Adult Newsletter: May 2024
Up And Coming For Submission
FICTION
Liv never misses a Sunday visit to the Piedmont Psychiatric Facility, where she spends time with her best friend, Margot. She’d give anything for Margot’s health to improve, for her to return to the woman she used to be before schizophrenia ravaged her mind and body, but doctors are stumped, and the prognosis is grim. As hope for Margot’s healing dwindles, Liv is alarmed by an attraction she develops for the most inconvenient man on the planet: Margot’s husband, Brody. When she learns that he, too, feels a spark between them, she struggles to keep their relationship platonic, aware that acting upon her desires would be an unforgivable sin against her closest friend. Yet, as time ticks on, the line between right and wrong blurs, and their emotional affair becomes physical. But are Liv's feelings for Brody truly wrong in light of the unusual circumstances? After all, the real Margot ceases to exist and offers no promise of return…until she does, shocking everyone with her sudden lucidity. In the wake of this staggering development, not only will Liv’s friendship be placed in jeopardy, but so will her heart. For fans who savor the tension and twist of Ashley Audrain’s The Push, and the sexy, forbidden romance in Colleen Hoover’s Reminders of Him, Anna Travieso’s debut novel, NEVER MISS A SUNDAY, is the perfect nail-biting read that explores the human psyche and dares to challenge the traditional boundaries of love and friendship.
Vanetta (Vinnie) Taylor isn’t a cop anymore. After 25 years in service, she retired from her job in spectacular fashion—working undercover for Internal Affairs to bust a sex trafficking ring in her own Homicide Unit. Nearly beaten to death by her former colleagues to prevent her testimony from crossing the thin blue line, Vinnie is now living a small-town life, far from the police who tried to kill her. Vinnie is determined to put her past behind her, but the story of a teenager missing in her new hometown catches her attention. Avery Adair’s family is notorious in Wills Harbor, Maryland. If there’s a burglary, a scam, or a drug deal in this town, it’s safe to assume an Adair was involved. Which is why no one was particularly concerned when Avery went missing. But Vinnie feels a kinship to this teen she’s never met. Vinnie also grew up poor, surrounded by hard circumstances and harder people. Celebrated children’s novelist Saundra Mitchell makes her adult debut with the thriller CRUSH BABY—a police procedural in an ACAB world, it follows Vinnie as she becomes increasingly involved in a case that she has no right to be investigating while fearing for her own safety and attempting to stay as far away from any police officer as humanly possible. This terrific novel is perfect for fans of Tana French and Rahcel Howzell Hall. (Please note, Jim McCarthy is the agent for this project.)
A good teacher’s influence can never be erased, but it can be buried. In a wealthy northern California school district, experienced high school English teacher Sadie Birch makes the worst kind of difference when 14-year-old Ava Riley takes her own life, leaving a note citing the stress of Sadie’s class as her primary reason. With Ava’s mom hell-bent on getting Sadie fired, an ambitious principal determined to prove herself a champion of parent rights, and Sadie’s superintendent brother-in-law obsessed with the district’s image, Sadie has until the big public board meeting next month to find out what really happened and justify keeping her job. But Sadie finds a clue that convinces her Ava’s note isn’t blaming her, it’s warning her. Ava was murdered, and Sadie and her students aren’t safe. As the community fights over how to best protect the children, Sadie has to convince her most vulnerable students to speak out against the system that wants to silence them. If she doesn’t catch and expose Ava’s murderer by the time the board meets, she’ll lose her reputation, career, and possibly her life. WHAT’S BEST FOR KIDS is the debut novel from Shanna Walsh, a middle school teacher of ten years. Her multi-POV adult thriller combines scandals in the K-12 teaching world, like in The Teacher by Freida McFadden, with the adult-teen dynamics and feminist themes of Reputation by Sarah Vaughan. Education is the most powerful weapon—beware who wields it. (Please note, Jim McCarthy is the agent for this project.)
Set in gritty 1990s Venice Beach, DAGGERS DON’T LIE by Samia Hayes is a twisty fantasy debut for fans of The Vampire Diaries and Holly Black. Expert safecracker Alethea Foxhart can’t tell a lie—literally, thanks to the magic in her blood. And if someone else lies, she can smell it. When her grandmother is murdered, Allie learns she was involved in far shadier business than the illegal relics trade: Vivien stole a death-cursed dagger from the ruthless, magic-governing Blood Council decades ago. Now the Council expects Allie to find the dagger and return it to them before the wrong person unleashes its power. Problem is, long-lost family members who Vivien double-crossed are fighting to get to it first. Allie thinks she’s found an ally in the irresistible stranger she shared a sexy night with, but soon realizes Darius Cabrero has many secrets, including his very identity. She’d know if he was lying to her, but that doesn’t mean he’s telling her the whole truth. Yet he always seems to be there when she needs backup, wielding powerful magic of his own. Allie must figure out who she can really trust—and who she’s willing to betray—in order to avenge her grandmother’s death, outwit her enemies, and stay true to her own magic. Sexy, edgy, and full of heart, DAGGERS DON’T LIE injects powerful fantasy storytelling with a jolt of noir suspense and sizzling romance for undeniable crossover potential. Samia Hayes is a law-abiding resident of Venice, CA and a tenured professor at USC. (Please note, Sharon Pelletier is the agent for this project.)
