August 4, 2010
LaDawn Black, relationship expert, author and radio personality is a finalist for the African American Literary Award in the erotic novel category. Black’s novel, TEASE: Steamy Short Stories, is one of four titles that are being considered for this distinction. The African American Literary Awards will be held on September 23rd at the Harlemstage Gatehouse in New York. Black says of her nomination, “I was surprised of course, but also pleased that TEASE is continuing to get noticed for its sexy and smart tales. TEASE is a great novel that I continue to think the world should know about. It is really an honor to be a nominee.” You can see all of the finalists and vote for TEASE: Steamy Short Stories at www.literaryawardshow.com through September.
LaDawn Black is a relationship expert, author and radio personality. Black hosts the #1 rated radio relationship show The Love Zone on Baltimore’s 92Q. Her third book and first novel, TEASE: Steamy Short Stories is in stores now. More information on LaDawn Black can be found at www.ladawnblack.com.
Original Fiction (Week Ending 24 July 2010)
1 BROKEN by Karin Slaughter (Century)
2 GHOST LIGHT by Joseph O’Connor (Harvill Secker)
3 THE TRUTH ABOUT YOU by Melissa Hill (Hodder & Stoughton Ltd)
4 CHAMPAGNE SECRETS by Amanda Brunker (Transworld Ireland)
5 THE BURNING WIRE by Jeffrey Deaver (Hodder & Stoughton Ltd)
Publishers Marketplace | July 27, 2010
World Spanish rights to Daniel Polansky’s THE STRAIGHT RAZOR CURE, to Jose Lopez Jara at Minotauro, for publication in Fall 2011, by Chris Kepner at Victoria Sanders & Associates.
ckepner@victoriasanders.com
Amber Entertainment and British supermarket chain Tesco have inked with bestselling crime novelist Karin Slaughter to produce dark comedy “Martin Misunderstood,” a direct-to-DVD feature that will be sold exclusively first at the retailer.
Atlanta Magazine | June 25, 2010
Fans of Atlanta thriller writer Karin Slaughter may soon be lining up at the cinema to catch a film adaptation of her darkly humorous murder mystery, “Martin Misunderstood.”
The Southern-set novella has been optioned for a film by Amber Entertainment.
While “Misunderstood” has only been officially released in the states as an audio book read by “Seinfeld” actor Wayne Knight, the paperback is a runaway hit overseas in the United Kingdom, Germany and Holland.
Contacted while on a book tour in Mobile Thursday, Slaughter was thoughtful enough to pause a moment to give Intel her ideal casting choices for the film version.
Via her literary agent Victoria Sanders, Slaughter spilled: “Celia Imrie is my dream choice for [Detective] Anther [Albada]. She’s a wonderful British actress and a good friend of mine. I could also happily see Helen Mirren as Martin’s mother. She can do anything. As for [nebbish Southern Toilet Supply toiler] Martin, he’s tough to cast because he’s both sympathetic and yet very annoying.”
Slaughter’s many local admirers will have a chance to congratulate her in person tonight when she’ll appear on a “Race & Literature: Writing Across Racial Lines” panel discussion with Mara Shalhoup, Denene Millner and Aliya S. King at the Auburn Avenue Research Library’s 4th floor auditorium downtown at 7 p.m.
GalleyCat | June 24, 2010
Thriller novelist Karin Slaughter inked a deal with Amber Entertainment to adapt her Martin Misunderstood novella into a film. The company has struck an “exclusive release” arrangement with the grocery and retail company Tesco.
The novella has only been released in the US as an audiobook, but the paperback has sold more than a million paperback copies in Holland and hundreds of thousands of copies in the UK and Germany.
Here’s more about the film’s unique distribution deal, from the release: “Martin Misunderstood will be part of an innovative and perhaps paradigm shifting deal with the European retail giant Tesco, the 2nd most profitable retailer in the world. The film will have an exclusive release through Tesco and will then be distributed throughout the rest of the territories.”
Publishers Marketplace | June 24, 2010
Film rights to Karin Slaughter’s crime novella, MARTIN MISUNDERSTOOD, available only as an audiobook in the US (but sold as a book in the UK, Germany and Holland), to Ileen Maisel and Shani Hinton at Amber Entertainment, for exclusive initial release through Tesco, by Angela Cheng Caplan at Cheng Caplan Company, and Victoria Sanders at Victoria Sanders & Associates.
