Adult Newsletter: May 2023

Up And Coming For Submission

FICTION

UK Bus Trip Goals: 1) Crawl out of pajamas; 2) Get over cheating bastard and his stupid ironed jeans; 3) Have my first real adventure! 4) Achieve stability, strength, and growth; 5) Definitely do NOT kiss any British men. Alice Cooper likes to make lists. She likes to scratch things off. But living her life by the book hasn’t stopped all her careful plans from going up in flames. With her dreaded 30th birthday looming on the horizon, Alice decides to jump-start her recovery by making the first impulsive decision of her life—booking an all-female, literary bus tour across the UK. What could possibly go wrong? A lot, as it turns out. To her horror, Alice arrives to find a bus full of fluffy-haired octogenarians instead of the cool kindred spirits she had imagined. And, as if things could get any worse, her tour guide is an infuriating Scotsman who makes her blood boil. A ROUGH WOOING, Kat Mackenzie’s wryly humorous and sexy rom-com, follows a woman’s journey to find herself, delights in the antagonistic banter of a budding romance, and revels in the joy of rich relationships at any age.

Golf. Scotch. Murder. Three things that make Scotland great. NYPD detective Doc Chase’s investigation into Russian mob activities led to his wife’s murder. It also killed his career. Grief- and guilt-stricken, he retires to Inverness, Scotland, where he and his wife honeymooned ten years earlier. During a round of golf, one swing of Chase’s sand wedge uncovers a human left hand attached to a body buried in a bunker. It also turns his cop instincts back on and when asked to join Detective Chief Inspector Tom Finlayson and Detective Constable Peggy Noyce to work the case, he reluctantly agrees. Chase’s police style proves a good deal more confrontational than the Scottish coppers are accustomed to, but Chase is determined to prove he can do the job and keep himself in bounds. The case becomes more involved, and decidedly more Scottish, when they discover the victim in the bunker is tied to an organized ring of single malt scotch bootleggers. When someone tries to kill the two elderly Scottish women who are Chase’s weekly golf partners, and who fancy themselves amateur detectives, Chase forces a showdown with the ex-con behind the operation putting everything at risk once more. MULLIGAN is the debut novel of former NFL broadcaster, and golf and Scotland enthusiast, Mark Oristano.

THE TUNNEL is an epic, speculative fiction thriller in the tradition of The Passage, Wanderers, or The Stand. It is the first adult speculative novel by NYT bestseller, British National Book Award Winner, and the million-copy-best-selling author of the Dare to Be Different series, Ben Brooks. Renowned cult expert Karolina Humboldt is called in by the London Metropolitan police to speak with a delirious woman claiming to be a long-dead member of a suicide cult. As she begins to investigate, Karolina finds herself being pursued by a shadowy organization that controls the passage to a parallel world. Meanwhile, across the Atlantic, a ruthless enforcer named Pluto is helping ultra-wealthy clients escape the consequences of their actions. And a young Sámi woman sets out in search of her kidnapped grandfather, the shaman of their group. Their paths converge as all three are drawn to the place that connects their world with another. An ancient, endless forest where mercenary armies, ascetic orders, and impossible beasts are preparing for their last stand. A war is being fought for the future of two worlds. And somehow, Karolina Humboldt is right in the middle of it.

The roots of the current conflict with Russia were planted during the Fall of the Soviet Union. In the dying days of the first Cold War, a Soviet team plans an attack on a NATO base in Iceland. In a bizarre twist, a minor military dentist finds himself in command. Suddenly, it is up to him, Anton Bloch, to prevent nuclear Armageddon. What no one knows is that Anton is secretly a would-be traitor who was planning to sell off military secrets before everything went wrong. Anton Bloch was celebrated as a hero. But was he? Thirty years later, as a new Cold War looms, a former war photographer named Tamsin Greene and her some-time lover Tom Rafferty, a travel writer of dubious ethics, stumble upon the former dentist living as a recluse in the Badlands. In THE DENTIST OF REYKJAVIK, award-winning author Will Ferguson spins a tale of intrigue, corruption, and twists of fate connecting Anton, Tamsin, Rafferty, and a cast of spies, thieves, and intelligence officers across decades and continents. As Tamsin and Rafferty piece together what really happened back in 1991, the novel hurtles towards a final violent confrontation in Reykjavik decades in the making. Author Will Ferguson has won the Leacock Medal for Humour three times and has been nominated for both the IMPAC Dublin Literary Award and a Commonwealth Writers’ Prize. His debut novel, Happiness, sold into 23 languages around the world; his novel, 419, won the Scotiabank Giller Prize; and his last novel, The Finder, won the 2021 Arthur Ellis Award for Crime Fiction. His latest is an epic tale of subterfuge, espionage, and the long, long shadow of the past. (Please note, Jim McCarthy is the agent on this project.)

Eli Francis is stuck. Stuck in an assistant position at Vent when he should be a writer. Stuck with a boss who dangles a promotion but would rather he just fetch the coffee. Stuck working alongside the ex who has had no trouble moving up at work…or moving on. When Eli’s roommates push him to date so he can get over his ex once and for all, they set him up with Peter Park. Tall, handsome, and unbelievably awkward. The date is a complete disaster, and further proof to Eli that love isn’t for him. But when his boss overhears Eli recounting the catastrophic night, he suggests teaching Peter to be a better boyfriend through a series of simulated dates so he can write an article about it. It’s not exactly the piece his journalism degree trained him for, but it’s an opportunity to finally get the promotion he deserves. And Peter is game…even if he doesn’t know the real reason they’re pretending to date. But the more time Eli spends with Peter, the closer they become, and the lines between what’s real and what’s fake begin to blur. Before long Eli has to figure out if the career he’s worked so hard on is worth losing what he’s found by accident. Perfect for fans of Ali Hazelwood and Casey McQuiston, award-winning and bestselling YA author Mason Deaver’s BUILD-A-BOYFRIEND PROJECT is an adult romcom debut full of charm, humor, and the most adorably awkward hero you can possibly imagine. (Please note, Lauren Abramo is the agent on this project.)