Despite her popular podcast for second-gen immigrants and sold-out speaking events, Ana Movilian’s Armenian family isn’t thrilled she quit med school to build an influencer career. But now that she has a six-figure book deal, the final step in Ana’s plan—landing her own national talk show—may finally bring her family around. All she has to do is impress producers on her upcoming book tour. Which would be in the bag, if only the publicist accompanying her weren’t Ryan bleeping Grant. Ryan specializes in highbrow, important books, and after he tanked her review coverage, Ana’s sure he’d rather drink binding glue than jet set across the country with an internet personality. And she’d definitely rather read a million troll comments than spend two weeks faking nice with a saboteur. Even if he does fill out his shirt like that. As they travel from city to city, however, Ana’s assumptions about Ryan take new shape. A decidedly more appealing shape. Soon, their growing attraction starts to feel like a ticking time bomb—but crossing that line could derail each of their careers faster than you can say “conflict of interest.” And they both have bigger dreams at stake than the bestseller list. THE BOOK TOUR by former acquisitions editor Emily Ohanjanians brings a hilariously fresh voice, fire emojis and heart-pounding romance worthy of Emily Henry and Ali Hazelwood to a debut that will shoot to the top of every romcom lover’s TBR. (Please note, Sharon Pelletier is the agent for this project.)
The three Ryan sisters are home together for the first time in years to celebrate Thanksgiving, desperate to reconnect—and each sister is keeping a heavy secret. The eldest, Cait, feels responsible for an incident twenty years ago, when a teen boy died on her brother Topher’s boat. The tragedy cast a heavy shadow over both families: the resulting lawsuit nearly bankrupted their parents, and Topher spiraled into suicide. Yet Cait’s still carrying a flame for her high school crush Luke—Topher’s best friend, and the brother of the boy who died. Middle sister Alice’s surprise pregnancy threatens the career she’s restarting after raising kids, but she worries her marriage will be equally doomed if she terminates. And the youngest, Maggie, is finally taking the risk of bringing a woman she loves home to her Irish Catholic mother, at the same time deeply regretting her recent reunion with her ex. Alongside everything is the grief for Topher that none of the Ryans have figured out how to carry together instead of separately. When Cait invites Luke to Thanksgiving dinner, old tensions boil over and new truths surface, nearly overpowering the flickering light of their family bond. Far more than a family holiday will be ruined unless the sisters can find a way to forgive themselves—and each other. Assistant Director of Sackett Street Writers’ Workshop Heather Aimee O’Neill’s masterful THE IRISH GOODBYE is a debut in the vein of J. Courtney Sullivan and Mary Beth Keane, an exploration of the complicated ties of sisterhood that readers will both eagerly race through and want to savor. (Please note, Sharon Pelletier is the agent for this project.)
Cincinnati photographer Tim Whitney has the world by the balls. At forty-two, he’s living the artist’s dream: late nights in the darkroom, cocktail in hand. Lazy mornings with coffee and the New Yorker. But when his wife, Mo, accepts a teaching job in the small coastal town of Blackwater, South Carolina, Tim is forced to trade sleek galleries, trendy restaurants, and liberal politics for t-shirt shacks, fried seafood, and a next-door neighbor who flaunts an NRA Life Member decal on his truck. Then Mo goes off the pill—unbeknownst to Tim—and announces she’s pregnant. Whether Tim likes it or not, the couple will be laying down roots in Blackwater. One week before the birth, the neighbor’s son drowns in Tim and Mo’s backyard pool. The fallout from the tragedy compromises their standing in their newly adopted hometown, and guilt, depression, and alcohol abuse threaten their marriage. With keen cultural criticism and a focus on social class issues, longtime nonfiction writer Joe Oestreich’s debut novel THE TRANSPLANTS combines the marital struggles of Fleishman Is in Trouble with the attention to place found in Little Fires Everywhere. At its heart, the novel tells a story about the price of keeping secrets, the challenges of adulthood, and the importance of building community—even in the most unexpected places, with the most unlikely people. (Please note, John Rudolph is the agent for this project.)
Inspired by a true story that has never before been told, THE MOON AND THE MYNA unfurls in two turbulent weeks in 1991. Forty-four years after the Partition of India and Pakistan, wounds from that violent time fester, and shifting loyalties create a web of intrigue that enmeshes two families who actively shape India’s history. On a secret mission hatched at the highest levels, Kanal, a mild-mannered Smiley-like civil servant, must accompany “the Moon,” an important Pakistani, after she crosses the border on a dangerous pilgrimage to fulfill a promise at a remote sacred shrine. Kanal’s assistance could ease tensions between the two countries, or it could be a suicide mission. When unforeseen political tragedy sparks widespread unrest, the government betrays Kanal, ordering him to abandon the Moon, sending forces to capture them both. To complete the journey Kanal must involve his teenage daughter Rina, which deepens their peril and the moral quandaries they all face. Codenamed Myna, Rina is thrust into a duplicitous world that echoes The Falcon and the Snowman, where she must save the Moon’s life and her own father’s. THE MOON AND THE MYNA’s vivid characters illuminate an intimate tale with global significance, showing the high costs and necessities of doing the right thing. Screenwriter Danny Rubin praises, “Fascinating, told with simplicity and elegance.” Popular speaker and filmmaker Priyanka Kumar is author of the critically acclaimed Conversations with Birds and is featured in the forthcoming documentary Wonder. (Please note, Leslie Meredith is the agent for this project.)
