TRANSLATION RIGHTS - Little, Brown Book Group

*DOUGHNUT by Tom Holt
Science Fiction | 400pp | Orbit | March 2013
From one of the best-loved comic writers in fantasy fiction comes another absurdly witty science fiction title -
perfect for fans of Douglas Adams or Terry Pratchett
The doughnut is a thing of beauty. A circle of fried doughy perfection. A source of comfort in trying times,
perhaps. For Theo Bernstein, however, it is far, far more. Things have been going pretty badly for Theo
Bernstein. An unfortunate accident at work has lost him his job (and his work involved a Very Very Large
Hadron Collider, so he's unlikely to get it back). His wife has left him. And he doesn't have any money. Before
Theo has time to fully appreciate the pointlessness of his own miserable existence, news arrives that his good
friend Professor Pieter van Goyen, renowned physicist and Nobel laureate, has died. By leaving the
apparently worthless contents of his safety deposit to Theo, however, the professor has set him on a quest of
epic proportions. A journey that will rewrite the laws of physics. A battle to save humanity itself. This is the tale
of a man who had nothing and gave it all up to find his destiny - and a doughnut. Tom Holt's first book was
published when he was just thirteen and, to his horror, he was hailed as an infant prodigy. While studying at
Oxford, however, he discovered bar billiards and turned from poetry to comic fiction.
US rights Orbit US
*BEFORE THE FALL (Book Two in The Rojan Dizon Novels) by Francis Knight
Fantasy | 384pp | Orbit | June 2013
Mahala. City of contrasts. Sun and hope. Dark and despair.
With the destruction of their main power source, the towering city of Mahala is in crisis. Drop in a murder that
divides all sides, and what you get is mayhem. With the city verging on a riot, Rojan is trying to keep his head
down and his mind off the beautiful Jake, but it‟s easier said than done. He and a few other mages have
managed to get some power back to the city, and they‟re hopeful that they won‟t get executed for using
their magic. But when a former Downsider and emerging mage is found murdered, everyone thinks they
know who did it. Only trouble is, none of them agree. Rojan‟s bad day gets worse when he almost becomes
the next victim. But his worst nightmare is just around the corner. When he discovers the killer‟s identity, he‟s
either going to be responsible for the collapse of the Ministry and all-out anarchy, or responsible for a war with
Mahala‟s neighbouring countries that no one has seen coming or is prepared for. And there‟s nothing Rojan
hates more than being responsible.
FADE TO BLACK (Book One in The Rojan Dizon Novels) by Francis Knight
Fantasy | 384pp | Orbit | February 2013 | Korea -- | Japan: EAJ
The first title in a thrilling debut fantasy series set in the vertical city of Mahala.
FADE TO BLACK is set in Mahala: a city built in the dark depths of a valley. A city built up in
layers, not across – where streets are built upon streets, buildings balance precariously upon
buildings. A city that the Ministry rules from its lofty perch at the sunlit summit, and where the
forsaken lurk in the shadowy depths of its lower levels. Our main character Rojan is a bounty
hunter trying to make his way in the city. Everyone knows he‟s a womaniser, a shirker of all
responsibility, but they don‟t know he‟s also a pain-mage: able to draw magic from his own
& other people‟s pain. He‟s not keen on using it, but when his niece is abducted he may just
have to unleash his power. The big attraction of this book is the fact that it blends a
wonderfully original fantasy world (which evokes the superb imagination of China Mieville)
with a very commercially-appealing and accessible voice. Francis Knight has held a variety
of jobs from being a groom in the Balearics, where she punched a policeman and got away
with it, to an IT administrator. When not living in her own head, she enjoys SF&F geekery,
WWE geekery, teaching her children Monty Python quotes, and boldly going and seeking
out new civilizations.
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