Scheibe Gets ‘Fireproof’ at SMP
At St. Martin’s Press, Elizabeth Beier took North American rights to Amy Scheibe’s novel A Fireproof Home for the Bride from agent Sarah Burnes at the Gernert Company. SMP compared the book, set in North Dakota during the 1950s, to novels like Kent Haruf’s Plainsong and Jane Smiley’s A Thousand Acres. It follows a young woman named Emmaline Nelson who, SMP said, “embodies not just the personal struggle to find love and connection in a confining world, but the shifting roles and attitudes of women with the 1960s on the horizon.”

Juby Heads to Viking
Susan Juby closed a two-book deal with Viking Children’s senior editor Sharyn November. Hilary McMahon at Westwood Creative Artists handled the world rights (excluding Canada) sale. Juby has written six YA novels, including the Alice MacLeod trilogy (published stateside by HarperTeen), which served as the basis for the Canadian TV series Alice, I Think (named after the first book in the series). The first novel in this deal, The Truth Commission, follows a girl who begins asking her classmates probing questions while, Viking said, “denying what’s been happening to her famous sister”; Truth is slated for a late 2014 publication.

Fluke Re-Ups at Kensington
Joanne Fluke has inked a five-book, world rights deal with Kensington’s publisher, John Scognamiglio, to continue her ongoing, bestselling series featuring baker Hanna Swensen. Meg Ruley at the Jane Rotrosen agency represented Fluke, and the first book under the contract is set for March 2016. The latest title in the Swensen series, Red Velvet Cupcake Murder, which came out on March 17, hit the New York Times Bestseller List at #6. The next Swensen mystery (under an earlier contract), Blackberry Pie Murder, is coming from Kensington in March 2014.

Da Capo Lands Lagasse Girls
For their second cookbook, Jessie Lagasse Swanson and her sister, Jilly Lagasse, are heading to Da Capo. The sisters (and daughters of Emeril) published their first cookbook, The Gluten Free Table, with Grand Central in October 2012. This title, The Lagasse Sisters: Big Appetites, Big Flavor—No Gluten, is set for fall 2014. Brandi Bowles at Foundry Literary + Media brokered the North American rights sale with Renee Sedliar; the cookbook will feature more than 100 gluten-free comfort food recipes.