Cassidy Clark is crushing it as a professional bridesmaid-for-hire—never mind her nonexistent love life and floundering writing career. But when an old friend blindly reaches out to hire her as a stand-in bridesmaid, Cassidy gets more than she bargained for: namely, an unwanted high school reunion with her childhood bullies and groomsman Chase Ryan, the man she was sure she’d secretly love forever until everything went sour ten years ago. Luckily, Cassidy is a professional—she can handle her old bullies (even if they still make her legs shake), and she can treat Chase with the same polite but distant professionalism she typically reserves for drunk uncles and flirty groomsmen. But nothing is ever as easy as she’d like it to be. Within minutes of kicking off the wedding weekend, she tells a massive lie about her career to the entire wedding party and spills champagne all over Chase. Talk about making an impression. Worse, Cassidy finds herself even more drawn to Chase than she was as a teenager. Battling the urge to protect her heart and the irresistible pull toward her childhood crush, Cassidy must tread carefully—and figure out how to keep her lie from robbing her of the love she’s always wanted before she even has a chance to have it. BRIDESMAID TO BE by Jessica Banks is a funny, heartwarming debut romcom with the charm of 27 Dresses and a heroine whose journey is as much about learning to love herself as it is loving another. (Please note, Kendall Berdinsky is the agent for this project.)
Investigative journalist Georgia Rose isn’t on the hit reality dating show Love Shack to fall in love. She’s there to write a killer exposé on the producers, which will guarantee the journalism job of her dreams. When Georgia’s unforgettable one-night stand from the year before, country singer Rhett Auburn, steps into the Malibu mansion as the season’s host, all of her carefully crafted plans unravel. Caught up in the drama of back-stabbing contestants, producer blackmail, and death-defying dates, Georgia must keep her identity—and history with Rhett—a secret. But soon she discovers that Rhett has secrets of his own that he’s paid to keep out of the press. Despite the lies between them, it isn’t long before their heated behind-the-scenes moments start to feel more genuine than the romance Georgia’s faking for the cameras. But with her assignment unfinished and the lead producer on her tail, a second chance with Rhett could be her riskiest move of all. Set in the high-stakes, dramatic world of reality television, LOVE ON THE RECORD is a debut rom-com by Isabelle Giuttari, perfect for fans of One to Watch and Unreal. (Please note, Kendall Berdinsky is the agent for this project.)
NON-FICTION
For some, the memoir SALTY, NOT SWEET: DINING REMEMBERED by Florence Fabricant is long-awaited. She has been a food and wine reporter for the New York Times for more than 50 years, with over 13,000 bylines, 2,000 recipes, and more to come. Always the reporter and not the subject is why it has taken her until now to tell the personal story of her career at tables and in kitchens, and the trajectory of her life in that context. Having been raised in a “foodie” family in New York, she vividly recalls gustatory pleasures (and shipwrecks) from early childhood, particular tastes, and dining events on the restaurant scene in New York and elsewhere around the world. Her career, driven by an insatiable curiosity for new and innovative trends and the people and places that made them happen, has given her an insider’s perspective on the continued evolution of the world of food and drink, and Fabricant recorded them with authority in the world’s greatest newspaper. She tells the unique story of how she came to the New York Times, along with her personal encounters and subsequent friendships with marquee names like Martha Stewart, Thomas Keller, Paul Newman, Julia Child, Francis Ford Coppola, Laurie Anderson, Alain Ducasse, Craig Claiborne, Paul Bocuse, Ariane Daguin, Anthony Bourdain and many others. A delicious, revelatory, and often surprising journey awaits the reader.
Early on a warm morning in late June of 1792, Robert Bailey Thomas, a bookish 26-year-old farmer’s son, unhitched himself from a horse-driven, hardwood plow, boarded a stagecoach and headed east from his family’s homestead in central Massachusetts to Boston. When he returned two months later, Thomas carried sheafs of pamphlet-size printed paper, 46 pages in all. Alongside was a black tin box. Its contents contained calculations, forecasts and practical information that would help shape the growth of our nation. These were the blueprints for The Old Farmer’s Almanac. More than 200 years later, an American president would salute it as “the journal of American tradition,” and Thomas’s portrait would be posted on a wall in our National Gallery. TOMORROW'S WEATHER, ANYBODY'S GUESS by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Patrick Dillon is a comprehensive history of the Old Farmer’s Almanac; its story is America’s. Dillon's research encompasses history, science, invention, irresistible characters (many of whom helped birth the nation), competitors, charlatans, believers, doubters and disruptors. The narrative pays homage to the Old Almanac’s wit, wisdom, and its enduring influence on American life.
About four decades into his career as a professional political operative, Senator Edward M. Kennedy’s former spokesman Scott Ferson took a look around at a changed country and an electoral landscape unrecognizable from the one he’d navigated from Boston to Washington. The 2024 rematch of Donald Trump and Joe Biden will be unlike any campaign before, decided largely by outside forces shaking the electorate. Ferson decided to flip his consummate insider’s lens through an outsider’s prism, and tell the story of Election 2024 through voters’ eyes. Drawing on high-level political connections to learn, for instance, how Democratic House leaders had adapted their vote-counting strategy to the country’s changed politics or why a well-connected Nevada political operative thinks his state’s demographics evolved, and how those influxes will chart its electoral course, he delivers the high-level, behind-the-scenes details. He matches the inside story with visits to dozens of states, and hundreds of towns rarely consulted for their political leaning. He uncovers startling accounts about how the democratic system his generation has largely taken for granted isn’t functioning for everyone. With an intensified and personalized focus during the campaign’s waning months on the handful of swing states that would determine the outcome, Ferson found the answers to the riddle of the most-hyped election in generations before it happened and shares them with a fine eye in AMERICAN DISCORD. his unique approach, he constructs a singular narrative, one employing both his longstanding access to the halls of power and a special empathy for those far removed from those halls, both geographically and psychologically. For readers, it’s a revealing perspective on both.
