Simon & Schuster will publish John Irving‘s new novel QUEEN ESTHER on November 4, 2025. The novel revisits the orphanage in St. Cloud’s, Maine that provides the setting for Irving’s novel The Cider House Rules. It follows “Esther Nacht, a Viennese-born Jew,” who is abandoned at age four and taken in at age fourteen by “a philanthropic New England family, becoming both a mystery and a guardian angel to them.” The novel ends in Jerusalem in 1981. Simon & Schuster president and ceo Jonathan Karp acquired audio, first serial, US and open market rights from Janet Turnbull at The Turnbull […]
Archives for February 2025
Open Road Highlights Growth, Consumer Reach
In his yearly letter to employees, Open Road ceo David Steinberger notes the company’s growth, and its success in targeting readers. The number of titles in Ignition, Open Road’s ebook backlist marketing program, increased 44 percent, “the largest annual title increase in our history.” Steinberger also notes that the Amazon star ratings for Ignition titles has increased over time. According to data shared with PL, 50 percent of books with a rating of 3.1–3.3 made it to 4 stars within 3–5 years. That number goes up to 58 percent for books that started with a 3.4–3.6 rating and 59 percent for […]
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Spotify Adds Titles From Podium Entertainment and Crooked Lane/Alcove Press
Spotify announced has added titles from two new publishers to its Premium catalog: science fiction, fantasy, and romance publisher Podium Entertainment and Crooked Lane/Alcove Press. Some of the Podium titles will feature video clips (described by the streaming service as “an interview snippet, a backstage video from the audio recording session, a video message from the author, or something else”), which Spotify started testing over the summer. Crooked Lane and Alcove titles will hit the platform in March. They have a first look deal with Spotify and recently collaborated on titles including The Darkest Night, I’ve Got My Mind Set on […]
Six Publishers and Authors Guild Sue Over Idaho Book Ban Law
Six publishers—Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group, HarperCollins Publishers, Macmillan Publishers, Simon & Schuster, and Sourcebooks—have filed suit challenging a book banning law in Idaho that went into effect on July 1, 2024. The publishers are joined as plaintiffs by Authors Guild; authors Malinda Lo, David Levithan, and Dashka Slater; the Donnelly Public Library District; a teacher; two students; and two parents. The law, HB 710, affects both public and school libraries. Like other book banning laws, it prevents minors of any age from accessing any books with “sexual content,” with a definition of the term that’s “exceptionally broad, vague, […]