The Bookseller | July 14, 2010
…half-price book of the week spots at both Waterstone’s and WHS helped Karin Slaughter achieve her strongest ever hardback sale. Broken (Century), her 10th thriller, sold 10,521 copies last week, up 351 copies on her previous personal best set by Fractured just over two years ago. Her two previous thrillers both sold more than 40,000 copies in hardback.
Publishers Marketplace | July 8, 2010
Croatian rights to Daniel Polansky’s THE STRAIGHT RAZOR CURE, to Branko Matijasevic at Znanje, for publication in Fall 2011, by Chris Kepner at Victoria Sanders & Associates.
ckepner@victoriasanders.com
Publishers Marketplace | July 13, 2010
French rights to Daniel Polansky’s THE STRAIGHT RAZOR CURE, to Stephane Marsan at Bragelonne, at auction, in a two-book deal, by Chris Kepner at Victoria Sanders & Associates.
ckepner@victoriasanders.com
De Bestseller 60 | July 7, 2010
Karin Slaughter is a master of the thriller genre; her latest book, Broken, is full of twists and turns and technical details. It revolves around two women: A police detective with a story to hide, and a medical examiner who finds herself drawn into a murder investigation in the town she used to call home.
In the latest installment of our Thrilled to Death series, Slaughter joins NPR’s Michele Norris to talk about Broken, and the books and authors that influenced her along the way.
Publishers Marketplace | June 28, 2010
German rights to Daniel Polansky’s THE STRAIGHT RAZOR CURE, to Carsten Polzin at Piper, at auction, for publication in Fall 2011, by Chris Kepner at Victoria Sanders & Associates.
ckepner@victoriasanders.com
The Wall Street Journal | June 18, 2010
Several times a year, Karin Slaughter leaves her pretty white Atlanta house, with its magnolia tree out front and flowers on the porch, and points her BMW sport-utility vehicle two hours north to a log cabin in the woods of northern Georgia. It’s here that Ms. Slaughter writes her best-selling crime novels…
The Bookseller | June 18, 2010
Hodder has acquired three fantasy novels for a “six-figure sum” from debut author Daniel Polansky.
Oliver Johnson, Hodder associate publisher, acquired British Commonwealth rights in the series from Chris Kepner of Victoria Sanders.
The first novel, The Straight Razor Cure, will be published in autumn 2011 and followed by two other novels featuring the same hero, Simeon Dubois.
Johnson said: “We are delighted at this acquisition which announces Hodder’s re-entry into the field of genre publishing after a gap of a few years.
“The Straight Razor Cure is a stellar novel with some of the most creative and imaginative writing I have read in years.”
Publishers Marketplace | June 17, 2010
Daniel Polansky’s THE STRAIGHT RAZOR CURE, an edgy noir/fantasy crossover pitched as Tarantino meets Tolkien, to Oliver Johnson at Hodder & Stoughton, at auction, in a three-book deal, for publication in Fall 2011, by Chris Kepner at Victoria Sanders & Associates.
ckepner@victoriasanders.com
June 2010 delivers 58 starred reviews from our two print issues and Xpress Reviews (online-only). Audio cranks it up with standout nonfiction from the likes of James Rawn Jr. and Sarah Rose. For all you summer fiction hounds, look no further than library favorite Karin Slaughter and award winner Dinaw Mengestu. Science will keep you engrossed with tales of a tiger (John Valliant) and bread (Amy Scherber).—Heather McCormack
Slaughter, Karin. Broken. Delacorte. Jul. 2010. c.416p. ISBN 978-0-385-34197-4. $26. F
Move over, Catherine Coulter—Slaughter may be today’s top female suspense writer.
