Dear writers: Please be aware of ongoing scams by agent impersonators. Use extra caution with any unsolicited offers from agents. Reputable agents will not ask for upfront fees of any kind. For more information, look at sites such as Writer Beware (https://writerbeware.blog/). Please always check email addresses/spellings. All official emails from Donald Maass Literary Agency will come from an address that ends in @maassagency.com (2 A's, 2 S's in MAASS).

Starred Review: Star Eater by Kerstin Hall

Mar 262021
 

Library Journal: As a member of the Sisterhood of Aytrium, Elfreda Raughn is part of a magical bloodline that preceded her, from her mother to her grandmother and generations back. But it is the same bloodline that forces Elfreda into eventual pregnancy and unavoidable death. Hoping for a way to escape her fate, Elfreda finds a mysterious group, those who believe the power of the Sisterhood has gone too far. Acting as their spy, Elfreda infiltrates a world of opulence and cunning, as drought and rationing affects the rest of Aytrium. With her closest friends by her side, Elfreda discovers that freedom could come at great cost, for the Sisterhood has made many sacrifices to keep its power, and Elfreda could find she is the next to pay. Systemic power structures built on the back of a dead god, ritualistic cannibalism, and magical disease are balanced with emotional themes of love and regret.

VERDICT Hall’s (The Border Keeper) solid worldbuilding and strong prose create an utterly gripping novel that blends the boundaries of horror and fantasy.

 March 26, 2021  Tagged with: ,

Deal: Kim Harrison

Mar 192021
 

#1 New York Times bestselling author Kim Harrison inked a four-book, world rights agreement with Anne Sowards at Ace Books. Jennifer Jackson at the Donald Maass Literary Agency brokered the deal.

Two of these books continue Harrison’s Hollows series – the first to release will be the sixteenth installment in the series, TROUBLE WITH THE CURSED, currently scheduled for Summer 2022 with a sequel to follow. The remaining books will launch a new series that, Ace said, “follows a woman who cleans up the bad luck left behind after magic has been cast.” The first installment of the new series, THREE KINDS OF LUCKY, is set for Fall 2023.

In 2020 Harrison made a triumphant return to her Hollows series with AMERICAN DEMON, and readers were thrilled to continue the adventures of witch-born demon Rachel Morgan through an alternate United States where humans and supernatural beings exist side-by-side. AMERICAN DEMON was met with glowing reviews and became an instant New York Times  and Publishers Weekly bestseller. The fifteenth book in the series, MILLION DOLLAR DEMON, will release this June.

 March 19, 2021  Tagged with: ,

2020 Nebula Award Nominees

Mar 182021
 

Congratulations to all our DMLA authors who have been nominated for 2020 Nebula Awards!

Novel

  • The Midnight Bargain, C.L. Polk (Erewhon)
  • Network Effect, Martha Wells (Tordotcom)

Andre Norton Award

  • Elatsoe, Darcie Little Badger (Levine Querido)
 March 18, 2021  Tagged with: , , ,

The Queen’s Weapons by Anne Bishop

Mar 092021
 

Enter the dark and sensual realms of the Black Jewels, a world where power always has a price, in this sweeping story in the New York Times bestselling fantasy saga.

They are Warlord Princes, men born to serve and protect. They are the Queen’s Weapons, men born to destroy the Queen’s enemies–no matter what face that enemy wears.

Daemonar Yaslana knows how to be bossy yet supportive–traits he shares with his father, the Demon Prince, and his uncle, the High Lord of Hell. Within his generation of the family, he assumes the role of protector, supporting his sister Titian’s artistic efforts and curbing his cousin Jaenelle Saetien’s more adventurous ideas. But when a young Eyrien Queen, someone Titian thought was a friend, inflicts an emotional wound, Daemonar’s counterattack brings him under the tutelage of Witch, the Queen whose continued existence is known only to a select few.

As Daemonar is confronted by troubling changes within and around the family, he sees warnings that a taint in the Blood might be reappearing.  Daemonar, along with his father and uncle, must uncover the source of a familiar evil–and Daemon Sadi, the High Lord of Hell, may be forced into making a terrible choice.

 March 9, 2021  Tagged with: ,

February Translation Rights Deals

Feb 282021
 

Chinese rights to Robert Sheckley’s DIMENSIONS OF SHECKLEY, to Eight Light Minutes (China), by Gray Tan at The Grayhawk Agency on behalf of Katie Shea Boutillier, for Cameron McClure.

Estonian rights to New York Times bestselling author Jim Butcher’s DEATH MASKS and BLOOD RITES, books 5 and 6 in the Dresden Files series, to Kirjastus Fantaasia, by Maša Ivanović at Prava i prevodi in association with Michael Curry for Jennifer Jackson.

Farsi rights to New York Times bestselling author Martha Wells’ THE CLOUD ROADS, the first novel in her Books of the Raksura series, to Porteghaal Publishing House, by Michael Curry for Jennifer Jackson.

French rights to New York Times bestselling author Tamsyn Muir’s The Locked Tomb trilogy (GIDEON THE NINTH, HARROW THE NINTH, ALECTO THE NINTH), to Actes Sud, in a pre-empt, by Megan Husain at Anna Jarota Agency in association with Michael Curry for Jennifer Jackson.

