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Orbit pre-empts three ‘villainous’ fantasy novels for adults from Rees Brennan
Orbit has pre-empted three fantasy novels from YA author Sarah Rees Brennan, her first foray into adult fiction.
Editorial director Jenni Hill pre-empted world rights from Suzie Townsend at New Leaf Literary. Nivia Evans has acquired for Orbit US.
The first in the series, described as “a fantasy novel for anyone who has ever rooted for the villain”, Long Live Evil, sees a young woman wake in the dangerous fictional world of her favourite fantasy novel. Orbit plans to publish in July 2024.
Hill said: “I’ve followed Sarah’s career for a long time and admired her fantasy world-building, her audacious wit and her ability to create romances you can’t tear yourself away from. If you’ve ever been too obsessed with a fantasy TV show, read fan fiction, or wished that a fictional man was real, Long Live Evil is the book for you.
Townsend describes it as “clever, funny, romantic and page-turning” and “one of those perfect books for anyone who loves fantasy tropes and enjoys seeing them subverted”.
“Most of all, it’s a fun ride and is simply a joy to dive into amid everything going on in real life. This novel was a joy to share with editors and I am so thrilled that Jenni and the Orbit team love these characters as much as Sarah and I do,” she said.
Rees Brennan, who was a Lodestar, Mythopoeic and World Fantasy finalist, Carnegie nominee and New York Times bestseller with her YA fiction, commented: “After a life-threatening illness and during Europe’s longest lockdown, I had to write about escaping into the wild joys and perils of fiction. In my first adult work a dying young woman is offered the chance to live by stepping into the world of her favourite fantasy novel, where she must unite its villains in a scheme that will challenge our perception of evil.
“Long Live Evil asks why we laugh and weep with villains, why we desire them... and why we become them. I’ve read ground-breaking books from Orbit ever since I learned to read, and couldn’t be more thrilled to be published by the perfect partners.”
Her previous books include In Other Lands (Big Mouth House), Tales from the Shadowhunter Academy (Walker Books) and The Bane Chronicles (Walker Books).