Publishers Marketplace | May 25, 2010
Daniel Polansky’s THE STRAIGHT RAZOR CURE, an edgy noir/fantasy crossover pitched as Tarantino meets Tolkien, to Robert Bloom at Doubleday, at auction, for publication in Fall 2011, by Chris Kepner at Victoria Sanders & Associates (NA).
ckepner@victoriasanders.com
Publishers Weekly | May 24, 2010
Broken (Starred Review)
Karin Slaughter, Delacorte, $26 (416p) ISBN 978-0-385-34197-4
Slaughter brings her Grant County and Atlanta characters together for a second time (after Undone) in this superb thriller. When Dr. Sara Linton returns home to Grant County, Ga., for Thanksgiving, she hopes to steer clear of the police, especially Det. Lena Adams, whom she blames for the murder of her husband, police chief Jeffrey Tolliver. Yet when college student Allison Spooner is found dead in a lake and a local boy, Tommy Braham, is arrested for the murder, Sara reluctantly agrees to consult. The investigation soon spirals out of control after Tommy dies in custody. When Sara calls in Georgia Bureau of Investigation special agent Will Trent from Atlanta to take over the case, the local police greet Will’s arrival with suspicion. Will must weigh Sara’s personal vendetta against Detective Adams with the facts of the case, which grow more confusing the deeper he digs into the small county’s secrets. Slaughter keeps the emotional tension high throughout. (Pub Date: June 22, 2010)
Publishers Marketplace | May 14, 2010
Hungarian rights to Karin Slaughter’s INDELIBLE, to Ulpius-Haz, by Chris Kepner at Victoria Sanders & Associates, in his first deal for the agency, on behalf of Victoria Sanders.
ckepner@victoriasanders.com
Publishers Weekly | May 3, 2010
Atria’s Greer Hendricks bought two new novels by Sarah Pekkanen, whose just-published debut The Opposite of Me (Atria, Mar.), has already entered its third printing. Agent Victoria Sanders closed the deal with Hendricks, selling world English rights to the titles. The first book follows a woman whose husband wakes from a coma a changed man.
Young Adult Library Services Association | May 3, 2010
April 22 – April 24
Carl Hancock Rux: Poesia Negra: Race, Sex and the Myth of the American Mytopia
Famous for his dazzling spoken word acuity and alert cultural observation, the Alpert Award-winning poet, dramatist, fiction writer and musicmaker takes center stage in this intimate solo performance that blends paper-bag storytelling, hip-bop-fueled poetic reveries, and plenty of trenchant critical analysis on American mythologies and controversies new and old.
Jennifer Weiner, author of the best sellers Good in Bed and In Her Shoes, calls [Sarah Pekkanen’s] debut novel “fresh and funny and satisfying … made me laugh out loud.”
Library Journal | March 30, 2010>
On March 26, hundreds of librarians flocked to the vast Portland Ballroom for popular panel The Best in Mystery Authors Revealed, hosted by the Association of American Publishers’ (AAP) Trade Libraries Committee.
Leading off, veteran best selling Karin Slaughter, the author of Broken: A Novel (Delacorte Press/Random House, June 2010), revealed herself as a powerful advocate for rural libraries. (See the area on her web site specifically devoted to libraries.) Slaughter decried the continuing digital divide even as she called for libraries to be funded at similar levels as national security.
She followed up by teasing listeners with details of Broken, featuring Det. Lena Adams and body in a lake. In a recent Prepub Alert, LJ’s Barbara Hoffert has already predicted that libraries will respond to Slaughter’s fresh approach to “a standard set up.”
Reading Local: Portland | March 30, 2010
Karin Slaughter spoke first in her light drawl. She generalized about Southern writers, “The thing that drew us to the library at first was that it was air conditioned.” She stressed the importance of reading for developing cognitive powers and thus the ability to operate as a democracy. “The funding of schools and libraries is a matter of national security,” she said. Librarians cheered.
LA Books Examiner | March 8, 2010
But by far the best part of my job is when, within this mix, I find the work of a new writer whose debut work is a true discovery, the kind of book you can’t help but force onto your friends and loved ones as if you had something to do with it. I love that!
This is one of those rare times.