THE DEVIL’S SEA: A MAVERICK ADMIRAL, A DARING RESCUE, AND THE DECISIVE YEAR OF THE SUBMARINE WAR AGAINST JAPAN is the story of how US submarines turned the tide of war against Japan in World War II. In his second book, Nathan Canestaro examines how the “silent service” began the war with too few boats, broken torpedoes, incapable leaders, and ineffective tactics. In the space of only three years, it overcame these problems and accomplished a remarkable turnaround: sweeping the Japanese merchant marine from the high seas and putting the empire into an economic stranglehold, which was the single most important factor in Japan’s ultimate defeat. Central to this story is Admiral Charles Lockwood, an iconoclast who spearheaded reforms in the submarine service—often against resistance from the Navy’s hidebound bureaucracy. Lockwood paved the way for a new generation of submarine skippers; men who defied the ruthless Japanese escorts, evaded the ever-present enemy aircraft, and braved shallow waters and rough seas to hunt the empire’s ships. Officers like Lawson “Red” Ramage, whose wild, 30-minute surface duel with a Japanese convoy earned him the Medal of Honor—or Ken Nauman, whose USS Salmon had the narrowest escape from destruction of any US submarine in the war. Others played their role in this great drama by saving lives rather than taking them—such as Paul Summer’s Pampanito, which spearheaded a desperate rescue effort after she unwittingly sank an enemy freighter loaded with Allied POWs.
A decade ago, when President Obama released three Cuban spies held in U.S. prisons – including one convicted of attempted murder of an American – he said it was a swap for “one of the most important intelligence agents that the United States has ever had in Cuba.” At the time, even many U.S. spymasters had no idea what the president was talking about. The Cuban being set free, a man named Rolly Sarraf, was a Cuban intelligence lieutenant who had been jailed in a Havana prison for the previous 20 years. Now, former Miami Herald foreign correspondents Juan O. Tamayo and Glenn Garvin are telling the secret story behind the shadowy spy swap. Sarraf and two other men ran a spy ring in Havana that handed the CIA and FBI the family jewels of Cuban intelligence communications: cryptography and information that allowed the government to put about four dozen Cuban spies in the United States – including half a dozen at the highest levels of the U.S. government – out of business. OUR MEN IN HAVANA is a John LeCarre novel dappled in tropical sunlight: Clandestine recruitments. dead drops in Havana. Chalk marks on light poles to signal a rendezvous. A midnight escape from Cuba aboard a homemade boat. A former top officer of the U.S. Communist Party who brought home from the island some tantalizing intelligence on the Kennedy assassination. The turncoat secretary to the president of the Cuban parliament. And even a U.S. eavesdropping facility near Fidel Castro’s home.
When the fabulously rich New York playboy Robert Lipman landed at London airport in the summer of 1967, he was looking for kicks. The handsome thirty-seven-year-old heir to a huge swathe of prime Manhattan real estate was coming off a bitter divorce and had money to burn. He soon became a regular at the ultra-hip Speakeasy discotheque, where he met beautiful eighteen-year-old aspiring French model Claudie Delbarre. Known for wearing the shortest mini-skirts in London, Claudie also turned tricks on the side as a high class prostitute. The couple started dating and in the early hours of Sunday, September 17, 1967, they retired to her Chelsea apartment to drop LSD. Three days later, Claudie’s naked body was found by her landlord. She had been savagely beaten to death with a glass mug, and eight inches of blue bed sheet were stuffed down her throat. By this time Lipman was travelling back to the States to check himself into a psychiatric hospital, but was eventually brought back to England to face the music. Dubbed the first LSD murder, it coincided with the British Establishment’s existential war on the psychedelic drug, and they exploited the trial to the fullest. In THE PLAYBOY AND THE CHELSEA GIRL, New York Times’ best-selling author John Glatt weaves the narratives of the murder alongside the government crackdown on LSD, which scapegoated the Beatles and the Rolling Stones. Glatt was a fifteen-year-old schoolboy at the time the events in this book took place, living just a few blocks away from the crime scene.
It’s America’s most famous photograph. In 1932, 11 ironworkers ate lunch on a steel beam 70 dizzying stories above the streets of New York. The photograph's publication brought worldwide fame to Rockefeller Center, but 90 years later, the question remains: Who were the men? Set at the height of the Great Depression, Christine Roussel’s LUNCH ON A BEAM: WHO WERE THE MEN? tells the story of her search for the identities of those who built Rockefeller Center, the hardships they faced, and the pride these ironworkers took in one of the most dangerous construction jobs—walking iron. Indigenous men, former fishermen, lumberjacks, and immigrants—some barely able to speak English—worked shoulder to shoulder, transforming the skyline. They were the antithesis of the builders whose names are remembered: The world’s richest man, John D. Rockefeller Jr., the driven, egotistical developer John D. Todd, and the brilliant, hard-drinking architect Raymond Hood. Who was remembered and who was forgotten was no accident. LUNCH ON A BEAM is also the story of the bombastic PR men who sold Rockefeller’s vision to a nation staggered by the Great Depression. The photo came amid a flurry of publicity stunts, many forgotten, but some—like the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree—have taken root among New York’s most beloved traditions. Roussel, a noted art historian, and archivist, weaves original research, newly unearthed records, and interviews with the descendants of ironworkers into a compelling social and architectural history of the city within a city that is Rockefeller Center and the people who transformed New York into a modern metropolis.
