Posts Tagged ‘fantasy’

Acquisition Announcement: A FEATHER SO BLACK by Lyra Selene

Lyra Selene

“Excited” does not begin to cover our feelings about Lyra Selene’s stunning adult fantasy debut, A Feather So Black!

This Celtic-inspired Swan Lake retelling is romantic fantasy at its finest. A magical tale of a changeling princess, her cursed sister, and the dangerous fae lord she must defeat to save her family, it’s perfect for readers of Holly Black, Sarah J. Maas, and Hannah Whitten. Once you enter its alluring world—a place where magic winds through the roots of the trees, forest creatures aren’t what they seem, and falling in love can be your undoing—you’ll never want to leave.

A Feather So Black is coming to shelves Spring 2024! Senior Editor Priyanka Krishnan acquired World English rights from Jessica Watterson at Sandra Dijkstra and Associates. Commissioning Editor Nadia Saward acquired for Orbit UK.

Says author Lyra Selene: “I’m beyond thrilled A Feather So Black has found a home with Orbit! I hope this dark dream of a story captures readers’ imaginations in the same way it captured mine, long ago. I can’t wait to share Fia’s seductive world of perilous magic, moonlit secrets, and forbidden romance with you!”

Adds editor Priyanka Krishnan: “I think Lyra must be part fae herself. She casts a spell with this story, making you forget the world around you as you keep turning pages. This book has everything I love: a complicated heroine, a delicious romance, a nuanced sister relationship, and exquisite atmosphere. You’ll feel you’ve stepped straight into a dark fairy tale, and it will leave you swooning.”

And agent Jessica Watterson: “I was put under a spell from the first gorgeous word of A Feather So Black and I’m thrilled it has found amazing champions at an amazing house. I can’t wait for this book to sweep everyone off their feet!”

A Feather So Black is the first in a planned trilogy. Read more about the book below and follow author Lyra Selene on Instagram @LyraSelene for updates!

 

In a realm without magic, Fia is a rare changeling, swapped for the Princess Eala by the wicked Fair Folk. Eala’s mother, the High Queen, has taken Fia in as an adoptive daughter and trained her as a warrior spy, while the true princess is a prisoner, cursed and bound to the realm of the fae.

When a forgotten gate to the Folk realm is discovered, Fia is tasked by the High Queen to break Eala’s curse and retrieve her. But she doesn’t go alone: with her is prince Rogan, Eala’s betrothed—and the man Fia secretly loves. 

 As the two journey through the gate and into a world where magic runs deep and every step is dangerous, Fia’s mission is complicated by her feelings for the prince… and her unexpected attraction to the dark-hearted fae lord holding Eala captive.

With time running out to break the curse, Fia begins to question everything—the truth of her origins, the reality of her mission, and the “love” of her mother and High Queen. Ultimately, the key to unravelling truth from half-truth and saving the balance between the realms might just be… herself.

  

Lyra Selene was born under a full moon and has never quite managed to wipe the moonlight out of her eyes. She grew up on a steady diet of mythology, folklore, and fantasy, and now writes tall tales of twisted magic, forbidden love, and brooding landscapes. She lives in New England with her husband and daughter, in an antique farmhouse that probably isn’t haunted. She is the author of the young adult duology Amber & Dusk. A Feather So Black is her adult debut.

Cover launch: Wildwood Magic by Willa Reece

From the author of Wildwood Whispers comes a spellbinding novel of magic and self-discovery when a woman escapes her abusive husband and finds shelter in a magical orchard. Wildwood Magic (US) by Willa Reece is coming to shelves June 2023! Take a look at the stunning cover below.

Wildwood Magic by Willa Reece

Cover Design by Lisa Marie Pompilio; Cover Illustration by Mike Heath

Virginia, 1969.

Rachel Smith has found peace in the Appalachian Mountains. Sequestered in Morgan’s Gap, an idyllic small town, her days are spent simply tending its lush apple orchard. She studiously avoids thinking about her past. If her dreams are haunted by memories of her violent husband and longing for the child she was forced to hide, that pain is borne away by fresh mountain air and apples that taste as sweet as honey.

