Bloomsbury scoops an epic fantasy trilogy by BookTok personality Sarah Mughal Rana in six-figure deal

Bloomsbury scoops a new epic fantasy trilogy by author and "TikTok sensation" Sarah Mughal Rana.

Publishing director Vicky Leech Mateos acquired world English rights at auction with a six-figure offer for the debut adult fantasy trilogy from Paige Terlip at the Andrea Brown Literary Agency. The first acquisition for the new Fantasy list at Bloomsbury, publication for Dawn of the Firebird by Sarah Mughal Rana is planned for March 2025 in hardback. North American rights sold in a pre-empt to Jennifer Lambert and Mikaela Roasa at HarperCollins Publishers.

"Dawn of the Firebird follows the rise of a female martial arts warrior Khamilla, daughter of an overthrown emperor, born with a gift for magic," the synopsis says. "Captured in a raid, the orphaned Khamilla hides her identity and joins the enemy’s army academy risking it all to become stronger to avenge her parents, and reclaim her clan’s throne. To survive, Khamilla must study under cutthroat monks and prove herself in a series of magical tests. But the more she learns, the more she is faced with knowledge that contradicts her father’s teachings. With war brewing amongst the separate kingdoms and a new twisted magic overtaking the land, Khamilla is torn between two impossible choices: vengeance or escape."

Rana is an author and student pursuing a career at the intersection of human rights and policy, as well as a BookTok personality, and the co-host of "On The Write Track Podcast".

Rana says: "I have never read a fantasy story that re-interpreted the societies in Biblical traditions outside a Eurocentric context. I love the science-fiction fantasy genre because it allows us to explore politically charged topics like cultural erasure, genocide, resistance and war. That’s why I wrote a military-fantasy where the people’s morally grey choices are informed by harsh environments of dehumanisation; and suppression of freedom until they have no choice but to fight! Using fictional magic, I confront the right to violent resistance, the contradictions in nation-building, and why leaders are able to commit oppression through mobilising their people."

Mateos added: "I’m excited to welcome Sarah Mughal Rana to Bloomsbury as the first acquisition for the new list, which is aimed at making a space within in SFF that is exciting, original, diverse and magic. I’d never read anything like this before, and yet know it will thrill newcomers and long-standing genre fans alike: filled with mythic creatures and fierce action, intricate world building rooted in historical detail and overlaid with burning moral questions – this is epic fantasy at its very best."