Gollancz seizes queer romantasy by ecology professor in six-figure pre-empt

Gollancz has acquired The Phoenix Keeper, described as queer romantasy, by ecology professor and début author S A MacLean in a six-figure pre-empt deal for three books.

Editorial director Bethan Morgan pre-empted world all language rights from John Baker at Bell Lomax Moreton, with Priyanka Krishnan, senior editor, acquiring North American rights for Orbit US. Simultaneous publication is planned for summer 2024 in hardback, e-book, and audiobook, followed by two further titles in 2025 and 2026 respectively.

The Phoenix Keeper is described as “an irresistible romantasy standalone set in a magical zoo of mythical creatures". The publisher says: “With this début, MacLean has drawn on her decade of experience in researching and teaching ecology and environmental science to weave a story of hope, courage and conservation that is, at its heart, a defiant ode to queer joy.”

The Phoenix Keeper follows the academic rivals-to-lovers slowburn between socially anxious phoenix keeper Aila and hotshot fan-favourite griffin keeper Luciana as they unwittingly fall for each other while navigating fraught zoo politics and fighting off vicious poacher attacks during their fierce crusade to save their endangered residents.

Morgan said: “I wanted to work with Sarah within about five seconds of reading this book. I didn’t know I needed a fantasy love letter to San Diego Zoo and the sensational salvation of the Californian condor until the name S A MacLean wove a rainbow over my winter inbox. It’s quite simply an unstoppable juggernaut of joy that will blast through next summer’s bookish landscape and remind us all why we read."

MacLean added: “Writing The Phoenix Keeper has been my uncompromising ode to joy in a time when hope has often felt hard to find. This book is for all the nerds who hoarded dragon stories in our youth and deserve just as much whimsy now that we’ve grown up. It’s for that shy, anxious introvert who always found animals easier to talk to than people, trying to grow out of her shell without losing herself. It’s a tribute to unflinching friendships.”