But Rachel wasn’t meant to live in the shadows. When she dares to venture beyond the orchard, she discovers a tight-knit community of wisewomen who honor the old mountain traditions—those who stitch and stir, brew and tinker—where she learns to feel safe. A world of magic unfolds for her, a world filled with new friendships and possibly a new love.

Yet, Rachel’s past is creeping in. She must learn to harness the strength of the wildwood—and herself—to protect her newfound future and community before its torn apart.

For more from Willa Reece, check out Wildwood Whispers. 

Cover launch: The Sun and the Void by Gabriela Romero Lacruz

The Sun and the Void (US) by Gabriela Romero Lacruz is coming to shelves July 2023! Take a look at the stunning cover below.

The Sun and the Void by Gabriela Romero Lacruz

Cover Design by Lisa Marie Pompilio

Set in a lush world inspired by the history and folklore of South America, discover this sweeping epic fantasy of colonialism and country, ancient magic, and a young woman’s quest for belonging. 

When Reina arrives at Aguila Manor, her heart stolen from her chest, she’s on the verge of death—until her estranged grandmother, a dark sorceress in the Don’s employ, intervenes.  Indebted to a woman she never knew, and smitten with the upper-caste daughter of the house, Celeste, Reina will do anything to earn–and keep–the family’s favor. Even the bidding of the ancient god who speaks to her from the Manor’s foundations. To save the woman she loves, Reina will have to defy the gods themselves, and become something she never could have imagined.

Cover launch: The Stardust Thief TP by Chelsea Abdullah

The Stardust Thief by Chelsea Abdullah arrived in hardcover earlier this year and now you’ll be able to pick up the paperback in December 2022! Take a look at the stunning cover below.

The Stardust Thief TP by Chelsea Abdullah

Cover Design by Lisa Marie Pompilio; Cover Illustration by Mike Heath

Inspired by stories from One Thousand and One Nights, this book weaves together the gripping tale of a legendary smuggler, a cowardly prince, and a dangerous quest across the desert to find a legendary, magical lamp.

Neither here nor there, but long ago…

Loulie al-Nazari is the Midnight Merchant: a criminal who, with the help of her jinn bodyguard, hunts and sells illegal magic. When she saves the life of a cowardly prince, she draws the attention of his powerful father, the sultan, who blackmails her into finding an ancient lamp that has the power to revive the barren land—at the cost of sacrificing all jinn.

With no choice but to obey or be executed, Loulie journeys with the sultan’s oldest son to find the artifact. Aided by her bodyguard, who has secrets of his own, they must survive ghoul attacks, outwit a vengeful jinn queen, and confront a malicious killer from Loulie’s past. And, in a world where story is reality and illusion is truth, Loulie will discover that everything—her enemy, her magic, even her own past—is not what it seems, and she must decide who she will become in this new reality.

Acquisition Announcement: Eliza Chan’s Fathomfolk Makes a Splash at Orbit

An author photo of Eliza Chan, she is holding a notebook and looking into the camera. Photo by Sandi Hodkinson
Photo Credit: Sandi Hodkinson

DEEPLY IRRESISTIBLE DEBUT FANTASY DUOLOGY ACQUIRED IN COMPETITIVE AUCTION

We are delighted to announce that Orbit has acquired two books in a highly-anticipated fantasy series inspired by East Asian mythology and watery folk tales from British debut author Eliza Chan. Eliza has published various pieces of short fiction but Fathomfolk will be her first novel.

Alexander Cochran (C&W) sold world rights to Editorial Director Jenni Hill at Orbit, Little, Brown Book Group. Brit Hvide has acquired for Orbit US.

In Eliza’s duology, revolution is brewing in the semi-submerged city of Tiankawi, between humans and the fathomfolk—sirens, sea witches, kelpies, and kappas—who live in its waters. This debut fantasy is perfect for fans of Fonda Lee’s Jade City and Sarah J. Maas’s House of Earth and Blood.

 

Eliza says: “I am thrilled that Fathomfolk has found a home with Orbit. They have published so many groundbreaking, cherished favourites of mine over the years and I am gobsmacked to be within that number. I am looking forward to working with Jenni and Brit, knowing my flooded world is in the best hands.”