When Reggie, a detective recovering from PTSD, is asked to find two missing reality show oceanographers, he tumbles into the mysterious world of Club Paradise. The year is 2050 and the reigning headliner is an elusive burlesque dancer, Siyana of Knatbey, who aims to make her lucid dreams come true. Paradise is nestled on an isle in Lake Michigan outside of Chicago and attracts grifters, gamblers, gamers, and dreamers alike. But there’s a larger game at play—one that unlocks hidden worlds and times—in which Reggie and Siyana become unwitting players. In fact, Bar Star City is a virtual world engineered by Paradise regular, Issac, a diabolical programmer and his shrewd matchmaking girlfriend, Eboni. They tweak the game to the delight of a betting audience and to the peril of its players. When the game is rebooted as a lethal “couple’s therapy” program, an argumentative duo named Tanya and Darryl awaken in the bar world with no memory of their relationship; there they must uncover clues that will bring them together, pull them apart, or trap them in the game forever. Readers of Cult Classic by Sloan Crosley and Severance by Ling Ma will find Ytasha L. Womack’s BAR STAR CITY a seductive, mind-bending destination. Ytasha L. Womack is an award-winning author, filmmaker, independent scholar, and dance therapist. She is a leading expert on Afrofuturism who lectures on the imagination and its applications across the world. (Please note, Jessica Papin is the agent on this project.)

Exploring her beloved forest, young Princess Chibuike “Chi” of the queendom of Kana sees a pale-skinned man for the first time. Ten dry seasons later, in 1619, the once-peaceful queendom is upended when all residents of nearby villages disappear en masse, including their ruling families—and Chi’s own closest friends, daughters of the neighboring queens. Now an officer in the all-women army, and preparing for her own future as queen, Chi vows to find her missing countrypeople and bring them home, no matter where they are. She and her army of women warriors travel across the ocean to Jamestown, Virginia to face down the pale men who built a trade in human beings. To free their people, they withstand perils at sea, the dangers of an unknown climate and unfamiliar societies, and the insatiable greed that drives the pale men’s business. While she meets folks more like herself than she expected in lands far away, Chi also realizes that her foes have allies closer to home than she’d ever imagined, and that coming home to Kana does not bring an end to her battle. To step forward as queen and change the course of history for her people and herself, requires Chi to discover a new kind of bravery. Colson Whitehead’s The Underground Railroad meets Wayétu Moore’s She Would Be King in Julie L. Brown’s NO ONE WILL SAVE US, a muscular, sweeping novel of alternative history that explores what it means to be free and the resilience it takes to keep liberty. (Please note, Sharon Pelletier is the agent on this project.)

Carrie Soto is Back meets I, Tonya in Layne Fargo’s THE FAVORITES, a modern reimagining of Wuthering Heights set in the intense, dramatic world of elite figure skating. Champion ice dancers Katarina Shaw and Heath Rocha were famous for their scorching chemistry on the rink—and infamous for their tempestuous relationship off it—until a shocking incident during the Olympics brought their days as a duo to a sudden end. As the ten-year anniversary of their final skate approaches, an unauthorized documentary reignites the public obsession with Shaw and Rocha, claiming to uncover the “real story” through interviews with their closest friends and fiercest rivals. Katarina wants nothing to do with the documentary. But she can’t stand the thought of someone else defining her legacy either. So, after a decade of silence, she’s telling her story, from the childhood tragedies that first bonded her and Heath to the competing ambitions that finally tore them apart. Sensational rumors have haunted Shaw and Rocha’s every step for years… but the truth may be even more outrageous than the headlines. Shifting between Katarina’s own account of her athletic career and snippets from the tell-all film, THE FAVORITES is a glittering, conversation-sparking page-turner perfect for fans of Taylor Jenkins Reid and Curtis Sittenfeld—exploring desire and friendship and cutting through double standards and media toxicity with a blade as sharp as any Olympic gold medalist’s. Layne Fargo is the author of the critically acclaimed Temper and BookTok favorite They Never Learn, and coauthor of the #1 Audible bestseller Young Rich Widows. (Please note, Sharon Pelletier is the agent on this project.)

After years of putting family first, 44-year-old sculptor Madeline Swanson finally has a room of her own—a whole house, in fact. The house on Jewel Lake in the piney woods of East Texas may be quirky and rundown, but it's the perfect place to escape from the world and immerse herself in her art. But this weekend is different from the start. A parade of uninvited visitors shows up at her door, from family members to old friends; the lake is overgrown with carnivorous weeds; and a mysterious child appears and disappears in the woods. When guests start dying in gruesome ways modeled after Madeline’s sculptures, the real terror begins. As someone—or something—unseen picks them off one by one, time is running out for Madeline’s family. To save them, she must face down what's been unleashed at the lake house before it forces her to make an impossible choice—between her motherhood and her art. Helen Phillips’ The Need meets Sarah Gailey’s Just Like Home in Amy Gentry’s THE LAKE HOUSE, a literary horror novel by the acclaimed author of Good as Gone. With its frank exploration of complicated mothering, this smart, audacious chiller marks an exciting turn for Amy Gentry, known for rich, propulsive prose, razor-sharp character development, and a willingness to probe the darkest nuances of women’s lives.(Please note, Sharon Pelletier is the agent on this project.)

After a personal loss, ambitious Juniper Williams leaves New York to sell the multi-million-dollar company she co-founded with her husband and start afresh in her husband’s tiny hometown of Sweetdrop, Texas. Her new job? Stay At Home Mom. Now Juniper splits her time between tending to her family and swapping advice at the weekly Stay At Home Moms Club. The stresses of her past life are behind her, and she’s ready to move on with her husband, son, and new Texan mom friends. Life is idyllic, until it isn't. When Stay At Home Moms Club queen bee McKenna Lewis pitches Juniper on joining her MLM, then goes missing, Juniper’s instincts tingle. Something about this boho MLM is not what it seems. The entire town of Sweetdrop is ready to write McKenna off as a basket case, but Juniper knows there's more to McKenna's disappearance, and delves deep into an underbelly of multi-level-marketing, scandal, and breastmilk to find it. Before she knows it, she finds herself entangled with an insidious company she once shrugged off with an eye roll. As Juniper fights to bring her not-friend home, she pushes herself deeper into peril at great personal costs, uncovering the seemingly sleepy town’s secrets lurking beneath the charming cobblestone surface. Aliza Celeste’s darkly humorous debut THE MISSING STAY AT HOME MOMS CLUB subverts the cliches of gossipy housewives and oaf-like husbands, instead proving it takes a village to not only raise a child, but to stop a time bomb. (Please note, this project is represented by Amy Elizabeth Bishop.)

