Ever wonder what you’ve got to look forward to?
Has your favorite author inked a deal to bring their books to the screen?
In this segment, we give you the details, from Publisher’s Marketplace on all the new titles (or films and series) that will land on your bookshelves or the big screen in the future.
FANTASY/SCI-FI
NYT-bestselling and Lambda Literary Award-winning author TJ Klune’s four original untitled novels about queer love and family, set in curious and enchanting worlds, to Ali Fisher at Tor, in a major deal, in a seven-figure deal, in an exclusive submission, in a four-book deal, by Deidre Knight at The Knight Agency.
PEN/Hemingway award winner and author of The Passage Trilogy Justin Cronin’s THE FERRYMAN, about a ferryman who gently shepherds people through the retirement process—and, when necessary, enforces it—gets the summons to retire his own father, who gives him an ominous and cryptic message before he’s wrestled onto the ferry, resulting in a race to unravel the mystery of his father’s final words; beset by disturbing visions of his own, he suddenly finds himself caught up in a burgeoning revolutionary movement, to Jennifer Hershey at Ballantine, for publication in May 2, 2023, by Ellen Levine at Trident Media Group (US).
Scientist Robert Lanza and Nebula and Hugo Award-winning author Nancy Kress’s OBSERVER, pitched in the vein of THE SPACE BETWEEN WORLDS meets CONTACT, about a disgraced neurosurgeon who, in a bid to save her career and her sickly sister, must confront mysteries in the space between biology and consciousness to answer the question: If we can alter the structure of reality, should we?, to Lou Aronica at The Story Plant, by Michael Signorelli at Aevitas Creative Management (NA).
Author of A DEADLY EDUCATION Naomi Novik’s FOLLY, an epic fantasy in which magic has deep and mysterious roots that both stretch into the future and irrevocably alter the past; along with a sequel and an untitled short fiction collection with both reprint and original stories, to Anne Groell at Del Rey, in a three-book deal, by Cynthia Manson at Cynthia Manson Literary Agency.
NYT-bestselling author Pierce Brown’s RED GOD, the seventh and final book in his Red Rising series, to Tricia Narwani at Del Rey, in a major deal, by Hannah Bowman at Liza Dawson Associates (world English)
YOUNG ADULT
Devin Greenlee’s EVERGREEN, an m/m debut paranormal romance pitched as Rapunzel meets THE SECRET GARDEN, in which the powerless son of a dryad needs to find out who broke into their magical garden and stole a dangerous plant before it destroys the city, and the prime suspect is the cute new guy next door, to Jen Bouvier at Entangled Teen, for publication in winter 2024, by Ramona Pina at BookEnds (world)
Dinesh Thiru’s INTO THE SUNKEN CITY, pitched as a diverse YA retelling of TREASURE ISLAND with an Ocean’s Eleven twist, in which a girl and her sister are just trying to make ends meet in a climate-ravaged near future, until they meet a mysterious drifter who offers them the score of a lifetime—a massive stash of gold, hidden in the sunken ruins of the Treasure Island Casino in Las Vegas, to Kristen Pettit at Harper Children’s, for publication in fall 2023, by Claire Friedman at Inkwell Management (world).
Author of MY SISTER’S BIG FAT INDIAN WEDDING Sajni Patel’s A DROP OF VENOM, pitched as a feminist reimagining of Medusa’s origins, inspired by Indian lore, which follows a young serpent queen’s rise to power and the slayer sent to kill her, questioning what it truly means to be a “monster,” to Christine Collins at Rick Riordan Presents, in a significant deal, in a pre-empt, in a two-book deal, for publication in spring 2024, by Katelyn Detweiler at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (world English).
NYT-bestselling author of SNOW LIKE ASHES Sara Raasch and author of ACROSS THE UNIVERSE Beth Revis’s NIGHT OF THE WITCH, pitched for fans of Serpent & Dove and set against the witch trials of medieval Germany, in which the lone survivor of a coven’s brutal attack must form an unlikely partnership with the witch hunter chasing her, and uncover the twisted secrets and dark magic in the heart of the Black Forest, to Annie Berger at Sourcebooks Fire, in a good deal, at auction, in a two-book deal, for publication in fall 2023, by Amy Stapp at Wolfson Literary Agency for Raasch, and by Merrilee Heifetz at Writers House for Revis (NA).
ROMANCE
Mimi Matthews’s THE MUSE OF MAIDEN LANE, final book in the The Belles of London series, in which unconventional equestriennes fight for individuality, independence, and love in mid-Victorian England, set amid the dawn of the Impressionist art movement; and the first two books in The Crinoline Academy series, in which a wealthy and eccentric Victorian spinster adopts and raises a group of talented orphan girls with the intention of utilizing their natural skills and sending them out in the world to distract, disrupt, and discredit men in power who seek to harm their advancement, to Sarah Blumenstock at Berkley, in a good deal, in a three-book deal, by Kevan Lyon at Marsal Lyon Literary Agency (world).
