Executive Overview
The global publishing landscape is undergoing a profound transformation, driven by an insatiable market appetite for speculative fiction, romantic fantasy ("romantasy"), cozy fantasy, and boundary-pushing horror. In a comprehensive sweep of recent industry transactions, major publishing houses, independent presses, and literary agencies have finalized a massive portfolio of high-stakes acquisitions, high-profile executive transitions, and strategic institutional partnerships.
Among the most notable institutional shifts, the Horror Writers Association (HWA) has solidified a long-term partnership with Raw Dog Screaming Press to publish and distribute the HWA Poetry Showcase Volume XIII and future installments, cementing a premier outlet for dark speculative verse. Simultaneously, the advocacy group Authors Against Book Bans has announced a transition in leadership: celebrated author Katherine Locke has assumed the presidency of the executive board as of July 1, succeeding Maggie Tokuda-Hall after the completion of her term.
On the corporate front, executive appointments signal aggressive growth strategies. Entangled Publishing has named Faye Iosotaluno, the former CEO of Tinder, as its new President and Chief Operating Officer—a move highlighting the increasing intersection of digital platform scaling, audience engagement, and commercial fiction. Meanwhile, premier genre imprints continue to fortify their editorial ranks: Orbit UK has appointed Katie Dent (formerly of Titan Books) as Commissioning Editor, and Berkley/Ace Books has promoted Gabrielle Pachon to Associate Editor.
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From six-figure auctions for dark romantasy duologies to highly competitive pre-empts for speculative literary debuts, this comprehensive report details the transactions, trends, and systemic shifts shaping the future of the literary arts.
Detailed Chronology of Global Acquisitions
Blockbuster Acquisitions & Six-Figure Deals
The upper echelons of the market continue to see intense bidding wars, particularly for narratives that blend high-stakes speculative elements with complex emotional arcs.
- N.E. Davenport’s Dark Romantasy Duology: David Pomerico at Voyager acquired Davenport’s Immortal Empire, the opening volume in a highly anticipated dark romantasy duology, alongside a second untitled book, in a major six-figure deal brokered by Emily Forney of BookEnds.
- Brittney Arena’s Dream-Weaving Fantasy: In a highly competitive auction, Viengsamai Fetters at Erewhon secured North American rights to Brittney Arena’s Prince of Night and an accompanying title. The romantic fantasy duology follows a chronically ill sculptor who dares to dream in a realm where dreaming is strictly outlawed. In a parallel transaction, Vicky Leech Mateos at Bloomsbury Archer UK acquired UK rights for a six-figure sum, with Sam Bradbury set to edit. The deal was brokered by Jennifer Azantian of the Azantian Literary Agency.
- Jamie Cass’s Historical Magick: Chelsea Villareal at Podium Publishing emerged victorious in a six-figure auction for Jamie Cass’s Starfall, the inaugural novel in the historical fantasy Oxford Book of Magick series, along with two subsequent titles. The deal was brokered by John Baker and Julie Gourinchas of the Bell Lomax Moreton Agency.
- Sarah Underwood’s YA Mythology: Kristin Daly Rens at Storytide acquired The Changeling Rule and a second title in a six-figure deal brokered by Catherine Cho of Paper Literary. Concurrently, UK rights for three books were acquired by Sarah Levison at Electric Monkey, also for six figures.
Romantasy, Cozy Fantasy, & Speculative Romance
The fusion of romantic narratives with speculative backdrops remains one of the industry’s strongest economic engines, with publishers actively acquiring both cozy and dark subgenres.
[Market Segment Share - Speculative Fiction Acquisitions]
■ Romantasy & Speculative Romance (35%)
■ Sci-Fi, Space Opera & Time-Travel (25%)
■ Horror, Dark Academia & Gothic (20%)
■ Young Adult & Middle Grade (20%)- Ashley Poston’s Fantasy Duology: Amanda Bergeron at Berkley acquired Elodie and the Dark Lord, the first installment of a fantasy duology, alongside a second book, via Holly Root of Root Literary. UK rights were secured by Priyal Agrawal at HQ.
- Cassandra Khaw’s Cozy Turn: Renowned for dark horror, Cassandra Khaw pivots to "cozy fantasy" with Sweet Saints, acquired by Mika Kasuga at Union Square & Co. The deal was brokered by Michael Curry of the Donald Maass Literary Agency.
- R.A. Sandpiper’s Romantic Fantasy Expansion: Gretchen Durning at Berkley XO acquired the romantic fantasy To Touch a Silent Fury and its untitled sequel via Alyssa Morris of Trellis Literary Management. UK rights went to Alexa Allen-Batifoulier at Del Rey UK via Maddalena Cavaciuti of David Higham Associates, acting on behalf of Tori Clayton and Allison Malecha of Trellis.