About nine months ago, I started following Sarah Pekkanen…
Publishers Weekly | March 3, 2010
HarperCollins and its Harper Perennial imprint have reached an agreement with the Zora Neale Hurston Trust that will allow the house to continue as the exclusive publisher of Zora Neale Hurston’s adult backlist for the next decade. Hurston, the renowned Harlem Renaissance-era writer and folklorist, is author of such classics as Their Eyes Were Watching God and Mules and Men. Fifty years after her death, Hurston’s books sell nearly 500,000 copies annually…
The Huffington Post | February 22, 2010
When Walker Percy won the National Book Award, he was asked why the South has so many great writers. His response was deceivingly simple: because we lost the war. While I think the south’s defeat in the Civil War certainly resonated for generations, when I am asked the same question (though under decidedly less auspicious circumstances) I generally refer to something Mr. Percy probably discounted: air conditioning.
TV by the Numbers | February 22, 2010
LIFETIME MOVIE NETWORK’S Sins of the Mother becomes second highest rated AND SECOND MOST WATCHED original movie in network history. Film based on Carleen Brice’s novel Orange Mint and Honey.
Generates 1.0 Among Women 18-34, 1.7 in Women 18-49 and 2.0 in Women 25-54, with 2.7 Total Viewers.
Kia Dupree makes her legacy published debut in the gritty touching novel, Damaged (Grand Central). The book is receiving phenomenal reviews by fans of urban fiction. Dupree is an example of the growing trend of urban self-published novelist who somehow break all odds and end up landing a traditional publishing deal…
WritersCast | January 29, 2010 and February 2, 2010
[Hold Love Strong by Matthew Aaron Goodman] is flat out one of the best books I have read in a long time. It begins with an incredible story that grabs you instantly and will not let go. I felt like I was holding my breath almost throughout the book. Matthew Aaron Goodman avoids cliches at every turn, loves his characters, demands respect for them from beginning to end, but never hides from the pain and suffering they experience. As readers, we feel like we are living in, through and with his characters, which is a triumph of both the author’s imagination and his deeply felt love for the people he writes about.
It’s difficult to believe that this is Goodman’s first novel. His mastery of language, his ability to inhabit the hearts and souls of his characters, and the simple clarity of his voice are all remarkable for any author, much less a first novelist. I was blown away, and have been recommending this book widely to friends and colleagues.
Premiering February 21, 2010 on Lifetime Movie Network (LMN), SINS OF THE MOTHER is based on Carleen Brice’s first novel, ORANGE MINT AND HONEY
Publishers Weekly | January 18, 2010
First Second editorial director Mark Siegel, a critically lauded cartoonist, children’s book illustrator and designer in his own right, is launching an original web comic, Sailor Twain or the Mermaid in the Hudson, that will begin serializing January 28 at SailorTwain.com with new material posted three days a week. And in an unusual move for a traditional book publisher, once completed Siegel’s web comic series will also be published as a book collection by First Second. The print book deal was negotiated by agent Tanya McKinnon of the Victoria Sanders & Associates.
The Globe and Mail | January 15, 2010
TELL MY HORSE
By Zora Neale Hurston (Harper Perennial, 2009)
An anthropological account of her field work on ritual in Jamaica and Haiti (especially voodoo) in the 1930s by an eminent writer of the Harlem Renaissance.
Publishers Marketplace | December 16, 2009
Norwegian rights to Amanda Kyle Williams’s THE STRANGER YOU SEEK, to Halfdan Freihow at Font, by Chandler Crawford Agency on behalf of Victoria Sanders & Associates.
The Washington Post | December 9, 2009
Those Roosevelt scalawags are at it again. Kermit, Ethel and Archie — endearingly obstreperous scions of America’s 26th president — unleashed all sorts of havoc in “Teddy Roosevelt and the Treasure of Ursa Major,” a children’s musical that frolicked into the Kennedy Center Family Theater three years ago. Now the show’s creators, dramatist Tom Isbell and songwriter-political satirist Mark Russell, have concocted an equally witty and winning sequel: “Teddy Roosevelt and the Ghostly Mistletoe,” a tale of holiday-themed high jinks at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.
Publishers Marketplace | December 3, 2009
Amy Yurk’s THE EVERY OTHER MOTHER, about a mother whose life spirals out of control when she descends into alcoholism, and her painful battle to get sober and regain custody of her beloved son, to Greer Kessel Hendricks at Atria, in a pre-empt, by Victoria Sanders at Victoria Sanders & Associates (NA).
