Hot Key Books snares James’ ‘spellbinding’ YA fantasy debut in five-way auction

Hot Key Books has acquired the “spellbinding” pirate adventure Capitana and its sequel by debut YA author Cassandra James.

Ella Whiddett, commissioning editor, acquired English language UK and Commonwealth rights for two books from Alessandra Birch on behalf of Andrea Morrison at Writers House in a “hotly contested” five-way auction. Capitana will be publishing in the UK and in the US in early 2025 with the sequel to follow in 2026.

The duology will follow Ximena Reale, who has trained for eight years to become one of the black-cloaked Cazadores, seafaring hunters who capture the pirates pillaging the Luzan Empire.

The synopsis goes on: “And although she is the top candidate at La Academia, that will not be enough for a daughter of the notorious Reales – pirate captains who were executed for their crimes against the empire. Especially when she’s competing for the top spot with Dante De León, the pompous and infuriating son of Luza’s High Minster.

“So when the legendary pirate Gasparilla attacks Luza, Ximena leaps at the chance to catch him and prove her worth. But no matter how far Ximena sails, her family’s legacy continues to haunt her, and her exposure to a world outside La Academia makes her question the very laws she’s always fought to uphold.”

James said: “Working with the team at Hot Key has been a dream come true. They believed in Ximena from moment one, and I couldn’t have asked for better champions for her story. Now I’m just counting down the days until we can bring Ximena’s world of pirates, Cazadores and magic to readers.”

Whiddett said: “This is YA fantasy at its absolute best: a truly compulsive adventure, original storytelling, rich and authentic Latinx-inspired world-building, a swashbuckling cast of unforgettable characters, and of course, a deliciously slow burn rivals-to-lovers romance. Cassandra is a writer to watch and we can’t wait to open the doors to La Academia in 2025.”

James recently graduated from Princeton University. She was inspired to write Capitana by the Floridian legend of the pirate captain Gasparilla, and drew from various aspects of pirate history – including the real-life Republic of Pirates which was founded by Blackbeard and others – to create the fictional empire of Luza.