In THE NEXT GLOBAL AGRICULTURAL REVOLUTION: A BATTLE PLAN, climate influencer Bruce Friedrich argues that just like energy can be produced without fossil fuels, so too meat can be made without the massive environmental harm of industrial animal agriculture. Drawing on a rich tapestry of research and comparison to the historical and current trajectory of energy transition, Friedrich argues that the success of “alternative proteins'' is as important to climate change mitigation as the success of renewable energy and electric vehicles. And citing analysis from the Center for Strategic and International Studies and McKinsey, he argues that alternative proteins could evolve into a trillion plus dollar industry by 2050. Friedrich is founder and president of The Good Food Institute, a network of global nonprofits with more than 220 full time staff around the world and more than 50 university chapters. GFI has been lauded by New York Times columnist Ezra Klein, podcaster and neuroscientist Sam Harris, and climate charity evaluator Giving Green. GFI works closely with the Bezos Earth Fund (BEF) on BEF’s alternative proteins implementation strategy. Friedrich is popular on the climate and food innovation speaker circuit, his TED talk has been viewed more than 2.4 million times, and he has written for Foreign Policy, the Wall Street Journal, and other publications. THE NEXT GLOBAL AGRICULTURAL REVOLUTION offers a narrative that is both a warning and a critical intervention for the future of our planet; it will become a cornerstone publication in climate literature. (Please note, Stacey Glick is the agent for this project.)
Every generation tries to kill anonymous Queer sex. We write obituaries for bathhouses, eulogies for gay bars, and laments on hookup apps. Yet, the one constant in our evolving and expanding Queer culture is cruising. Police raids, AIDS, sodomy laws, gentrification, social media: anonymous sex has survived all of these. A decade into the paradigm shift of PrEP, the Truvada Generation has fused new technology and old desires into sexual liberation. THE LION’S BRIDGE: ANALOG CRUISING IN THE 21ST CENTURY (named after an iconic Berlin cruising spot) charts these new freedoms through twenty years of Leo Herrera’s anonymous lovers and sex gatherings. Herrera is a Mexican writer, activist, and filmmaker who has found a thriving readership for his work on Queer history, culture, and sex as Herrera Words on Substack and @herreraimages on Instagram and Twitter. THE LION’S BRIDGE is many things. It’s his how-to guide of the ancient art of the cruise: the nod, the shy stroke of an arm, the electrifying jolt of eye contact, gestures which predate language. It’s a romp through his sex diary, a love letter to people whose names he never learned but who saw him, even in the dark. It’s the history of spaces that have molded generations of Queers, which are ubiquitous yet shrouded in mystique. From sandy orgies on Provincetown’s beaches to dingy sex cinemas of Mexico City, big-budget porn shoots in Costa Rica to Burning Man sex camps, Radical Faerie communes in Tennessee to massive fetish gatherings in New York, Chicago, and DC. Through tender, raunchy stories, history lessons, and tips for first-timers, THE LION’S BRIDGE is a sexy, heartfelt ode for readers of Jeremy Atheron Lin’s Gay Bar and Brontez Purnell’s 100 Boyfriends. (Please note, Jim McCarthy is the agent for this project.)
Embark on a journey into the enigmatic world of tortoises, uncovering their profound significance and the people striving to protect them. In TORTOISE, Kevin Gepford interweaves tales of adventure, discovery, natural history and conservation—exploring remote landscapes and encountering vibrant characters--conservationists, scientists, activists, "tortoise nerds" and others deeply connected to the creatures they’re working to save. From the American Southwest to Galápagos, Myanmar to Mauritius and beyond, his far-flung reporting illuminates the extraordinary lives of tortoises and crucial roles they play in the fragile ecosystems they inhabit. Along the way, he introduces us to an unforgettable cast of human characters dedicated to saving these species. More than just a travelogue, TORTOISE is a compelling call to action against the urgent threats facing tortoises and the broader challenges of habitat destruction, biodiversity loss, and climate change. Indeed, while the discovery of oil accidentally saved the Galapagos tortoise from complete annihilation--the 19th century whale oil trade ran on a tortoise-heavy diet--the downstream effects of fossil fuel dependence now threaten its cousins on the remote Aldabra Atoll, half a world away. Whether venturing in Darwin's footsteps or ranging to places The Beagle could not go, readers will come to see these slow-moving and underestimated creatures in a new way, in light of their resilience, intelligence, enduring legacy and uncertain future. Kevin Gepford, a second-generation tortoise nerd, writes about conservation, ecosystems, and endangered species. He holds a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University. (Please note, Jessica Papin is the agent for this project.)
What does hair tell us about who we are? In a word, everything. But why? It's because hair is a powerful unwritten language that, through the centuries and across cultures, has given us a rich vocabulary with which to announce our personality, social and marital status, wealth, religion, group identity, and more. We rarely think of hair in these terms, and too often we treat it merely as a matter of vanity. But nonfiction author and longtime Financial Times contributor Sarah Murray will show how what’s on our head is in fact one of the most potent forms of expression at our disposal. Speaking on our behalf, hair is an essential part of who we are—or who we want to be. THE LANGUAGE OF HAIR: WHY WHAT’S ON OUR HEAD SPEAKS VOLUMES ABOUT WHAT’S IN OUR HEADS reveals what exactly it is we say through our locks and how profoundly they influence our judgements of others. It uncovers hidden desires and deep-rooted prejudices, reflects on the ancient impulse of man to control woman, and explores our hope for a sense of belonging—but also our yearning to stand out from the crowd. It delves into the mechanisms of political control, the drivers of sexual attraction, and the urge to be creative—all wrapped up in something that on the face of it might seem trivial: a hairdo. But this is not a book about cuts or curls, styles or colors. It’s a book about the art of being human. (Please note, Jessica Papin is the agent for this project.)