Publishers Marketplace | November 30, 2009
German rights to Amanda Kyle Williams’ THE STRANGER YOU SEEK, to Alexander Fest and Kathrin Blum at Wunderlich, in a major deal, in a three-book deal, by Chandler Crawford Agency on behalf of Victoria Sanders & Associates.
O, The Oprah Magazine | December 2009
Carolina De Robertis’s The Invisible Mountain—about three generations of strong women whose passions play out against the politics of 20th-century South America—does what the best, most readable novels do: It tells a compelling human story about identity while also quietly evoking a place and time.
Publishers Marketplace | November 18, 2009
DEAL OF THE DAY
Amanda Kyle Williams’s THE STRANGER YOU SEEK, adopted by white southern parents as a child, a Chinese American former FBI profiler is a walking, talking, bundle of contradictions, constantly stumbling over herself as witnessed by her FBI career cut short by alcoholism; she is unofficially hired by her best friend and secret crush, an Atlanta police lieutenant, to find a serial killer wrecking havoc on the citizens of Atlanta, to Kate Miciak and Nita Taublib at Bantam Dell, in a major deal, in a three-book deal, for publication in Spring 2011, by Victoria Sanders at Victoria Sanders & Associates (NA).
Publishers Marketplace – 11-17-09
Simplified Chinese rights to J.A. Osborne’s THE EDITOR, to China Citic, in a nice deal, in a pre-empt, by Gray Tan at The Grayhawk Agency on behalf of Chandler Crawford Agency and Victoria Sanders & Associates.
The Bookseller | October 29, 2009
Century is to continue publishing thriller author Karin Slaughter, having signed a deal for a further two novels via agent Victoria Sanders.
Kate Elton, Century and Arrow publisher, acquired UK and Commonwealth rights for an undisclosed sum. The first book in the new contract will be published in hardback by Century in 2011 and in Arrow paperback the following year.
Elton said: “I’m so thrilled that we have a new deal in place with Karin. In the eight years since we launched her first novel, Blindsighted, she’s grown to become one of the world’s biggest thriller writers and the whole team at Century and Arrow are looking forward to building her to even more stratospheric levels in the future.”
Last year, Century carried out a major market research project, which led to a complete repackage for 2009 and resulted in 30% sales growth year on year. Slaughter’s next thriller from a previous deal, entitled Broken, will be published in July 2010.
Slaughter said: “I am delighted to ink a new multi-book deal with Kate and the team at Century and Arrow.”
—Catherine Neilan
Publishers Marketplace – 10-21-09
German rights to J.A. Osborne’s THE EDITOR, in which a serial killer re-enacts and attempts to perfect some of the most famous serial killings of the 20th century, and THE RACE MASTER, to Jan Wielputz at Lubbe, in a good deal, by Chandler Crawford and Victoria Sanders.
Publishers Marketplace – 10-20-09
Complex Chinese rights to Carolina De Robertis’s THE INVISIBLE MOUNTAIN, to Commonwealth, in a nice deal, at auction, by Gray Tan at The Grayhawk Agency, in association with Chandler Crawford Agency and Victoria Sanders & Associates.
The Denver Post – 10-11-09
Carleen Brice is getting recognized.
Sure, the smattering of freckles splashed across her honey complexion paired with her thick mane of light- brown dreadlocks lend to the writer’s significant presence.
But 12 years after buying her one-story, two-bedroom house in Park Hill, and a decade after publishing her first book, the Denver author is now spotted by strangers for her work, not her memorable looks.
Heeb Magazine – 10-02-09
Publishers Marketplace – 9-22-09
John Osborne’s THE EDITOR, in which a serial killer re-enacts and attempts to perfect some of the most famous serial killings of the 20th century, and THE RACE MASTER, to Kate Elton at Century, for publication in Spring 2011, by Victoria Sanders and Chandler Crawford (World English).
Variety – 09-15-09
Publishers Weekly – 08-17-09
Publishers Weekly – 08-10-09
IndieBound August 2009 Indie Next List
Reuters – 07-15-09
Publishers Weekly – 06-01-09
Publishers Weekly – 05-04-09
USA Today – 05-06-09