Margo moved to LA to launch her career as an art curator and to put the pieces of her life back together after a sexual assault by a close friend in college. Unbeknownst to her, her only sibling has also been building a new life. When they come out as a trans woman, Margo finds herself in the middle of her now splintering family, trying to broker understanding, if not peace. Their deeply conservative parents go to increasingly desperate lengths to maintain their white-picket-fence image, even declaring the person they consider their son, dead. Margo, meanwhile, fully supports Willa’s transition, but her sister’s embrace of womanhood makes Margo reexamine the trauma she’s been running from. As she navigates her first romantic relationship since the assault, Margo faces the disintegration of the family she thought she knew and must decide what kind of family she will choose for herself. For fans of Detransition, Baby and This is How it Always Is, THE LAST GOOD FAMILY IN AMERICA by Liz Glass explores themes of womanhood and bodily autonomy while questioning the traditional family structure. (Please note, this project is represented by Amy Elizabeth Bishop.)

Junior Prom is supposed to be the best night of your life. In Manuna, Wisconsin it unravels into a day of infamy for the class of 2019. Joking around during pre-prom photos on the steps of the town hall, the Manuna High boys raise their hands in a fascist salute. The picture goes viral, but the majority white citizens downplay the incident. They’re all just “good boys,” goofing off. Soon, the national media descends, college offers are rescinded, and lawsuits are threatened. Suddenly, it’s not so funny. This is a story of a town reckoning—or, not reckoning—with white American hegemony. Lilli Cloud, a student who lives on the town border with the Ho Chunk reservation, demands accountability. Marcus Melton, the lone Black student in the class, wants to escape. The boys’ parents think a punishment is unjust. June Glasglow, the Manuna, Wisconsin school district superintendent, is asking for apologies. But to whom? What’s worse, one of the boys in the picture is June’s son. She hopes to reconcile the town in a way she can’t reconcile her personal relationships, but, to truly hold the boys accountable, June must realize that she, herself, is part of the problem. A recent Fellow at the NYC Center for Fiction, Jeremy J. Kamps’s debut novel, NOT A SINGLE RACIST BONE, is a propulsive tour de force told with humor and humanity that asks, what is our capacity to heal? (Please note, this project is represented by Andrew Dugan.)

NON-FICTION

Prepare to laugh, nod, and maybe even snort as you dive into the hilarious world of GROWING UP: PART F*CKING TWO, brought to you by Sherri Dias, the viral content creator known for her side-splitting "Daily Doses" and "Gen X Thoughts of the Day," and Rachel Seiler, Ph.D. This riotous guide is your passport to navigating the second (better) half of life with zero apologies and absolutely no spare f*cks given. From energy-saving tips for locating your reading glasses to a survival kit for sleeping with fewer bruises (hello, middle-of-the-night bathroom trips), GROWING UP: PART F*CKING TWO has you covered. Learn creative and colorful ways to tell those toxic coworkers and pesky family members to f*ck right off and discover meaningful ways to deepen the connections that really matter (yes, even sexy time makes the cut). No matter which decade you're rockin’, Sherri and Rachel will have you falling in love with the "f*cks free" approach to life. This snackable and witty read will leave you nodding in agreement and laughing out loud at the relatable anecdotes and clever insights. Embrace your inner badass and join @therealslimsherri in staying young, staying real and living your best life with sass, humor, and a middle finger to taking life too seriously.

Fans of Sarah Broom’s The Yellow House will love Fredrick Miller’s THE SECRETS OF SHARSWOOD MANOR: FAMILY, FAITH, AND FORTITUDE IN A SMALL VIRGINIA TOWN. As seen in The Washington Post and on 60 Minutes, it’s the improbable—and perhaps inevitable—tale of the unassuming Black Air Force veteran who bought his sprawling family a Gothic revival home where they could gather for annual reunions, only to find that he had unlocked a long-sealed door to their past. The ink was barely dry on the closing documents when Miller’s relatives began unearthing the property’s history. That it was once a tobacco plantation was startling enough to them, but when they learned their ancestors were enslaved there, it changed their sense of who they were and how far they had come. For the first time, Miller (with writer Paige Bowers) weaves these threads together into a larger, sweeping narrative about his own story of perseverance in the face of adversity, the enduring bonds of his ancestors, and the power of our hometowns to shape who—and what—we become. Above all, it is a love letter to the sprawling, scrappy family that inspired him to strive for more, but never let him forget where he came from as he traveled the world in search of his own version of the American Dream.

“Hey, what’s that bird I hear? What kind of wildflower is this? Is this mushroom poisonous?” Wouldn’t you love to be that person who can say, “Aha! I can tell you!”? It’s easier than you think! THE EVERYDAY NATURALIST: HOW TO IDENTIFY ANIMALS, PLANTS, AND FUNGI WHEREVER YOU GO is full of techniques and tools that anyone can use, both to learn about neighborhood nature, and when traveling to exciting new ecosystems. Through her popular online and in-person classes, certified Master Naturalist Rebecca Lexa has taught thousands of people the skills and tools they need to confidently identify flora, fauna, and fungi—even if they walked in with zero experience. Now she wants to reach even more nature enthusiasts with THE EVERYDAY NATURALIST. No degree? No problem! Written in plain English, with technical terms clearly defined, this book is suitable for everyone, from nature newbies to seasoned scientists. You'll get better results with tools like field guides and apps, learn what to pay attention to when you find a new-to-you species, and keep your adventures in the field safe and fun, too. Whether you want to create a better world through citizen science, improve your connection to your local “naturehood,” or just enjoy the social cachet of being the person everyone looks to when that cool bug or weird fungus suddenly appears, THE EVERYDAY NATURALIST will give you the confidence and skills to figure out who’s who in the natural world.

