither of them knows any Latin yet, but it is not for lack of trying.

We can’t wait to share Some Desperate Glory with you next year! In the meantime, please join us in welcoming Emily to Orbit. You can find her on Instagram and at emilytesh.net.

Acquisition Announcement: THE FREE BASTARDS by Jonathan French

Are you ready to saddle up and ride with the Bastards again?

We’re excited to announce that Orbit UK has acquired the third book in Jonathan French’s Lot Lands series – described by Kirkus as ‘an addictively readable – and undeniably cool – fantasy masterwork’.

THE FREE BASTARDS will publish in July 2021 and follows the runaway success of THE GREY BASTARDS and THE TRUE BASTARDS.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This gritty, action-drenched adventure series follows a brotherhood of half-orcs who protect human civilization from invading bands of vicious full-blooded orcs. It’s perfect for fans of Joe Abercombie, Markus Heitz’s Dwarves books and Stan Nicholl’s Orcs series.

If you haven’t hoofed it with the half-orcs yet, here are a few reasons why you should:

‘Jonathan French has to be lauded for his plot ingenuity, bawdry charm and vicious characters’ Fantasy Book Critic

‘A bloody good tale of battle, betrayal and war pigs’ Brian McClellan

‘A gritty adventure with a fantastic, foul-mouthed voice’ Django Wexler

‘I’d like to raise a tankard to The Grey Bastards’ brilliance’ Fantasy Faction

Click here to find out more about THE GREY BASTARDS  and THE TRUE BASTARDS.