Alexandra Cooper and Andrew Harwell at HarperCollins have acquired Julie Leung's debut middle-grade trilogy, Mice of the Round Table, at auction. The series, described as drawing inspiration from Brian Jacques's Redwall and Arthurian myths like T.H. White's The Once and Future King, retells the Camelot story from the point of view of the court's humblest creatures, who must save the realm while the human knights of the Round Table are off on foreign adventures. The first book, still untitled, is due in fall 2016. Stephen Barbara at Foundry Literary + Media did the deal for North American rights on behalf of Paper Lantern Lit.

Virginia Duncan at Greenwillow has acquired a YA cyberpunk duology titled The Nova Project by Emma Trevayne, pitched as Good Omens meets Ready Player One. A dying boy on a dying planet plays a complex virtual reality video game that might be the key to his survival, if it doesn't kill him first, but the stakes of the game could be higher than life and death. Publication of the first book is set for summer 2016; Brooks Sherman of The Bent Agency brokered the deal for world English rights.

Wendy Lamb at Random House's Wendy Lamb Books has bought 20 Questions for Gloria, a YA novel by Martyn Bedford about a bored teenager girl who meets a mysterious new boy bent on breaking all the rules. He is everything Gloria wishes to be, but he is not all he seems, and by the time she learns the truth about him, she is a long way from home. It's slated for spring 2016; Tina Wexler at ICM sold U.S. rights on behalf of Stephanie Thwaites at Curtis Brown U.K., who sold U.K. rights to Mara Bergman at Walker U.K. Sophie Harris at Curtis Brown U.K. sold German rights to DTV, also on behalf of Thwaites.

David Levithan at Scholastic bought 22-year-old bookseller Will Walton's debut novelAnything Could Happen, for the PUSH imprint. The novel follows a gay teen’s coming-of-age in the South, where he must navigate new friendships, small-town traditions, and family history – all while being hopelessly in love with his best friend. Publication is planned for summer 2015; Peter Knapp at the Park Literary Group negotiated the two-book deal for world English rights.

Carol Hinz at Millbrook Press acquired world rights to a six-book children's series from Belinda Jensen, senior meteorologist at KARE-11 in Minneapolis/St. Paul. The picture books feature Bel the Weather Girl, a character based on Jensen as a child. Publication for the first book is scheduled for spring 2016; Christi Cardenas at the Plains Agency negotiated the deal.

Nancy Mercado at Scholastic has acquired world rights to Crimebiters!, an illustrated middle-grade series by Tommy Greenwald, author of the Charlie Joe Jackson series. In the first book, My Dog Is Better Than Your Dog, a boy and his dog, who may or may not have supernatural, crime-fighting abilities, experience conflicts both large and small, from evil thieving babysitters to bullies and mean older sisters. My Dog pubs in fall 2015; Brianne Johnson at Writers House represented the author.

Caroline Abbey and Paula Sadler at Random House have acquired the first four books in Ballpark Mysteries author David A. Kelly's new MVP Mysteries series. The series follows six kids who start an MVP Sports Club at their elementary school and solve mysteries as they try new sports. Book one will pub in summer 2016 and feature an Olympic theme; Caryn Wiseman at Andrea Brown Literary Agency did the deal for world rights.

Kate Farrell at Henry Holt has pre-empted North American rights to Ashes for Stars, a debut novel by Jenny Moyer. Pitched as Red Rising for teens, the story tells of a girl who, with her people, is forced to mine terrifying tunnels for precious metal in return for freedom, only to realize that they've been betrayed. The book will publish in spring 2016; Sarah Davies at the Greenhouse Literary Agency did the two-book deal.

Chelsea Eberly at Random House has bought Six Feet Over It author Jennifer Longo's The Pointe of Light, in a two-book deal. In the novel, a girl who is the descendent of an explorer who died in a race to the South Pole knows that big dreams come with big risks. When her dream of becoming a star ballerina dies, she's willing to go to the ends of the earth (literally to the South Pole) to chart a new path. Publication is slated for spring 2016; Melissa Sarver White at Folio Literary Management did the deal for world rights.

Reka Simonsen at Atheneum has bought This Is Not a Werewolf Story by debut author Sandra Evans, a middle-grade novel that blends magical realism with science, nature, and folklore to tell the story of a boy of few words, fewer friends, and almost no family, who has a secret ability to shape-shift. Publication is scheduled for spring 2016; Minju Chang at BookStop Literary negotiated the deal for world English rights.

Krista Vitola at Delacorte has bought Alyson Noël's Kiss My Wish, about eighth-grader Nick Dashaway, whose Christmas request doesn't go according to plan. It's a cautionary tale on being careful of what you wish for mixed with the sprit of It's a Wonderful Life. Publication is scheduled for fall 2016; Bill Contardi at Brandt & Hochman did the deal for North American rights.

Kate O'Sullivan at HMH has acquired Frankie, a picture book from Geisel Honor winner Mary Sullivan, about a pound puppy who has just arrived at his new home. Frankie is based on Mary's real-life experience fostering dogs for a shelter in Austin, Tex., and on a real dog, Francine. It's scheduled for spring 2017; Justin Rucker at Shannon Associates did the deal for world rights.

Yolanda Scott and Susan Sherman at Charlesbridge have signed Duncan Tonatiuh (Separate Is Never Equal: Sylvia Mendez & Her Family's Fight for Desegregation) to illustrate Esquivel! Space-Age Sound Artist, written by Susan VanHecke (l.) (Under the Freedom Tree). The picture-book biography focuses on the innovations of Mexican musician Juan Garcia Esquivel, whose space-age pop orchestrations provided a soundtrack to the 1950s and 1960s lounge scene. Publication is slated for fall 2016; the author and illustrator represented themselves.