In AWAY WE GO, New York Times and Washington Post contributor Jen A. Miller takes a fun, adventurous look at a critical part of any driving adventure: pit stops. On a road trip from New Jersey to Disneyland with her old cattle dog in an old Jeep Wrangler, Miller, who is both an accomplished science writer and experienced road tripper, tells the history of how bathrooms for travelers grew up along with the great American road trip, and how a patchwork of laws, rules, regulations, and traditions that now provide places for weary drivers to rest (and use a restroom) is also a reflection of the country. She starts in Philadelphia, and reveals why colonial travelers to Philadelphia might have shared a communal privy with George Washington. As she heads west, she answers questions that any road tripper might have never thought to ask until they start scanning the horizon for a big blue highway sign that indicates an upcoming place to stop, like why turnpike service plazas have gas stations and rest areas do not, why gas stations bathrooms can be so gross, how local governments decide where to put vault toilets in places water and sewers can't reach, and how EVs and the charging stations springing up to service them may upend pit stops and where we put them all over again. In addition to the Times and Post, Miller’s work has also appeared in The New York Times Book Review, Oprah, Guardian, AARP, Buzzfeed, Allure, ESPN and Vox.

America is a work in progress. It began with well-declared principles we have yet to achieve. It is a nation of aspiration and monstrous contradictions. Thomas Jefferson wrote “all men are created equal” yet owned slaves. Of the nation’s first 15 presidents, 10 enslaved other human beings. Donald Trump’s race-baiting rhetoric energized white supremacist groups such as the Proud Boys and the QAnon crazies, and they sought to “restore” something that never existed. Change is a constant in our history, and music is an agent of change. William McKeen’s THE GASOLINE OF DEMOCRACY shows us a century of protest songs that created the agenda for building a just and decent society. Songwriter Brian Wilson once said, “Music is God’s voice on Earth.” If true, then these powerful songs of dissent serve as a divine instruction manual for a nation seeking social justice. Each chapter tells the story of a song, from germination to composition to performance. It’s a hundred-year history through the prism of activist songwriters, from the Jim Crow era to the genocide of Native Americans, through the growth of feminism, the anti-war movement, and the struggle for gay rights, up through the post-George Floyd world. These songs are essential to the American journey. As activist Bonnie Raines said, “Dissent is the gasoline of democracy.”

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is a new and dangerous breed of post-Trump politician. Since narrowly winning the governor’s race in 2018, DeSantis has welcomed a wave of racist, right-wing extremism to the Sunshine State that he hopes will deliver him the presidency. In five years as governor, DeSantis has reshaped Florida’s bland bureaucracy into a pointed political machine, slashed diversity programs in the public university system, expelled duly-elected Democratic local officials who disagree with him, and intimidated Black voters with a new police force focused on election crimes. In THE DESANTIS MACHINE, longtime Florida journalist Ben Montgomery reveals how the ambitious 44-year-old Ivy League grad with a blue-collar Tampa Bay background has consolidated power in the country’s third-largest state by bullying and intimidating his perceived enemies, using the press to push propaganda on the masses, and stoking the old racist fires that still burn in the Deep South. Montgomery, the Pulitzer-nominated investigative reporter who told the world about Florida’s now-notorious Dozier School for Boys, has watched his adopted state change for the worse and delivers a warning for the rest of the country.

Dumb as a rock?  Think again!  Rocks, so much older, are thus wiser than we.  Listening to what they have to teach is to change the way we see the world. In SPEAK, STONES! journalist Walter Nicklin goes around the world in what he calls “forensic travel” to uncover the secrets that stones reveal.  In particular, he “looks deeply” (as counseled by Henry David Thoreau) at 27 iconic landmarks and tourist destinations: from the Lutetian limestone creating the special ambience for the “City of Light” to a lonely castle’s granite ruins inspiring the romantic imagination…from the karst landscape of the Yucatan Peninsula to the African “rock art” of the earliest humans. Written in the rocks is not only planetary history but also and especially human storytelling as well. Universal abstractions like honor and God are made concrete in the monuments and temples built out of hard stone. The yearning for eternity embodied in such stonework transcends human frailty.

In NARCAN JESUS: THE SHORT LIFE OF THE TRAGIC HERO WHO DEFIED AMERICA’S DRUG WARS, veteran journalist and ghostwriter Jordan Michael Smith explores the remarkable life and premature death of a brilliant young man who battled America’s opioid epidemic. Jesse Harvey was famous in national drug-policy circles in and around New England for his open defiance of the country’s disastrous laws regarding opioids before dying at 28 in 2020. Through civil disobedience, prison hunger strikes, high-profile media campaigns, and publicly dispensing illegal but essential supplies to drug users, Jesse saved the lives of thousands of vulnerable people—but he couldn’t save his own. In addition to being an unforgettable, stranger-than-fiction saga, Harvey’s life has important implications for the opioid crisis increasingly engulfing the United States—and it includes a call to action for anyone looking to live a more meaningful life. In using his own struggles with depression and addiction as a spur to help lead an impactful social movement in the face of governmental indifference and law enforcement’s hostility, Jesse showed that a single brave, flawed individual could change families, communities and, one day, perhaps the entire country. A contributing editor at The New Republic, Smith's reporting has appeared in the New York Times Magazine, The Atlantic, and the Washington Post, and he has ghostwritten three non-fiction books.

One might not guess that Karma Chavez was born and raised in Nebraska. The Chair and Bobby and Sherri Patton Professor in UT Austin’s Department of Mexican American and Latina/o Studies is a multi-published queer theorist who for years has worked closely with several community organizations on issues surrounding queer, racial, economic and immigrant justice. But as a child, she was surrounded by a sea of whiteness. Her first work for a trade audience, BETWEEN YOU AND ME: THINKING POLITICS AND THE SELF OTHERWISE, Chavez shares a collection of personal essays told in plain language from the perspective of a middle-aged, mixed-race, feminist queer professor who grew up working class in rural Nebraska. The work is about home and belonging, race and sexuality, and reconciling with the hard things that you cannot change. It is a meditation on the importance of "middle America" to contemporary US society, how politics complicate human relationships, and a reflection on the challenges of intimacies of all kinds—with neighbors, family, friends, and lovers. Its stories about how the past constitutes the present and how the present is a volatile space are overlaid with subtle and accessible commentaries on political issues. It will find a home on the bookshelves of those who've enjoyed other memoirs and essay collections written by queer and/or BIPOC commentators, including Melissa Febos, Toni Jensen, and Melissa Faliveno. Like these authors, Chavez touches upon themes such as love lost, family, interracial relationships, and the contemporary political landscape as it relates to button topics, including but not limited to: guns, Black Lives Matter, and queer politics. Insightful and incisive, her work is bold and thoughtful, shot through with an edge of humor and a willingness to consider unpopular opinions. (Please note that Jim McCarthy is the agent on this project.)