Rachel Fordham’s THE LETTER TREE, pitched as Romeo and Juliet meets You’ve Got Mail, in which an unconventional mailbox proves to be the key in unraveling the truth behind an old feud and brings two lost together in 1920s New York, to Laura Wheeler at Thomas Nelson, in an exclusive submission, in a two-book deal, for publication in fall 2023, by Lesley Sabga at The Seymour Agency (world).
Amal Awad’s COURTING SAMIRA, starring a young Palestinian Australian woman and magazine assistant from a traditional-ish Muslim family who, after an endless parade of “doorknock appeals” from underwhelming potential suitors and one too many days spent making coffee for a boss who doesn’t even know her name, is about to give up hope when she suddenly finds herself torn between two intriguing opportunities in both her professional life and her love life, to Gretchen Schmid at Harper Via, in an exclusive submission, by Katy McEwen at Pantera Press (world English, excl. ANZ rights).
USA Today-bestselling author Elizabeth Bevarly’s THE SUDBURY TRILOGY, in which two warring families have to put their stormy past aside when the daughter of one is forced to live with the son of the other in order to inherit their share of a Gilded Age mansion that has seen better days, to Gail Chasan at Harlequin Special Edition, in a three-book deal.
GENERAL FICTION
Booker Prize-longlisted author of AN ISLAND Karen Jennings’s CROOKED SEEDS, set in near-future Cape Town, following a stubbornly isolated woman who, after decades of denial, must finally confront her family’s dark past, in a meditation on cycles of trauma, collective guilt, and the legacies of colonialism, to Marie Pantojan at Hogarth, by Anna Stein at ICM (NA)
Nicole Evelina’s CATHERINE’S MERCY, the tale of Irish reformer and Sisters of Mercy founder Catherine McAuley, who strives to fulfill her lifelong dream of building a refuge for the poor and sick of Dublin, but when society turns against her and the Church tries to take over, she must defend her choices or lose not only her inheritance but her reputation and life’s calling, setting off a series of events that haunt her all her days and launching a religious rule that is still around today, to Rebeca Seitz at Chalice Press, in a nice deal, for publication in summer 2023, by Amy A. Collins at Talcott Notch Literary Services (world English).
USA Today-bestselling author of THE FLIGHT GIRLS Noelle Salazar’s THE JAZZ GIRL, about a mystery uncovered when a museum curator finds a hidden label on a famous gown, unearthing the forgotten story of a talented young designer who rose from the dance halls and speakeasies of Jazz Age Seattle to Hollywood, and how her story came to be lost to history, to April Osborn at Mira, in a significant deal, in a two-book deal, by Erin Cox at Rob Weisbach Creative Management (NA).
Author of SUCH A PRETTY SMILE Kristi DeMeester’s THE DARK SISTERS, a feminist horror novel braiding together the experiences of women in three separate timelines—a woman practicing nature-based healing who must hide her gifts to avoid witch persecution in Colonial America; a stifled housewife in the 1950s who falls into a complicated relationship with a woman outside her marriage; and an 18-year-old pastor’s daughter of a megachurch in 2007, as a mysterious illness begins to threaten the women of her community, to Alexandra Sehulster at St. Martin’s, in a good deal, by Stefanie Lieberman at Janklow & Nesbit (world English).
FILM RIGHTS
The Vatican’s former exorcist and founder of the International Association of Exorcists, the late Father Gabriele Amorth’s THE LAST EXORCIST, a memoir of the most famous exorcist of our time, written with Vatican journalist Paolo Rodari, to Garbo Productions, in a nice deal (world).
Ayesha Harruna Attah’s ZAINAB TAKES NEW YORK, in which a hopelessly romantic and slightly naive international student from Ghana finally starts to find success in love and life in New York after her opinionated ancestors begin giving her unsolicited life advice from beyond the grave, to Assemble Media, by Carolina Martinez at Pontas Literary & Film Agency.
Raquel V. Reyes’s MANGO, MAMBO, AND MURDER, a culinary cozy mystery in which a food anthropologist-turned-Cuban cooking show host becomes a seasoned sleuth after murder rocks her small Miami neighborhood of Coral Shores, optioned to Megan Espinoza, with Gato Grande Productions, by Dulce Botello at Crooked Lane Books.
Liz Michalski’s DARLING GIRL, pitched as a dark and twisted take on Peter Pan told from the perspective of Wendy Darling’s granddaughter, exploring motherhood, grief, and the sacrifices we make for those we love, to Nigel Marchant and Joanna Strevens at Carnival UK, by Angela Cheng Caplan at Cheng Caplan Company, on behalf of Andrea Cirillo and Jessica Errera at Jane Rotrosen Agency.