A lively indispensable guide packed with vital information on how to prepare for every possible disruption, THE OPTIMIST’S GUIDE TO THE END OF THE WORLD (AND LESSER CATASTROPHES) provides preparedness plans for the rest of us – the non-billionaires and non-bunker isolationists. In an accessible entertaining format, entrepreneur Amy Edelman (author, Manless in Montclair) and anthropologist and survival skills expert Chris Begley (author, The Next Apocalypse) address a broad audience underrepresented in prepper guides. THE OPTIMIST’S GUIDE is written for everyone, no matter where they live (city-dwellers, suburbanites), their lifestyle (singles, families), or differences in race, gender, or sexuality. These factors can radically change how people navigate disasters, and existing literature can be alienating – and it ignores the most important key to survival: cooperation and community. Unlike other guides for emergencies, THE OPTIMIST’S GUIDE includes plans for: 1) People in cities—ground zero for many types of catastrophes—who don’t have the space to keep a lot of supplies, or the ability to isolate themselves. 2) Young people who can’t navigate without a GPS or phone. 3) Parents with young children (and people with pets) who, during and after a catastrophe, have different issues than people without. Urgent, accessible, THE OPTIMIST’S GUIDE is in the vein of Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook, but it addresses the real, imminent dangers of the 21st Century: blackouts, wildfires, floods, hurricanes, drought, and pandemics. THE OPTIMIST’S GUIDE helps everyone prepare for the increasingly common life-threatening climate-change effects on society today, in ways that work. (Please note, Leslie Meredith is the agent for this project.)
Visionary physician and health activist Geeta Maker-Clark, MD, presents MEDICINE FOR ALL PEOPLE, a path of integrative healing that draws on ancient wisdom, culinary and other global ancestral medicines, and the inspiring stories of her patients. Here is what each of us can do right now to move towards our highest individual and societal health, regardless of zip code, age, or melanation. In the vein of Tieraona Low Dog’s Life Is Your Best Medicine, Dr. Maker-Clark explains how we can invigorate our lives, create a more loving and just society, and reawaken our spirit, mind, and body with food, plants, dance, community, service, and gratitude. These traditional healing medicines connect us to the Earth and our families, helping decolonize us from money-driven food and health systems that condition us to think that we are not in control of our own health, convincing us to rely on those systems to make us well. Over 25 years, Dr. Maker-Clark has translated modern science and research, wellness practices and spiritual training into true healing that lifts our collective wellbeing, despite structural injustice that make it difficult to be well. A professor at Pritzker School of Medicine, University of Chicago, co-director of the Culinary Medicine Project, one of the nation’s first, Geeta has received medical, nutritional, and spiritual training from thought leaders and healers around the globe. A nationally known sought-after speaker, she is founder of multiple food justice projects, including the Food Is Power program in Chicago Public Schools, and a professional dancer. (Please note, Leslie Meredith is the agent for this project.)
World-renowned horse whisperer and gifted life coach Koelle Simpson uses equine work to help her clients recover from trauma. A TEDx speaker, she has been featured in O Magazine, BBC Business Report, and OWN Network. Now, in her stunning memoir, HEARD: WHAT HORSES TEACH US ABOUT HEALING, Simpson reveals how horses helped guide her own life. Movingly entwined with her journey to becoming one of the world’s most highly regarded horse whisperers is Simpson’s courageous story of surviving sexual abuse and severe illness, which left her hearing impaired as a child. Working through these experiences, Simpson learned to “speak” without words and listen to horses’ thoughts and feelings, eventually developing her signature method of animal communication. With riveting stories of breakthroughs with different horses—including riding companions, former racehorses, and wild mustangs—Simpson demonstrates how she creates deep connections to reach through their and their humans’ fears and so transform their lives. Revealing what horses can teach us all about restoring our relationship with ourselves, each other, and the natural world, HEARD is a profoundly touching, beautifully written account of resilience, homecoming, and learning to trust in life’s mysterious embrace. It will be extraordinarily helpful for anyone navigating trauma. Founder of the Koelle Institute for Equus Coaching, Koelle Simpson lives in Fort Collins, Colorado, and travels all over the world helping women and horses through her personal development seminars. (Please note, Leslie Meredith is the agent for this project.)
After six years of trying to have a baby, award-winning journalist Kim Rich learned on the very same day that she was pregnant with twins and that a birth mother had picked Rich and her husband to adopt her baby girl born that very morning. Rich, who was 44, and her husband were suddenly the parents of three. First-time parenthood in midlife (35 and older) is the fastest growing segment of all new parents, constituting 14%, and occurs at a time when many of their peers have kids in high school or are about to be empty nesters. As a relatively new phenomena, there are no books like THE MOMMY DIARIES, which is the What To Expect for older parents. Rich draws on her own experience and interviews dozens of midlife parents, reproductive and adoption experts, infertility researchers, and obstetricians. Along the way, she’ll take a look at how the biological clock came into being, what obstacles midlife parents face in getting pregnant, open adoption, raising multiples and even what emotional challenges these older parents face when they finally become empty nesters. Rich is the critically acclaimed author of two works of nonfiction, including the award-winning book and film, Johnny’s Girl, which was reviewed by the New York Times, Glamour, Mademoiselle, People and Entertainment Weekly, and featured on National Public Radio. (Please note, Ann Leslie Tuttle is the agent for this project.)