Raised in suburban Chicago, Jonathan Liebson grew up hearing fabled stories about his father’s childhood in New York. The Manhattan and Queens of his father’s past, and the Lower East Side of his immigrant grandfather, always shimmered in the background—until one day Jonathan finally moved there himself. This was right on the cusp of the 21st Century: the dawn of a new millennium. The city raced headlong into an era of cellphones, the internet, and many other unpredictable changes. Over time, New York would be wracked by 9/11, a Great Recession, a great hurricane, and a great pandemic—plus much more. HELLO (AND GOODBYE) TO ALL THAT is a memoir that recounts the indelible ties Jonathan would forge in his father’s city, and his up-close view of profound historical episodes. The memoir plays off Joan Didion’s famous essay “Goodbye to All That,” where she describes the exciting yet fleeting experience of living in New York. In contrast, Jonathan’s memoir provides a narrative about the city’s permanence: it tells an intergenerational story of father and son that reveals a mutual connection to a constantly changing, often-troubled, yet still-dynamic city—and to the larger American history it comprises. André Aciman has said, “Jonathan Liebson’s book reflects an exceptional eye for uncanny yet seemingly ordinary events of day-to-day life, a prescient eye for drama that has a forgiving sense of humor, and a profound wisdom about people, contemporary culture, the cities and the world we live in, and basically everything that crosses a very gifted writer’s mind.” (Please note, Jim McCarthy is the agent on this project.)

A new contribution to Antarctic extreme adventure and women's historical biography from Tilar J. Mazzeo, author of the New York Times bestselling Widow Clicquot and Irena's Children. MARY ANN PATTEN AND THE RACE TO THE END OF THE WORLD is set in the summer of 1856 in the midst of a celebrity clipper ship race to deliver supplies to the California Gold Rush and the tuberculosis epidemic, captain's wife Mary Ann Patten is forced to take the helm, put down a mutiny, and attempt to steer a 216' clipper ship laden with the modern equivalent of $11 million dollars of cargo through Drake's Passage and around Cape Horn, the most treacherous waters in the world. Caught in an 18-day gale, Mary Ann makes the only choice she can to save the ship and her crew and turns to run out of the storm and straight into Antarctica. In doing so she becomes both the first woman to command a merchant vessel and among the first women to navigate through the dangerous and magical landscape of Antarctica. Drawing on the author's first-hand 2022 expedition to Antarctica, in search of Mary Ann's route, as well as new archival research into nineteenth-century women's maritime journals, this adventurous narrative biography is a timely contribution to new travel writing about the White Continent and its history. This project has been supported by expedition funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities. (Please note, Stacey Glick is the agent on this project.)

We’ve heard that Champagne isn’t really Champagne unless it’s grown in the 132-square-mile area of France that shares its name. But in France, these types of rules apply to hundreds of food products that have nothing to do with wine, thanks to a protection called appellation d’origine contrôlée, or AOC. The AOC is a designation defined by the French government and each product follows certain strict guidelines. Besides the limitation of geographical area, these quintessentially French food products’ physical environments, growth, and maturation must be regulated. In PROTECTED PROVISIONS: EXPLORING AND TASTING FRANCE’S AOC, food writer Peter Hoffman will showcase ten of the protected products and also the people who grow and ensure that these standards are maintained. He will wade in the Mont Saint-Michel Bay to harvest Bouchot mussels and farm the lambs who graze on its salt marshes. In the south, he will pick figs and lemons and extract lavender oil. He will explore the caves of Roquefort, the cheese that has the distinction of receiving the very first AOC in 1411, and milk the legendary sheep whose milk must be used to make it. In Corsica, he will work alongside beekeepers in their apiaries to produce their famous honey. Though wine won’t be a main focus, Champagne and Sauternes are too special to exclude, and lentils from Puy, modest yet beautiful legumes, will be gathered. These are stories of individuals and communities and how it feels to live in a place where a government protects its people, its land, and its traditions. (Please note, Stacey Glick is the agent on this project.)

Many books have been written about menopause, but only one will help women clear out the clutter and have a significant impact on their everyday lives in perimenopause and menopause. MENO-PAUSE is a groundbreaking book by menopause educator and researcher, nutritionist, media personality, tiktok sensation and menopausal woman, Andrea Donsky, who has dedicated herself for over two decades to educating and championing women in this phase of life. Forget the 35+ commonly known symptoms of menopause: there are nearly four times that many, according to Donsky’s research data. While this book covers the traditional topics of hormones, health risks, and common as well as less common symptoms like hot flashes, insomnia, reduced sex drive, B.O. and more, it opens new doors to issues and concerns that validate, support and empower women in a kind and sensitive manner. A proud “Menopause Sleep Biohacker,” Donsky dives into the sleep research she conducted with more than 2,500 responses and shares her vast knowledge on how to improve sleep as she believes it is the foundation as we enter into this new phase of life. MENO-PAUSE debunks myths and helps put power into the hands of its readers by providing scores of doable tips and the latest research from dozens of experts in health and science. It also incorporates wisdom from menopausal women themselves who share their thoughts in results from surveys conducted by the author. It will be a game changer for the millions of women who hit this milestone shift every year. (Please note, Stacey Glick is the agent on this project.)

FERTILITY NOIR looks at what getting pregnant has meant to the Black community and how families can deal with and overcome struggles with fertility. It is the definitive go-to guide for anyone that is confused, frustrated, and lost because getting pregnant isn’t looking like they thought it would. Utilizing interviews, advice, and real-life war stories from doctors, historians, psychologists, religious leaders, financial experts and patients, FERTILITY NOIR will dive into the world of fertility in the Black community in a voice driven and accessible way, providing readers with a roadmap to act and have control over their reproductive life, whether they are going on a more “traditional” or non-traditional path. FERTILITY NOIR will guide families through the messy and expensive world of fertility, focusing on the big stuff like diagnosis, racism, treatment, factory-like clinics and cost, while also talking about the more embarrassing, less comfortable issues like fat shaming, painful procedures, STI’s, two-headed sperm, marital drama, nosey family members, why adoption isn’t an “easy fix” and why that advice from your pastor to just “pray on it” can be both helpful and harmful. Starting with stories from slavery through accounts of welfare queens to Michelle Obama and Gabrielle Union, Black families will learn why their fertility journey is often not the same as their White counterparts while getting real world tools and advice from Black doctors on how to have the babies that they desire. Dr. Reniqua Allen-Lamphere is a journalist, author and television producer. (Please note, Jessica Papin is the agent on this project.)

