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Penguin snaps up 'compulsive and heart-wrenching' YA romantasy from Kika Hatzopoulou
Penguin has snapped up a YA romantasy from the author of the Threads That Bind duology, Kika Hatzopoulou. Editorial director Amina Parchment-Youssef acquired UK and Commonwealth rights to Moth Dark from Kim Ryan, senior director of subsidiary rights at Penguin Young Readers. Moth Dark will publish in October 2025, in collaboration with Putnam, Penguin US.
The standalone novel follows the success of her debut, which published in 2023 and became a bestseller, as well as being given a monthly slot with the subscription box FairyLoot.
Moth Dark is a "compulsive and heart-wrenching tale that follows a girl deeply drawn to the dark and the shadowy, magical, genderfluid prince she falls for".
The synopsis reads: "Six years ago, vicious creatures began to crawl out of the dark crevices of the world, and with it Sascia’s fascination with the darkness was born. Now 18, that fascination has become an obsession, and while exploring an area known for its connection to the Darkworld, Sascia sees a person climb out of the darkness. But Nugau is no ordinary person, they’re an elf prince with one mission... to kill Sascia."
However, the second time Nugau encounters Sascia, they are younger and do not seem to know Sascia, and on a third occasion "Nugau stumbles out of the darkness with poison running through their veins, expressing their undying love for her".
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It continues: "Piecing together the puzzle, Sascia makes two shocking discoveries: the timelines of her world and Nugau’s are not linear, and she is inexplicably enmeshed in a war between humanity and elves. But with their worlds at battle, is it worth fighting for each other."
Hatzopoulou said: "From the very beginning, Amina and the wonderful team at Penguin were as entranced with the Dark as our main character Sascia is—and just as in love with its prince. Similar to my debut duology, Moth Dark is a very loose, very strange reimagining of Greek myth, this time of Ariadne and the Labyrinth, and I’m over the moon that it has found such a welcoming, enthusiastic home at Penguin."
Parchment-Youssef said: "Moth Dark is Kika’s most exciting and ambitious YA novel to date, combining star-crossed lovers, genre-bending magic, time travel and an action-packed adventure in a contemporary fantasy setting. Her existing fanbase is going to go wild for this story, but we know the concept is going to speak to an even wider audience too. Penguin are so proud to continue to publish Kika on our best-in-class YA list."
Penguin will publish Moth Dark in October 2025.