- Rebecca Zahabi’s Mythic Retelling: Toni Kirkpatrick at Diversion Books acquired The Monkey Queen, a gender-flipped retelling of the legendary trickster god Sun Wukong, along with a second title, via Alice Speilburg of the Speilburg Literary Agency.
- Bridgette Way’s Necromantic Comedy: Esi Sogah at Berkley and Stephanie Alleyne at Random House Canada (acting on behalf of Amanda Ferreira) won a competitive auction for How to Seduce a Dark Lord and a second title. The book follows a prominent necromancer determined to become the trophy husband to New York’s most dangerous figure. The deal was brokered by Cheyenne Faircloth and Courtney Miller-Callihan of Handspun Literary, with UK rights selling to Elora Hartway at Titan Books via Tawanna Sullivan at Berkley.
- Mila Finch’s Runebreaker Resale: Alessandra Roche at Bloom Books acquired the rights to the previously self-published sensation Runebreaker, along with two additional books, in a heated auction via Haley Heidemann of WME. UK rights were secured in a pre-empt by Calah Singleton at Voyager UK via Kimberley Atkins of WME.
Sci-Fi, Space Operas, & Time-Travel Epics
Science fiction acquisitions this quarter emphasize high-concept survival, anti-capitalist themes, and complex temporal mechanics.
- Claire McKade’s High-Altitude Thriller: Laura Schreiber at Voyager won a multi-publisher auction for The Bridge to Nowhere and Everywhere. Set in a postapocalyptic landscape, the novel centers on a mysterious space-elevator skyscraper hosting a televised gauntlet. The three-book deal was brokered by Laura Rennert of the Andrea Brown Literary Agency.
- Michael Simon’s Space Opera: Marilyn Kretzer at Blackstone Publishing acquired the Stellar Crossing series—comprising Dark Passage, Lost Nexus, and Chosen Destiny—at auction via Michelle Hauck of the Storm Literary Agency.
- Jamie Killen’s Anti-Capitalist Sci-Fi: Nidhi Pugalia at Viking acquired The War of Hours, pitched as an anti-capitalist time-travel novel, alongside its sequel, in an auction brokered by Elizabeth Pratt of Trellis Literary Management.
- Zander Woolley’s Post-War Reconstruction: Peter Joseph at Crown acquired How to Raise a Human, set in a rebuilding galaxy post-galactic war, via Sarah Scarlett of Penguin Random House UK. UK rights were acquired by Jorgie Bain at Michael Joseph via Sam Edenborough of Greyhound Literary.
- J.D. Robinson’s Temporal Storm: Marilyn Brigham at 47North acquired When Tomorrows End, a novel following a man trapped in a temporal storm who must partner with a fellow time-traveler to escape. The deal was brokered by Brandi Bowles and Ethan Schlatter of UTA.
Horror, Dark Academia, & Gothic Speculative Fiction
Publishers are leaning heavily into gothic atmospheres, psychological dread, and the resurgence of dark academia settings.
- Tasha Solomons’ Dark Academia Debut: Sydney Collins at Delacorte Press preempted Blood Goddess, the first book in a dark academia romantasy duology. The deal was brokered by Ariele Fredman and Kelly Karczewski of UTA on behalf of Sue Armstrong at C+W.
- Rudy Ruiz’s Southern Gothic: Marilyn Kretzer at Blackstone Publishing acquired Ruiz’s Southern gothic horror novel Diablo Creek via Laura Strachan of the Strachan Literary Agency.
- Gabe Converse’s Speculative Body Horror: Rebecca Brewer at Bloomsbury Archer acquired The Body Remembers, a literary speculative novel in which a trans man’s pre-transition body washes up in his hometown and is coaxed back to life by his transphobic family. The deal was negotiated by Mara Hollander of the Azantian Literary Agency.
- Ruby Rune’s Dark Witchcraft: Ghjulia Romiti at Forever preempted the dark academia romance A Game of Cat and Witch, along with a second title, via Angie Ojeda Hazen of Lunar Literary Agency.
- Kealan Patrick Burke’s Satanic Panic: Alan Lastufka at Shortwave acquired Nightlights for Eyes, a nostalgic horror novel following teenagers who experiment with the occult in the ruins of an abandoned church during the height of the Satanic Panic.
- TR Rowe’s Queer Horror Romance: Katie McGuire at Crooked Lane acquired Backsliders, a queer horror romance, via Dorian Maffei of Kimberley Cameron & Associates.