We’ve all seen the horrifying images—plastic trash carpeting beaches, choking wildlife, strewn across once-pristine landscapes. PLASTIC, INC: BIG OIL’S BIG BET tells the hidden story behind that very visible mess. While concerned individuals tote our reusable bags to the grocery store, some of world’s richest and most polluting corporations are ramping up to make more plastic, not less, in the years to come. In a book that melds investigative deep dive with vivid, character-focused narrative, Beth Gardiner, environmental journalist and author of Choked: Life and Breath in the Age of Air Pollution, reframes the conversation about plastic around political and corporate—not personal—responsibility. Gardiner takes readers from western Pennsylvania’s depressed downtowns and Houston’s muggy bayous to a gritty Scottish port town as she shines a light on fossil fuel companies’ plans to double—or even triple—plastic output to protect their profits as the world pivots from oil and gas. It shows readers why our overflowing trash bins are not our fault, and frees us to move away from the small-bore solutions that feel so futile toward shifts that match the scale of the problem. Gardiner’s work has appeared in the New York Times, National Geographic, The Guardian, the Washington Post and Scientific American. She’s a former longtime Associated Press reporter, three-time Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting grantee and recipient of the CUNY journalism school’s McGraw Fellowship for Business Journalism. The Guardian and Library Journal named CHOKED one of 2019’s best books, and it was a finalist for the National Association of Science Writers’ Science in Society book award. (Please note, Jessica Papin is the agent on this project.)

THE LOST ART OF LOVE: ANCIENT WISDOM FOR LIFE AND RELATIONSHIPS by Rabbi Lawrence Kelemen is based on an ancient idea—that Life is for Love. We human beings are lovers by design, intended to draw close, connect, and remain in a state of unity with our partner. Yet modern life has made us forget how to do this. Now, with the accessibility of a Harold Kushner, Rabbi Kelemen draws on the sacred wisdom of the Torah, its stories and teachings, to reveal timeless truths and practical lessons that can transform most any marriage from one of disconnection to a deep, embodied closeness that lasts. Writing for readers of all backgrounds, drawing on his decades of counseling couples who have grappled with a lack of intimacy, Rabbi Kelemen reveals the four lost arts and how to practice them today: the art of true generosity, creating closeness, becoming a home for your partner, and making room for your Beloved. A happy relationship isn’t founded so much on compatibility, but on how we listen, tend to the other, receive from the other, and deal with our differences. Here are the guidelines for creating true understanding and lasting love. Rabbi Lawrence Kelemen is the founder and leader of centers for character development and leadership devoted to the wellbeing of Jewish communities worldwide. A graduate of UCLA, he has been a visiting scholar at universities and organizations around the world, where his presentations draw thousands of attendees. He lives in Jerusalem and Los Angeles. (Please note, Leslie Meredith is the agent on this project.)

“Oppressed Women of the World: Don’t Cook Dinner! Starve a Rat Today!” This protest sign bobbed down New York’s Fifth Avenue during the 1970 Women’s Strike for Equality. White feminists symbolically rejected cooking with slogans like “Starve a Rat Today” and “Make Policy, Not Coffee,” critiquing society’s tendency to limit women to the roles of wife and mother. This feminist approach to cooking is the most well-known, but it obscures the real history of feminists in the kitchen. In THE FEMINIST COOKS: THE SECRET INGREDIENT IN THE FIGHT FOR EQUALITY, sociologist and historian Stacy J. Williams, Ph.D. shows how diverse activists have stepped up to the stove to accomplish important political tasks. Not just a punchline, cooking has been integral to feminism and the pursuit of equality for the past 150 years. Feminists, from white suffragists and Black clubwomen at the end of the 19th century to lesbian feminists and Black feminists in the late 20th century, have published cookbooks, established culinary schools, held cooking demonstrations, hosted picnics and potlucks, opened restaurants, cooked for lawmakers, and even formed food co-ops all in the pursuit of liberation. THE FEMINIST COOKS presents the political challenges at each stage of a feminist movement and shows how various activists have solved them by cooking. As feminists entered their kitchens to define an identity, spread their ideas, and finally, seek concrete change, they developed culinary politics that went far beyond the symbols of slogans. (Please note, this project is represented by Amy Elizabeth Bishop.)

Amidst widespread gains in civil rights for the LGBTQ community and increased visibility of trans, nonbinary, and gender-nonconforming people in the twenty-first century, attacks on transgender rights are strong and growing today in America. Conservative Christians are advancing their political agenda through an obsession with sex/gender as immutable, dichotomous, and created by God. In IMMUTABLES, award-winning sociologist and author of Christians Under Cover and The Pornography Wars, Dr. Kelsy Burke explores this advancement and tells the stories of conservative activists, past and present, who have shaped the contours of the anti-transgender movement and how it came to be. Burke further argues that attacks on transgender personhood are dangerous for all Americans—cis, trans, and in between—for their underlying logic and far-reaching goals.  Using in-depth interviews, ethnographic observations, survey data, and historical research, Burke humanizes the Christian Right—not to sympathize with them—but to make sense of them and their efforts and to push beyond the limiting framework of the “culture wars.” She maintains a critical stance, in part by weaving in her own narrative of how her family is impacted by anti-trans rhetoric. The result is a riveting tale that highlights the complicated and personal stakes surrounding gender politics. Burke is an Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Nebraska Lincoln and a Public Fellow for the Public Religion Research Institute. Her research has been featured in the New York Times, The Atlantic, LA Times, the Washington Post, The Guardian, and Slate Magazine among others. (Please note, this project is represented by Amy Elizabeth Bishop.)

Rights Round Up

Audio rights for VENOM & VOW by Anna-Marie McLemore and Elliott McLemore went to Recorded Books. UNTETHERED SKY by Fonda Lee went to Recorded Books. ONLY YOU by Samantha Young went to Tantor.

LUDICROUS by Edward Niedermeyer was optioned by Exile Concepts LLC. STILL LIFE WITH TORNADO by A.S. King was optioned by In the Henhouse Productions. SAVING JULIET by Suzanne Selfors was optioned by Lotus Productions.

