Daphne Durham at Putnam preempted world rights, excluding British Commonwealth, to I’m Not Here to Hunt Rabbits by Josh Kendall (pictured l.) from David Gernert at the Gernert Company. The Mulholland Books VP and editorial director’s debut novel centers on “an elite private security contractor grieving the death of his lover who is sent to Ethiopia to protect a wealthy, powerful family, only to uncover the dark secrets behind the family, his mysterious employer, and the woman he loved,” per the publisher. Release is planned for spring 2027.

 

(photo: Keith Hayes)

Catherine Richards at Minotaur bought North American rights, at auction, to See Jane Run by Charlotte Alter from Allison Hunter at Trellis Literary Management. Alter’s debut novel, the first in a series, follows “a jaded journalist and toddler mom who must follow a trail of clues through the museums of New York City in a race against the clock to solve the murder of an art historian and find her
long-missing adult daughter, a fertility scientist on the verge of a discovery that could reshape humanity,” per the publisher. Publication is scheduled for summer 2027.

Jade Hui at Summit Books preempted North American rights, in a two-book deal, to A Long Ballad of a Short Marriage by Ony Ratsifandrihamanana from Rachel Yeoh at Madeleine Milburn Ltd. The novel, set on an unnamed island in the Indian Ocean over decades of political turmoil, tells the story of Lila and Kuno, who are destined to marry after being “born at the same time and in the same place,” and explores how “fate and prophecy twist their way through the lives of two families and of a nation.” Release is planned for 2027.

Rakesh Satyal at Amistad netted world rights, in an exclusive submission, to Samuel Kolawole’s Blackland and The Hyena Boys from Julie Stevenson at Massie McQuilkin & Altman. The former, per the publisher, is a novel “set in a future where climate collapse leaves Africa as the last refuge until two Caucasian refugees arrive on a fortified island and unleash a crisis that threatens the continent,” and is slated to publish in summer 2027. The latter is a story collection “set in contemporary Nigeria in which ordinary lives collide with the forces of faith, class, migration, and survival”; its release date has not yet been announced.

Alice Jerman at Requited preempted North American rights for Caty Rogan’s Kissed by the Gods and two more books in the series from Laura Bradford at Bradford Literary. The romantasy, originally self-published, follows “a young woman with divine powers who is forced to fight for the kingdom that killed her family, in a world where love is a dangerous weakness, and the gods do not play fair,” per the publisher. Publication is set for June 2026.

In Brief

  • Joy de Menil at Avid Reader won world English rights, at auction, to Tracy Wan’s What We Leave in Our Wake: Lessons from the Scented World, a debut memoir exploring the powerful emotions evoked by smells, from Amanda Orozco and Noelle Falcis Math at Transatlantic Agency, for a spring 2028 publication.

  • Gabby Ureña Matos at Ten Speed Press secured world rights to Early Girl, the debut cookbook by Bella Castillo, a Substack writer and recipe developer for Made In cookware, from Leah Petrakis at Europa Content, for a spring 2028 publication.

  • Sara Goodman at Saturday picked up North American rights to Sarah McCarry’s Possession Island, about a college student
    who returns home to a remote Pacific Northwest island only to become the prime suspect in the murder of her estranged best friend, from Andrea Morrison at Writers House, for a fall 2026 publication.

  • Allie Merola at Hogarth preempted North American rights to Nora Obeid’s Bester Wrook, about an Arab American girl coming of age in the 2000s who becomes obsessed with playing The Sims, from Julie Flanagan at CAA, for a spring 2027 publication.

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