Egmont signs 'major' US fantasy series

Egmont has acquired a "major" fantasy series for its YA Electric Monkey imprint by New York Times bestselling author Tahereh Mafi.

Lindsey Heaven, fiction editorial director at Egmont Publishing, bought UK and Commonwealth rights from Cecilia de la Campa at Writers House following a hotly-contested auction.

A fragile young teenage girl is held captive, locked in a cell by the Reestablishment – a harsh dictatorship in charge of a crumbling world. But this is no ordinary teenager. Juliette is a threat to the Reestablishment's power. A touch from her can kill. Juliette has never fought for herself before but when she’s reunited with the one person who ever cared about her, the depth of the emotion and the power within her become explosive...

The first three books in the Shatter Me series are titled Shatter Me, Unravel Me and Ignite Me. They were published in the US in 2011, 2013 and 2014 respectively. The global publication date for the next part in the series Restore Me will be 6th March 2018 and Egmont will publish UK editions of Restore Me and the first three books in the series simultaneously.

"The Shatter Me series combines an epic fantasy world with a compelling romance that has enormous crossover appeal to both YA and adult fans", said the publisher.

Heaven said: "I was swept away by the power of Tahereh’s storytelling and am thrilled to bring her books, already beloved by millions of Shatter Me fans, to the UK. The publication of Restore Me is going to be a big global event that we are proud to be part of."

Mafi said: "I’m so thrilled to be working with the incredible team at Egmont. I can’t wait to share the Shatter Me universe with readers in the UK."

Mafi is based in the US. Her Shatter Me trilogy has sold over a million copies and has been published in over 30 languages worldwide, according to the publisher.

Restore Me publishes 6th March in ebook and 5th April 2018 in paperback.