ALL THAT’S LEFT IN THE WORLD by Erik J. Brown went to Faro Editorial for Portuguese rights. THE POWER OF EMPATHY by Dr. Arthur Ciaramicoli and Katherine Ketcham went to Beijing Senmiao Culture Media Co for simplified Chinese rights. I WISH YOU ALL THE BEST by Mason Deaver went to Konyvmolykepzo for Hungarian rights. Abbi Glines’ GLITTER went to Take Shobo for Japanese rights. PLAYING FOR KEEPS and PERFECTION went to MxM for French rights. VENOM & VOW by Anna-Marie McLemore and Elliott McLemore went to Wydawnictwo Kobiece for Polish rights. 13 THINGS MENTALLY STRONG PEOPLE DON’T DO by Amy Morin went to Sakam Knjigi for Macedonian rights. AMERICAN SEOUL by Helena Rho went to Maumsanchaek for Korean rights. UNDENIABLE, UNBEAUTIFULLY, and UNATTAINABLE by Madeline Sheehan went to Lapis Publisher for Turkish rights. WHAT MY BONES KNOW by Stephanie Foo went to Iwasaki Gakujutu Shuppansya for Japanese rights, First News Co. for Vietnamese rights, and Alfaomega for Spanish rights. MEET ME IN PARADISE by Libby Hubscher went to Ren Kitap for Turkish rights. IN FLIGHT, MILE HIGH, GROUNDED and MR. BEAUTIFUL by RK Lilley went to Editora Charme for Portuguese rights. THEY NEVER LEARN by Layne Fargo went to Wydawnctwo Poznanskie for Polish rights. THE LIES OF THE AJUNGO by Moses Ose Utomi went to Masobe Books for Nigerian rights. BOYFRIEND GOALS by Riley Hart went to Shinskohan for Japanese rights. THE GAME PLAN and DOUBLE DARE by R.L. Matheson went to Albatros for Czech rights. THE ONES WE BURN by Rebecca Mix went to Oscar Fantastica/Mondadori for Italian rights. GIRLY DRINKS by Mallory O’Meara went to Soshisha for Japanese rights. THE REBEL and THE RIVAL by Kendall Ryan went to AST for Russian rights. WOMEN OF GOOD FORTUNE by Sophie Wan went to Ultimo for UK & Commonwealth rightsWATER MOON by Samantha Sotto Yambao went to Galera/Record for Portuguese rights and Umbriel/Urano for Spanish rights. SAVE THE CAT! THE BEAT SHEET WORKBOOK by Jamie Nash, based on the books by Blake Snyder, went to Film Art Sha for Japanese rights. THREADS THAT BIND by Kika Hatzopoulou went to Uroboros/GW Foksal for Polish rights and Olimpos Publishing for Turkish rights. THREADS THAT BIND and its sequel went to La Martiniere for French rights. A TASTE FOR POISON by Neil Bradbury went to Unicorn Publishing for Vietnamese rights, The Commercial Press for Chinese rights, and Nash Format for Ukranian rights. HANDS DOWN by Mariana Zapata went to Albatros for Czech rights. WAIT FOR IT and THE WALL OF WINNIPEG AND ME went to Klidarithmos for Greek rights. WHEN GRACIE MET THE GRUMP went to Newton Compton for Italian rights. THE WALL OF WINNIPEG AND ME went to Lyx for German rights. UNDER LOCKE went to Modan for Hebrew rights. THE WALL OF WINNIPEG AND ME and KULTI went to Nemesis for Turkish rights. KULTI went to Albatros for Czech rights. ALL RHODES LEAD HERE went to Plaza y Janes for Spanish rights. THE WALL OF WINNIPEG AND ME and ALL RHODES LEAD HERE went to Headline Eternal for UK & Commonwealth rights. LAYLA, MAYBE NOW, TOO LATE and FINDING PERFECT by Colleen Hoover went to Lindhart & Ringhof for Danish rights. REMINDERS OF HIM and HEART BONES went to PT Gramedia for Indonesian rights. HOPELESS, FINDING PERFECT, TOO LATE, SLAMMED, POINT OF RETREAT, and MAYBE NOW went to Sperling for Italian rights. TOO LATE, HEART BONES, HOPELESS, and MAYBE NOW went to Eksmo for Russian rights. REMINDERS OF HIM went to Laguna for Serbian rights, Pegasus for Estonian rights, and Euromedia for Czech rights. TOO LATE went to Modernista for Swedish rights. VERITY went to 1980 Books for Vietnamese rights. REGRETTING YOU, HEART BONES, and LAYLA went to Living for Albanian rights. HEART BONES and REGRETTING YOU went to Gursli Berg for Norwegian rights. NEVER NEVER by Colleen Hoover and Tarryn Fisher went to IBIS for Bulgarian rights, Lindhardt & Ringhof for Danish rights, Dioptra for Greek rights, Modernista for Swedish rights, Sperling & Kupfer for Italian rights, Euromedia for Czech rights, HarperCollins France for French rights, Gursli Berg for Norwegian rights, Otwarte for Polish rights, Laguna for Serbian rights, Epsilon for Turkish rights, and HarperCollins UK for UK & Commonwealth rights. FALLS BOYS and CORRUPT by Penelope Douglas went to Piper for German rights. CONCLAVE and FIRE NIGHT went to Newton Compton for Italian rights. FALLS BOYS went to Black Ink for French rights. CREDENCE went to Quinta.

RECENT SALES 

THE LAST CONTRACT OF ISAKO and UNTITLED BOOK 2 by Fonda Lee went to Orbit in a World rights deal by Jim McCarthy.

TRINITY and SONORA CLUB by Tom Delonge and A.J. Hartley went to To the Stars Media in a World rights deal by Stacey Glick.

THE FORGOTTEN FIVE BOOK 5, 6, and 7 by Lisa McMann went to Putnam Young Readers in a World rights deal by Michael Bourret.

BRIDGE ACROSS THE SKY by Freeman Ng went to Athenuem in a World English rights deal by Jim McCarthy.

MY BROTHER’S BUTT IS HAUNTED by Dan Poblocki went to Penguin Workshop in a World rights deal by Michael Bourret.

ELECTION SEASON COMPILATION by John Pavlovitz went to Westminster John Knox Press in a World English rights deal by Sharon Pelletier.

