Knopf Signs New García Márquez Novel

Reagan Arthur, Knopf executive v-p and publisher, acquired North American rights from the Carmen Balcells Literary Agency to Until August, a novel written by Nobel Prize winner Gabriel García Márquez before his death in 2014. Diana Tejerina Miller, Knopf v-p and executive editor, will edit. Knopf will publish Until August in hardcover and e-book, and Penguin Random House will publish it as an audiobook, as part of a simultaneous global release in 2024. García Márquez’s sons, Rodrigo and Gonzalo García Barcha, said that in reading the novel 10 years after their father’s death, “we discovered that the text had many highly enjoyable merits and nothing that prevents us from delighting in the most outstanding aspects of Gabo’s work.”

Gamache Sticks with St. Martin’s

St. Martin’s Press continues as the publisher of Louise Penny’s bestselling Chief Inspector Gamache books. Andrew Martin, publisher of SMP’s Minotaur Books imprint, acquired North American rights to the next two titles in the long-running series from David Gernert of the Gernert Company. Minotaur’s Kelley Ragland will edit the new works, with the first yet-to-be-titled book under the deal set to be released in 2024, followed a year later by the second title.

Mariner Wins Burroughs Novel

Augusten Burroughs, known for his bestselling memoirs Running with Scissors and Dry, has sold Debris Field, his first novel in 20 years, to Rakia Clark at Mariner. Clark bought North American rights at auction from Christopher Schelling at Selectric Artists. Mariner describes the book as “a darkly funny skewering of white privilege, following a dysfunctional, emotionally out-of-touch billionaire family in 1990s Manhattan whose dispassion for life and for others is upended when they become fascinated by a plane crash in Middle America.” Publication is planned for fall 2024.

Romance Stirs at Atria

In an auction, Melanie Iglesias Perez at Atria Books acquired North American rights to Laura Wood’s Under Your Spell and Second Chance Romance. Both books are rom-coms “set in the same world, but featuring different characters,” Atria said. Under Your Spell revolves around Clemmie, who lands a dream summer job as a minder for rock star Theo Eliott, but Clemmie’s personal rule against dating rock stars gets in the way of romance. Second Chance Romance follows Cyn (Theo’s ex-girlfriend) and Jackson, though Clemmie and Theo have cameos. Jessica Mileo at InkWell Management made the sale on behalf of Louise Lamont of the U.K.’s LBA Literary Agency. Under Your Spell will be published in summer 2024, and Second Chance will be released the following year.


‘Dragon’ to Roar for Saga

Amara Hoshijo at Saga Press acquired Canadian actor Katrina Kwan’s debut, The Last Dragon of the East, as well as a second title. The publisher described Last Dragon as “a light romantic fantasy inspired by Chinese mythology.” Jim McCarthy at Dystel, Goderich & Bourret brokered the deal for world English rights. Publication is set for fall 2024.


Sparrow Flies to Titan

In an exclusive deal conducted by Priya Doraswamy of Lotus Lane Literary, Cath Trechman of Titan Books acquired world English-language print, audio, and e-book rights to the Burnt Sparrow Trilogy by Eric LaRocca. LaRocca has published three collections of short stories and an earlier novel with Titan, and the new horror novels are set in a small New England town. The first title in the trilogy, We Are Always Tender with Our Dead, will be released in September 2025, and books two and three will be published in 2026.