There’s just something about the British royal family, isn’t there? Even Americans, who formally turned their backs on monarchy in 1776, turn out in droves to see what they’re up to. 29 million US viewers tuned in to watch Prince Harry wed Meghan Markle in 2018, and another 10.3 million watched the Coronation of King Charles III in 2023. But it’s not just the celebrations that attract our attention; even the unhappy occasions pull us in. Over 11 million US households viewed the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II in 2022. (And that’s not to mention the way that we love a royal scandal.) But the world of royal protocol and tradition can be downright baffling. Who gets to wear a tiara? How does the line of succession work? What happens if the King commits a crime? And what exactly is the point of the Royal Family, anyway? As TikTok’s #1 royal commentator, Amanda Matta has been approached with such questions from thousands of onlookers who want the real “tea” on the royals. THE ROYAL-TEA: A COMMONER’S GUIDE TO THE BRITISH MONARCHY blends historical context with Matta’s signature candid insights, lifting the curtain on the Royal Family’s allure once and for all. Matta delves into the British monarchy’s family tree, their homes, their fashion and jewels, and yes, even a bit of the gossip that always seems to swirl around them. Brimming with explorations of royal life, history, and protocol, THE ROYAL-TEA will appeal to anyone who’s found themselves enthralled by the British Royal Family in recent years—both the seasoned royal enthusiasts and the royally curious alike. (Please note, Kendall Berdinsky is the agent for this project.)
Rights Round Up
THE SUMMER LOVE STRATEGY by Ray Stoeve went to Recorded Books. DIFFICULT by RL Mathewson went to Audible.
RAPTURE by David Sosnowski was optioned by Conspiracy Media/Gersh. BLOOD ON THEIR HANDS by Eric Weinberg and Donna Shaw was optioned by RaisedByRobots2084 Ltd. THE COST OF FREE LAND by Rebecca Clarren was optioned by Sarah Podemski. GRANDMA GATEWOOD’S WALK by Ben Montgomery was optioned by Old Paint Pictures LLC.
LOVING YOU IS HURTING ME by Laura Copley went to Urano for Spanish rights. \ GOLDEN BOY by John Glatt went to Filia for Polish rights. ADHD FOR SMART ASS WOMEN by Tracy Otsuka went to Kobiece for Polish rights and Mabel Group Publishing for Turkish rights. WHEN HE’S MARRIED TO MOM by Kenneth Adams and Alexander Morgan went to Diyojen Yayincilik for Turkish rights. MAKE EACH DAY YOUR MASTERPIECE by Michael Lynberg went to Haneon for Korean rights. IBN ARABI’S SMALL DEATH by Mohammed Hasan Alwan went to Beijing Normal University Press for simplified Chinese rights. THE ONLY LIGHT LEFT BURNING by Erik J. Brown went to Media Rodzina for Polish rights. WHAT MY BONES KNOW by Stephanie Foo went to Mona Kitap/Alfa for Turkish rights and Knigolove for Ukranian rights. HOME RARELY FEELS LIKE THIS went to Narrative Landscape Press for West African English rights. THE RED PALACE by June Hur went to Tokyo Sogensha for Japanese rights, Bayard for French rights. A CRANE AMONG WOLVES went to Sigongsa for Korean rights and CrossCult for German rights. A CRANE AMONG WOLVES and THE RED PALACE went to Wildfire/Headline for UK & Commonwealth rights. THREADS THAT BIND by Kika Hatzopoulou went to Fabula for Ukranian rights. BEYOND THE THISTLES, AMONG THE HEATHER, and THROUGH THE GLEN by Samantha Young went to Ucila for Slovene rights. BEYOND THE THISTLES, AMONG THE HEATHER, THROUGH THE GLEN, SKIES OVER CALEDONIA, and NORTHERN TWILIGHT went to HarperCollins Germany for German rights. FROM LUKOV WITH LOVE and UNDER LOCKE by Mariana Zapata went to City Editions for French rights. THE WALL OF WINNIPEG AND ME went to Niezwykle for Polish rights and Presenca for Portuguese rights. 13 THINGS MENTALLY STRONG WOMEN DON’T DO by Amy Morin went to Menu Media for Estonian rights and PRH Mexico for Spanish rights. 13 THINGS MENTALLY STRONG PARENTS DON’T DO and 13 THINGS STRONG KIDS DO went to PTS Publishing House for Malay rights. 13 THINGS MENTALLY STRONG COUPLES DON’T DO went to Saigon Books for Vietnamese rights. 13 THINGS MENTALLY STRONG PEOPLE DON’T DO went to Haustor for Bonsian & Herzegovinan rights. 13 THINGS MENTALLY STRONG PEOPLE DON’T DO and 13 THINGS MENTALLY STRONG COUPLES DON’T DO went to Pegasus for Turkish rights. THE DRESS and SAINT by Colleen Hoover went to Sakam Knigi for Macedonian rights and Zomer & Keuning for Dutch rights. TOO LATE went to Gursli Berg for Norwegian rights, Euromedia for Czech rights, Pegasus for Estonian rights, WSOY for Finnish rights, and Living for Albanian rights. HEARTBONES went to 1980 Books for Vietnamese rights. VERITY went to Euromedia for Czech rights and Qanun for Azerbaijanian rights. REMINDERS OF HIM and HEART BONES went to Palitra for Georgian rights. REGRETTING YOU went to Baltos Lankos for Lithuanian rights and Laguna for Serbian rights. VERITY and REMINDERS OF HIM went to Muses Publishing House for Sinhalese rights. NEVER NEVER by Colleen Hoover and Tarryn Fisher went to Konyvmolykepzo for Hungarian rights. HIDEAWAY, KILL SWITCH, and PUNK 57 by Penelope Douglas went to Epica for Romanian rights. KILL SWITCH and NIGHTFALL went to Publik Praktikum for Serbian rights. TRYST SIX VENOM, CONCLAVE, and FIRE NIGHT went to Ciela Norma for Bulgarian rights. PIRATE GIRLS went to Newton Compton for Italian rights. NIGHTFALL went to Dogan for Turkish rights.
RECENT SALES
THE EXTRAORDINARY ORBIT OF ALEX RAMIREZ by Jasminne Paulino went to Putnam in a World rights deal by Michaela Whatnall.