Jenni says: “Eliza is such a find, and I am so glad that she decided to choose Orbit as the home for her debut! Fathomfolk is simply irresistible: we loved Eliza’s charming characters, her depth of worldbuilding: there were literal squeals of glee in the Orbit editorial meeting when we discussed her work, from team members who will remain anonymous for dignity’s sake…”

Alex says: “I loved the rich and beautifully drawn world of Fathomfolk from the first moment I read Eliza’s work, and I’m absolutely delighted that she’s found such a brilliant editor and home in Jenni and the team at Orbit.”

 

For more information about Fathomfolk, please contact Orbit publicist Nazia Khatun (nazia.khatun@littlebrown.co.uk).

Translation rights enquires should go to Jessica Perdue at Little, Brown Book Group (jessica.purdue@hachette.co.uk).

Author photo credit: Sandi Hodkinson

About the author: Eliza Chan is a Scottish-born Chinese-diaspora author who ‘writes about East Asian mythology, British folklore and madwomen in the attic, but preferably all three at once’. Eliza’s work has been published in The Dark, Podcastle, Fantasy Magazine and The Best of British Fantasy 2019. She lives in the North of England with her partner and young child. Fathomfolk is her first novel. @elizawchan

 

 

Acquisition Announcement: Bitter Waters & Strange New World by Vivian Shaw

Vivian Shaw
Photo: Emilia Blaser

Welcome back to the world of the undead! Orbit is delighted to announce the acquisition of Bitter Waters and Strange New World, a novella and fourth book that will conclude Vivian Shaw’s beloved Dr. Greta Helsing series.

The adventure starts in Bitter Waters, when a barrow-wight shows up on Greta and Varney’s doorstep one night with 11-year-old Lucy Ashton who’s been newly—and forcefully—bitten and turned. Who did this to her, and why? With the help of her vampiric friends, Greta is determined to find out.

Then it’s time for a jaunt across the Atlantic in Strange New World, where Greta must balance the politics of Heaven and Hell as she road-trips across America on a research tour. There’s something ominous afoot. Supernatural beings are getting killed. Now, Varney and Greta must find out who’s responsible before more lives—and unlives—are lost.

Look out for Bitter Waters and Strange New World in 2024. And, if you haven’t started this delightfully charming series yet, there’s still time to check out Strange Practice (US | UK), Dreadful Company (US | UK), and Grave Importance (US | UK). Meanwhile, follow Vivian on Twitter @ceruleancynic and find out more at www.vivianshaw.net.

Strange Practice by Vivian Shaw Dreadful Company by Vivian Shaw Grave Importance by Vivian Shaw

Praise for the Dr. Greta Helsing series:

“Shaw balances an agile mystery with a pitch-perfect, droll narrative and cast of lovable misfit characters. These are not your mother’s Dracula or demons.” ―Shelf Awareness

“An appropriately dark breath of fresh air.” ―Booklist

“An imaginative, delightfully droll debut.” ―Kirkus

“Exceptional and delightful.” ―Elizabeth Bear, Hugo Award–winning author

Orbit US senior editor Nivia Evans acquired World English rights from Stephen Barbara at Inkwell Management.

Cover launch: Empire of Exiles by Erin M. Evans

Magic, mystery, and revolution collide in this fantasy epic where an unlikely team of mages, scribes, and archivists must band together to unearth a conspiracy that might topple their empire.

Empire of Exiles by Erin M. Evans is the first installment in the Books of the Usurper series coming to bookstores this November (US)! Take a look at the stunning cover below.

Empire of Exiles by Erin M. Evans

Cover Design by Lauren Panepinto & Lisa Marie Pompilio; Map Illustration by Francesca Baerald

Cover launch: The Sapphire Altar by David Dalglish

A usurped prince must master the magic of shadows in order to reclaim his kingdom, his people in the blockbuster second novel in USA Today bestselling author David Dalglish’s latest epic fantasy trilogy.

The Sapphire Altar by David Dalglish is coming to bookstores next January (US | UK)! Take a look at the stunning cover below.

The Sapphire Altar by David Dalglish

Cover Design by Lauren Panepinto; Cover Illustration by Chase Stone