I DREAMED FOR YOU by Kate Wood went to Zonderkidz in a World rights deal by Stacey Glick.

THE EXPRESSIONISTS by Dan Roche went to MIT Press in a World English deal by Jane Dystel.

MIDDLETIDE by Sarah Crouch went to Atria in a World English rights deal by Jane Dystel.

THE LIGHTNESS OF STONE ANGELS by Helena Rho went to Grand Central in a World rights deal by Amy Elizabeth Bishop.

WHILE IDAHO SLEPT by J. Reuben Appelman went to Harper in a North American rights deal by Leslie Meredith.

THE FRANCHISE: ATLANTA BRAVES by Mark Bowman went to Triumph Books in a North American rights deal by Stacey Glick.

WATER MOON and UNTITLED SOTTO 2 by Samantha Sotto Yambao went to Del Rey in a World English rights deal by Amy Elizabeth Bishop.

NANCY HARKNESS LOVE and UNTITLED by Heather B. Moore went to Shadow Mountain in a World rights deal by Ann Leslie Tuttle.

YELLOW FEVER HUSTLER by Kaila Yu went to Crown in a World rights deal by Amy Elizabeth Bishop.

$12 MILLION DOLLARS AND A DONUT and UNTITLED BOOK 2 by Denise Williams went to Berkley in a World English rights deal by Sharon Pelletier.

CATCH HER IF YOU CAN by Annie Reed went to Diversion in a World rights deal by Amy Elizabeth Bishop.

ORIGINAL LOVE by Henry Shukman went to Harper One in a North American English and U.S. Spanish rights deal by Leslie Meredith.

FOREST by Christie Matheson went to Princeton Architectural Press in a World rights deal by Stacey Glick.

MAXIMUM HUBRIS by Faiz Siddiqui went to St. Martin’s Press in a World rights deal by Jane Dystel.

UNTITLED 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 by Catherine Bybee went to Montlake in a World rights deal by Jane Dystel.

WITH HER OWN HANDS by Nicole Nehrig went to W.W. Norton in a World rights deal by Kendall Berdinsky.

MAY THE WOLF DIE and UNTITLED BOOK 2 by Elizabeth Heider went to Viking in a North American rights deal by Sharon Pelletier.

UNTITLED BOOKS 1, 2, and 3 by Tara Taylor Quinn went to Harlequin in a World rights deal by Ann Leslie Tuttle.

CIRCUIT BREAKER by Anna Ruth Chambers went to Abrams Press in a World English rights deal by Jessica Papin.

PUNK 57, CREDENCE, BIRTHDAY GIRL, CORRUPT, HIDEAWAY, KILL SWITCH, NIGHT FALL, and TRYST SIX VENOM by Penelope Douglas went to Berkley in a North American rights deal by Jane Dystel.

WOLVES AMONG SHEEP by Scott Latta went to Chicago Review Press in a World English rights deal by Sharon Pelletier.

REVOLTING INDOLENCE by Marcos Gonsalez went to University of Texas Press in a World rights deal by Lauren Abramo.

PREDATORY GOVERNANCE by Bernadette Atuahene went to Little, Brown in a US, Canada and Open market rights deal by Jessica Papin.

BIG CRONE ENERGY by Lizzie Stark went to W.W. Norton in a World rights deal by Jane Dystel.

ZAREEN’S PAKISTANI KITCHEN by Zareen Khan and Umair Khan went to Sasquatch Books in a World rights deal by Stacey Glick.

HELLO STRANGER by Manuel Betancourt went to Catapult in a North American and Open Market rights deal by Michael Bourret.

BASIL & DAHLIA by Joy McCullough went to Atheneum in a World rights deal by Jim McCarthy.

SWAMP KINGS by Jason Ryan went to Pegasus in a World English rights deal by Jessica Papin

NINE MONTHS IN MANZANAR by Tracy Slater went to Chicago Review Press in a World English rights deal by Amy Elizabeth Bishop.

GETTING IT RIGHT THIS TIME by Orna Walters and Matthew Walters went to Alcove in a World English rights deal by Leslie Meredith.

LOUD by Angelo Cataldi went to Triumph Books in a North American rights deal by Stacey Glick.

A BITE ABOVE THE REST by Christine Virnig went to Aladdin in a North American rights deal by Jim McCarthy.

CROSS MY HEART by Megan Collins went to Atria in a World rights deal by Sharon Pelletier.

THE INSTABILITY OF TRUTH by Rebecca Lemov went to W.W. Norton in a World rights deal by Leslie Meredith.

WHEN GRANDMAS COOK by Margot Mustich went to duopress/Sourcebooks in a World rights deal by Stacey Glick.

FLAWLESS GIRLS by Anna-Marie McLemore went to Feiwel & Friends in a North American rights deal by Michael Bourret.

READ AT YOUR OWN RISK by Remy Lai went to Holt Books for Young Readers in a World rights deal by Jim McCarthy.

FIGHT AIDS! A STORY OF RESISTANCE AND RESILIANCE by Michael G. Long went to Norton Young readers in a World rights deal by John Rudolph.

IT HAPPENED TO ANNA and UNTITLED MIDDLE GRADE by Tehlor Kay Mejia went to Delacorte in a World rights deal by Jim McCarthy.

UNTITLED COOKBOOK by Jessica Merchant went to Rodale in a World rights deal by Stacey Glick.

GIDDY BARBER EXPLODES IN 11 by Dina Havranek went to Peachtree Teen in a World rights deal by Jim McCarthy.

THE COLLECTORS by A.S. King went to Dutton in a World rights deal by Michael Bourret.

CHILDREN OF USEYI by Moses Utomi went to Athenuem in a World rights deal by Jim McCarthy.

WHEN THE SKY IS DEPEST BLUE and UNTITLED BOOK 2 by Clare Osongco went to Disney Hyperion in a World English rights deal by Amy Elizabeth Bishop.

RULES FOR CAMOUFLAGE by Kirstin Cronn-Mills went to Little, Brown Books for Young Readers in a World rights deal by Michaela Whatnall.

Nancy Jooyoun Kim’s WHAT WE KEPT TO OURSELVES went to Atria in a World rights deal, by Amy Elizabeth Bishop.

STORIES I TOLD MY DEAD LOVER by Ammi-Joan Paquette went to Blackstone in a World rights deal by Jim McCarthy.