WILLOW’S WOODS: ROSIE STINKBADGER and WILLOW’S WOODS: SAM SQUIRREL by Suzanne Selfors went to Aladdin in a World rights deal by Michael Bourret.
THE BUILD-A-BOYFRIEND PROJECT and UNTITLED BOOK 2 by Mason Deaver went to Avon in World English rights deal by Lauren Abramo.
Preeti Chhibber’s PIECES OF PAYAL to Kokila Books in a World rights deal by Michael Bourret.
Charlotte McConaghy’s WILD DARK SHORE went to Flatiron Books in a World rights deal by Sharon Pelletier.
FLIGHT OF THE BATS by Evan Griffith went to Beach Lane Books in a World rights deal by Michael Bourret.
THE SEER by Samantha Jayne Allen went to St Martin’s in a World English rights deal by Sharon Pelletier.
THIS IS YOUR FIRST CHRISTMAS by Francesco Sedita went to Viking Children’s in a World rights deal by Michael Bourret.
SUMMER OF ’71 by John Jenkins went to Kensington in a World rights deal.
MAC & CHEESE: THE ORIGIN STORY and UNTITLED BOOK 2 by Michael Benner went to Scholastic in a World rights deal by Stacey Glick.
WHAT YOU BUILD LOVE OUT OF by Sara Ryan went to Dutton in a World rights deal by Michael Bourret.
VOICES CARRY by Margaret Peacock went to University of California Press in a World rights deal.
Two books in the DRAGON’S APPRENTICE series by James Riley went to Random House Books for Young Readers in a World English rights deal by Michael Bourret.
THE SECRET MIND by Bonnie Buckner, PhD, went to Urano in a World English and World Spanish rights deal by Leslie Meredith.
Two books in the JUST LIKE HOME series by Erin Soderberg Downing went to Scholastic in a World rights deal by Michael Bourret.
A PHONE IS A COW by Philip Auerswald went to Georgetown University Press in a North American rights deal by Jessica Papin.
THE XO MARSHMALLOW COOKBOOK by Kat Connor and Lindzi Shanks went to Andrews McMeel in a World rights deal by Stacey Glick.
ROCKIN’ THE BRONX by Larry Kirwan went to Fordham University Press in a North American rights deal.
MASQUERADE by Jacqueline Carey went to Forge in a World English rights deal.
MONTANA MAVERICKS BOOK 5 by Tara Taylor Quinn went to Harlequin in World rights deal by Ann Leslie Tuttle.
A BIG MESS IN TEXAS by David Fleming went to St. Martin’s Press in a North American rights deal.
WRITING FROM SCRATCH by Shannon Anderson went to Jossey-Bass/Wiley in a World rights deal by Stacey Glick.
SOLIDARITY by Sarah Schulman went to Thesis in a World rights deal by Michael Bourret.
TASTE THE LOVE by Karelia Stetz-Waters and Fay Stetz-Waters went to Forever Yours in a North American rights deal.
WE DON’T TALK ABOUT CAROL and UNTITLED by Kristen L. Berry went to Ballantine in a World English rights deal by Sharon Pelletier.
KNIVES, SEASONING, & A DASH OF LOVE by Katrina Kwan went to Random House Canada in a World rights deal by Jim McCarthy.
FEARLESS AUTHENTICITY by Jeanne Sparrow went to Diversion in a World rights deal by Michael Bourret.
MY MOTHER’S MONEY by Beth Pinsker went to Crown Currency in a World rights deal by Ann Leslie Tuttle.
RESONANCE AND RADIANCE by Debbie Gale Mitchell went to The MIT Press in a World rights deal by Jessica Papin.
THE HONEY RUNNER by Tadgh Bentley went to Atheneum Books for Young Readers in a World rights deal by John Rudolph.
UNSOLVED MEDICAL MYSTERIES: EXPLAINING THE UNEXPLAINABLE by Brandy Schillace went to Wondrium in a World rights deal by Jessica Papin.
NOBLE NATURE by Jonathan Balcombe went to William Morrow in a North American rights deal by Stacey Glick.
LIVING ROOTS by Liz Carlisle and Aubrey Streit Krug went to Island Press in a World English rights deal by Jessica Papin.
SPECIAL EDITION UNTITLED BOOKS 1-4 by Tara Taylor Quinn went to Harlequin in a World rights deal by Ann Leslie Tuttle.
THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY by Lauren Kung Jessen went to Grand Central Forever in a World rights deal by Ann Leslie Tuttle.
THE CROWS HAVE TAKEN THE CHURCH and SHALLOW BAY BOOK TWO by Madame Genevieve Eugenia Pherese went to Quirk in a World rights deal by Jim McCarthy.
MOTHERS OF MAGIC by Perdita Finn went to Running Press in a World English rights deal by Leslie Meredith.
THE AFROFUTURIST EXPERIENCE by Ytasha Womack went to Chicago Review Press in a World rights deal by Jessica Papin.
GOOD PEOPLE by Patmeena Sabit went to Crown in a World rights deal by Sharon Pelletier.
THE PURSUIT OF HOME by Scott Harris went to Matt Holt Books in a World rights deal by Stacey Glick.
CROSSING THE FINAL FINISH LINE by Dimity McDowell went to Hachette Go in a World rights deal by Kendall Berdinsky.
Diana Urban’s UNDER THE SURFACE and UNTITLED BOOK 2 went to Razorbill in a World English rights deal by Jim McCarthy.
TEAM AWKWARD and UNTITLED BOOK 2 by Joy McCullough and Veeda Bybee went to Aladdin in a World rights deal by Jim McCarthy and Ann Leslie Tuttle.