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NEWS


HEATED RIVALRY by Rachel Reid made The New York Times Bestsellers List. It has been burning up social media with every new episode of the runaway hit HBO adaptation. Meanwhile the Game Changers series by Reid (pictured at left with TV series stars Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie) was featured on CNN as a breakout success, praised in Rolling Stone as “a Canadian romance series turning heads,” and highlighted by TV Insider for its heartfelt queer-romance storyline.

DATING AND DRAGONS by Kristy Boyce placed #3 in the Young Adult Fiction category of the Goodreads Choice Awards 2025, an outstanding recognition celebrating the year’s most beloved YA novels.

EMBER ETERNAL by Chloe Neill, THE HAUNTING OF PAYNES HOLLOW by Kelley Armstrong, THE PLACE WHERE THEY BURIED YOUR HEART by Christina Henry, HEATED RIVALRY by Rachel Reid, and THE BONES BENEATH MY SKIN by T.J. Klune were all named to Library Journal’s “Stellar Selections – Best Books of 2025” list.

MISDIRECTED by Lucy Parker was featured on AudioFile Magazine’s Best Audiobooks of 2025 list, where it was recognized as one of the standout audio releases of the year.

THE SHARK HOUSE by Sarah Ackerman was recently recommended by authors Lee Kelly and Jennifer Thorne in People Magazine as one of their most anticipated books of 2026. The novel was also included in BookBub’s “Best Books Coming Out This Winter” list.


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AUTHOR TIP OF THE MONTH

Sara Ackerman is the Hawai'i born, bestselling author of historical & contemporary novels set in the islands. THE SHARK HOUSE is her upcoming novel.

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Sara's Tip:

Write in scenes as much as possible. This allows a reader to feel like they are IN the story and living vicariously through the characters. Everyone always says “show, don’t tell,” and writing in scenes is the best way to do this. Instead of telling the reader what happened, you are walking them through the experience in real time, blow by blow. Think of it like watching a movie, as opposed to having someone read you a story, saying first this happened and then this.  Your goal is really to have the reader feel like they are there. When crafting your scenes, you need action, but you also need dialogue and imagery—sights and sounds and smells. Scenes propel a story forward.

RECENT DEALS

Kelley Armstrong's FAKE FINAL GIRL, about a young woman whose amazing escape from a college party turned slaughterhouse has been told in both book and film—but it's not the full story, and now she finds herself facing a killer determined to finish what he started—to Michael Homler at St. Martin's in a good two-book deal, by Lucienne Diver

Huck Kahng's THE BOOK OF KOREAN FOLKLORE, a guide that profiles 40 gods, monsters, spirits, and heroes, blending cultural context with Korean-language cues and pronunciations, to Rebecca Tarr Thomas at Adams Media in a nice deal, by Travis Pennington

JP Rindfleisch IX's MOSSWOOD APOTHECARY, following a botanical alchemist who gets a remote research assignment after a botched experiment and must study a mysterious loss of magic while contending with stubborn townspeople (including an all-too-handsome carpenter) before the year is up, to Chantelle Aimee Osman at Simon Maverick, in a nice two-book deal for publication in fall 2026, by Elaine Spencer

TJ Klune's SOMEWHERE BEYOND THE SEA, to Simon Chuang at Spring International (Taiwan) in a nice deal, by Gray Tan at The Grayhawk Agency on behalf of Lucienne Diver

NEW RELEASES

KINGDOM OF TODAY by Gena Showalter

KINGDOM OF TODAY by Gena Showalter

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When Arden Roosa returns to Fort Bala Royal Academy, nothing is as it was. No longer just a lady-in-training, she’s now the infamous girlfriend of High Prince Cyrus Dolion—and the woman who brought down a king. Her reward? Round-the-clock guards and the attention of a royal executioner with secrets. But Arden has secrets too. As a double agent slipping between worlds to decode forbidden prophecy, she knows what’s coming. Sleeping gods are stirring, and a war igniting. With only a spark, everyone will burn.

TROUBLE IN WEST TEXAS by Karen Whiddon

TROUBLE IN WEST TEXAS by Karen Whiddon

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He must uncover the truth behind some deadly Texas secrets…

His brother’s murder has brought Mac Sennett home. After seeking out Ella Lindie, the woman who knew his brother best, he’s floored by the power of his attraction to her. Ella maintains she has no idea why someone would want to kill the local rancher, and Mac soon suspects a larger conspiracy is at play in their small Texas town. Then both receive threats demanding the return of something his brother “borrowed,” and they discover a connection to a dangerous extremist group. Now, as they’re targeted for violence, they can’t let the growing intensity of their desire for each other distract them…if they hope to survive.

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