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Tor UK has signed "cosy fantasy" book The Spellshop and its sequel by American author Sarah Beth Durst.
Publishing director Gillian Green acquired UK and British Commonwealth rights, excluding Canada, from Chris Scheina, assistant director for rights at Macmillan USA. Tor UK will publish alongside Tor USA’s romance list Bramble US in July 2024 in hardback, trade paperback, audio and digital.
Described as "the hidden gem of the fantasy world", Durst is a fantasy writer and The Spellshop is the first book in a "cosy cottage core" series following a librarian named Kiela. The synopsis says: "As revolution threatens, Kiela flees the Great Library of Alyssium with as many spell books as she can carry, returning to her island home to build a new life and open a spell shop.
Green said: "T J Klune meets Travis Baldree in the cosiest of cosy romantic fantasies. We know that readers want more wholesome cosy love stories and Sarah is such a wonderful addition to our Tor publishing in this area. The Spellshop is sweeter and more magical than the jam Kiela makes.
"It’s an utter delight – enchantingly cosy cottage core and wonderful characters combine to make this the ultimate comfort read – it really is a warm hug of a novel."
Durst is the author of over 20 books for kids, teens, and adults, including Spark (Clarion Books) and Drink Slay Love (Margaret K McElderry Books). She won an American Library Association Alex Award and a Mythopoeic Fantasy Award and has been a finalist for SFWA’s Andre Norton Nebula Award three times.
She added: "I am thrilled, grateful, and honoured to be working with Gillian and the wonderful team at Tor UK on The Spellshop! These books are so very special to me — at the heart of my wheelhouse, filled with everything that I adore, from library books to fresh-baked bread to the smell of the sea to winged cats and talking plants.
"I’m loving every second of writing them, and I’m pouring every bit of joy and delight that I can into each chapter. The Spellshop is a slice of my heart (served with a dollop of jam!) and I can’t wait to share it with readers!"