French rights to Nnedi Okorafor’s REMOTE CONTROL, to L’ecole des Loisirs, by Megan Husain at Anna Jarota Agency, on behalf of Katie Shea Boutillier for Donald Maass.

French rights to Robert Sheckley’s a collection of short stories, to Editions Argyll, by Megan Husain at Anna Jarota Agency, on behalf of Katie Shea Boutillier, for Cameron McClure.

French rights to Robert Sheckley’s THE JOURNEY BEYOND TOMORROW and THE STATUS CIVILIZATION to Editions Goater, by Megan Husain at Anna Jarota Agency, on behalf of Katie Shea Boutillier, for Cameron McClure.

French rights to Martha Wells’ FUGITIVE TELEMETRY, the newest installment in the New York Times bestselling Murderbot Diaries series, to L’Atlante, by Megan Husain at Anna Jarota Agency in association with Michael Curry for Jennifer Jackson.

Hebrew rights to New York Times bestselling author Anne Bishop’s WRITTEN IN RED and MURDER OF CROWS, the first two books in the Others series, to Alma Books, by Beverley Levit at The Israeli Association Of Book Publishers Ltd. in association with Michael Curry for Jennifer Jackson.

Hungarian rights to Nnedi Okorafor’s AKATA WITCH, to PALLAS ATHÉNÉ KÖNYVKIADO, by Milena Kaplarevic at Prava I Prevodi on behalf of Katie Shea Boutillier for Donald Maass.

 February 28, 2021  Tagged with: , , , ,

Polish 2020 Best Book Award (Książka Roku)

Feb 252021
 

Congratulations to Anne Bishop for having SHADOWS AND LIGHT nominated for the Polish 2020 Best Book Award (Książka Roku) in the Fantasy category!

 February 25, 2021  Tagged with: ,

Escaping Exodus: Symbosis by Nicky Drayden

Feb 232021
 

The Compton Crook Award-winning author weaves her trademark blend of science fiction and dark humor in this dazzling story that continues the imaginative saga begun in Escaping Exodus, in which a society lives in the belly of a beast—and an entire civilization’s survival depends on a pair of uneasy allies who must come together for one epic battle.

Nearly a thousand years removed from Earth, the remnants of humanity cling to existence inside giant, space faring creatures known as the Zenzee. Abused and exploited by humans for generations, these majestic animals nearly went extinct, but under the command of its newly minted ruler, Doka Kaleigh, life in the Parados I has flourished. Thanks to careful oversight and sacrifice by all of its crew, they are now on the brink of utopia, and yet Doka’s rivals feel threatened by that success.

The Senate allowed Doka to lead their people believing he’d fail spectacularly—a disaster that would cement the legitimacy of their long-standing matriarchy. Despite vocal opposition and blatant attacks on his authority, Doka has continued to handle his position with grace and intelligence; he knows a single misstep means disaster. When a cataclysmic event on another Zenzee world forces Doka and his people to accept thousands of refugees, a culture clash erupts, revealing secrets from the past that could endanger their future. For Doka, the stakes are bigger and more personal than ever before—and could cost him his reign and his heart.

He has fallen for the one woman he is forbidden to love: his wife, Seske.

Doka and Seske must work closely together to sway the other Zenzee worlds to stop their cycles of destruction. But when they stumble upon a discovery that can transform their world, they know they must prepare to fight a battle where there can be no winners, only survivors.

 February 23, 2021  Tagged with: ,

Film Deal: Elizabeth Bear

Feb 172021
 

Photo of Elizabeth BearVanessa Taylor and Drew Pearce will adapt Elizabeth Bear’s short story “Dolly” (Asimov’s). Following a competitive bidding war, the project has landed at Apple Studios. Academy Award-nominee Florence Pugh is attached to star. Pugh is repped by CAA, Brillstein Entertainment Partners, Curtis Brown and Associates and attorney Ziffren Brittenham. Taylor is repped by ICM Partners, Robert Offer at Sloane Offer Weber Dern. Pearce and his Point of No Return Films is repped by WME and Jim Gilio and Warren Dern at Sloane Offer Weber Dern. Bear is represented by Jennifer Jackson at the Donald Maass Literary Agency and WME.

 February 17, 2021  Tagged with: , ,

Starred Review: The Queen’s Weapons by Anne Bishop

Feb 122021
 

Library Journal: Born to serve and protect, Warlord Princes are sworn to their Queen. Daemonar Yaslana has always been bossy and protective, but he has reached an age where his behavior walks a fine line, and an emotional attack on his sister by a young Queen results in Daemonar beginning a new set of lessons under Witch, the Queen that many think of as old myth. When a curse is revealed to be rising in Kaleer, Daemonar along with his uncle and father, the High Lord and Demon Prince, respectively, must use his skills to uproot the stain before it sets too far. For Warlord Princes are their Queen’s weapons, and they will destroy any enemy—even if it wears a beloved face. Bishop (Wild Country) leans into references and characters from past books to build a century-spanning saga, tying together pieces of plot and creating new stakes that could break hearts and power. VERDICT The latest “Black Jewels” novel (after The Queen’s Bargain) continues to deliver dark fantasy with lush worldbuilding, strong characters, and high-stakes action.

 February 12, 2021  Tagged with: ,
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