- Joe Koch’s Slasher Mystery: Christoph Paul at Clash acquired Dead Boys Don’t Cry, described as a cosmic-erotic slasher and queer anti-murder mystery.
Young Adult & Middle Grade Speculative Fiction
Youth-focused speculative fiction continues to show resilience, with major deals signed by veteran authors and rising stars.
- Neal Shusterman’s Epic Fantasy Expansion: Justin Chanda at Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing acquired the second and third books in the acclaimed First Blades series via Andrea Brown of the Andrea Brown Literary Agency.
- Ann Liang’s Speculative YA: Claire Stetzer at Harper Children’s acquired The Lost Life of Sylvia Song, with Sara Schonfeld set to edit. The deal was brokered by Kathleen Rushall of the Andrea Brown Literary Agency.
- Sasha Peyton Smith’s Mythic YA: Erica Sussman at Harper Children’s acquired The Fox Bride and an untitled second book via Hillary Jacobson at CAA. UK rights went to Sarah Levison at Farshore via Sarah Mitchell at CAA.
- R.M. Gray’s Dark Academy: Alexandra Hightower at Little, Brown Children’s acquired The Bloodwolf Trials, pitched as Spirited Away meets Wednesday, and a second title, via Gwen Beal and Peter Steinberg of UTA.
- Sadie Suksiri’s Magical YA: Katherine Harrison at Knopf Children’s won an auction for The Undoing, a novel exploring a world where girls are born with a magical gift they must surrender in adolescence. The deal was brokered by Molly Ker Hawn of David Higham Associates.
- Marisa Urgo’s Boarding School Curse: Afua Antwi at Puffin UK acquired The Midnight Coven, featuring a celestial curse at a haunted boarding school, via Moe Ferrara of TriadaUS Literary Agency.
Highly Anticipated Speculative Debuts
The industry is investing heavily in fresh voices offering unique cultural perspectives and genre-blending premises.
[Notable Speculative Debuts & Key Themes]
┌─────────────────────────┬───────────────────────────┬────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Author │ Title │ Core Theme / Pitch │
├─────────────────────────┼───────────────────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Vickie Lan │ But First Take Off Your...│ Mother-daughter drama / alien invasion │
│ Helena Bailach Adsuara │ Monstrous Alchemy │ Dark academia fantasy │
│ August Ponthier │ Everywhere Isn't Texas │ Speculative horror Western │
│ Carrie Kwiatkowski │ The Bindery Guild │ Historical fantasy │
│ Shaya Lin Susan │ There's Something Wrong...│ "Stepford Wives for the TikTok era" │
│ Claire Wells │ Shoot Prey Love │ Apocalyptic rom-com │
└─────────────────────────┴───────────────────────────┴────────────────────────────────────────┘- Vickie Lan’s Speculative Mother-Daughter Drama: Ardyce Alspach at Union Square & Co preempted Vickie Lan’s debut, But First Take Off Your Shoes, alongside a second book. The novel explores a biracial daughter and her estranged Vietnamese mother attempting to reconcile against the backdrop of crumbling cities and falling green lasers. The deal was brokered by Ali Herring of Spencerhill Associates.
- Helena Bailach Adsuara’s Dark Academia Debut: Kirsiah Depp at Grand Central won an auction for Monstrous Alchemy, a dark academia fantasy, via Hayley Steed of Janklow & Nesbit UK. UK rights were secured by Sania Riaz at Harvill Secker, also via Steed.
- August Ponthier’s Speculative Western: Pilar Garcia-Brown at Dutton preempted Everywhere Isn’t Texas, a genre-blending debut combining speculative fiction, horror, sci-fi, and Western elements, via Julie Flanagan at CAA.
- Carrie Kwiatkowski’s Historical Fantasy: Stephanie Stein at Wildthorn acquired The Bindery Guild in a competitive auction via Alexandra Machinist at CAA. UK rights went to Gillian Green at Wildthorn UK via Daisy Arendell of CAA.
- Shaya Lin Susan’s Social Satire: Abby Knudsen at Gallery acquired There’s Something Wrong with the Girls, pitched as The Stepford Wives for the TikTok generation, via Thais Afonso of the Azantian Literary Agency.
- Claire Wells’ Apocalyptic Comedy: Maxine Shen at Alcove Press acquired Shoot Prey Love, an apocalyptic rom-com debut, and a second title, via Sandra Sawicka of Marjacq Scripts.
- Sally Hamilton’s Magical Antiques: Brianna Fairman at Putnam preempted The Greenglass Guide to Magical Antiques via Sara Crowe of Sara Crowe Literary.
Graphic Novel Adaptations, Anthologies, & Collections
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