Kensington Buys Laroux’s ‘Soul’

Elizabeth May at Kensington Books has acquired world English rights to TikTok star Harley Laroux’s Her Soul to Take. The deal was brokered by Bethany Weaver at her eponymous agency. Laroux is a popular author on TikTok with more than 40 million views and counting. Kensington said the novel follows “a college student who, while investigating paranormal phenomena, accidentally summons an ancient and seductive demon who helps her solve a string of grisly murders around her college campus, but also leads her to question everything she knows about morality and desire.” The book is scheduled for February 2024.

LB Spark Strikes ‘Gold’ with Joseph

After an auction, Little, Brown Spark editorial director Talia Krohn has acquired North American rights to Judith Joseph’s Golden. The deal was negotiated by Heather Jackson at the Heather Jackson Literary Agency. Joseph is a psychiatrist, physician, and media consultant—with a major social media following. Jackson said Golden identifies high-functioning depression as “one of the most understudied mental health crises of our times,” and will offer “tools to break the cycle of HFD and reclaim the joy in one’s life.” The book will be published in April 2025.

Toews’s Latest Goes to Bloomsbury

Bloomsbury’s Callie Garnett has acquired U.S. rights to Miriam Toews’s A Truce That Is Not Peace. Toews is represented by Sarah Chalfant at the Wylie Agency. Bloomsbury said the new nonfiction book from the bestselling author of Women Talking and Fight Night will explore how, for Toews, “writing is survival,” and framed the reflective book as “about the fight that is acceptance.” Truce is set for a fall 2025 publication.

Dial Opts for ‘Extra Sauce’

Chef, restaurant consultant, and writer Zahra Tangorra has sold North American rights to Extra Sauce to Clio Seraphim at the Dial Press, in an exclusive submission by Jamie Carr at the Book Group. Dial said the book recounts the near-death experience at age 22 that led Tangorra to open Brooklyn restaurant Brucie, the decision to close the popular eatery as her father was dying, and how she turned loss into “an opportunity to lead a more meaningful life, with food as her guide.” A pub date has not yet been announced.


Bregman Gets ‘Ambitious’ at LB

Ben George at Little, Brown has landed North American rights to Dutch historian and De Correspondent writer Rutger Bregman’s Moral Ambition. Bregman gained prominence in 2019 for his provocative questions at the World Economic Forum in Davos (and for famously causing former Fox News host Tucker Carlson to blow up at him). Little, Brown called the book “a manifesto” that challenges readers to combine “the ideals of an activist, the drive of a Silicon Valley startup founder, and the rigor of a scientist” in seeking to make the world a better place. The deal was brokered by De Correspondent’s Milou Klein Lankhorst and Anne Strunk. The book will be published in spring 2025.


Fixsen Sends ‘Specimen’ to Sourcebooks

In an exclusive submission, Jenna Jankowski at Sourcebooks has acquired world English rights to Jaima Fixsen’s The Specimen. Fixsen was represented by Jennifer Weltz at the Jean V. Naggar Literary Agency. The novel, the publisher said, tells the story of a woman whose sick four-year-old son disappears—only for her to find his heart displayed as a curiosity at the home of the doctor who treated him. Jankowski called it “historical mystery writing at its finest,” set against the “haunting, shadowy landscape of Edinburgh.” Publication is set for October 2024.