Media Alert: Pan Macmillan to publish a new exciting trilogy!

PAN MACMILLAN BUYS NEW TRILOGY IN THE TRADITION OF JONATHAN STRANGE AND MR NORRELL
 

Pan Macmillan is delighted to report the acquisition of Sorcerer to the Crown by debut novelist Zen Cho. Senior Commissioning editor Bella Pagan bought UK and Commonwealth rights in this novel and two others by Cho from Penguin US. And this book generated a great deal of excitement, with auctions on both sides of the Atlantic.

Zen Cho’s creation is an irresistible combination of Georgette Heyer and Susanna Clarke, with a pinch of fairyland in a brilliantly-drawn Regency London setting. With the BBC TV series of Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell due in 2015, enthusiasm for this type of fiction will be running high.

In the novel, Cho draws us in with charismatic protagonists and sparkling plotting. Here Zacharias Wythe is England's first African Sorcerer Royal. But a faction schemes to remove him from his position by fair means or foul. He must also contend with the Fairy Court refusing to grant Britain the magical resources it needs and with pernicious rumours that he murdered his predecessor. However, his most outrageous problem yet is a female magical prodigy. Ambitious orphan Prunella Gentleman is desperate to escape the school where she’s drudged all her life. Now things are looking up – as she has just stumbled upon English magic's greatest discovery in centuries.

Zen Cho said: ‘I'm delighted that the book has found such a wonderful home in the UK. It's a great honour to join Pan Macmillan's fantastic list, and I know they will do a fabulous job of orchestrating Zacharias and Prunella's debut in society!’

Malaysian author Zen Cho lives in London and she is already building a name for herself. She was on a number of speaking panels at London’s Nine Worlds convention last year. She’s also had short stories published and was a finalist for the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer. 

Pagan shared her enthusiasm, saying:  ‘Sorcerer to the Crown is warm, clever and witty. I just adored the characters, their dilemmas and the lively world Zen Cho has created. It’s very special and I just can’t wait to share this wonderful book with as many readers as possible’.

Author Naomi Novik is already a big fan of the book, also finding it ‘an enchanting cross between Georgette Heyer and Susanna Clarke, full of delights and surprises.’

Pan Macmillan will be publishing Sorcerer to the Crown in Autumn 2015, with the two sequels to follow in due course.