Gollancz acquires the latest instalment of George R.R. Martin’s WILD CARDS series
We are delighted to announce the acquisition of High Stakes, book twenty-three in the WILD CARDS series, co-edited by #1 New York Times bestselling author George R.R. Martin and Melinda M. Snodgrass. High Stakes concludes the triad that comprises Fort Freak and Lowball; a novel of superheroes, villains and Lovecraftian horror.
Gollancz Senior Editor, Rachel Winterbottom, bought the rights from Chris Lotts at the Lotts Agency.
Rachel Winterbottom said: ‘It’s such a pleasure for us to publish the latest instalment of the absolutely incredible WILD CARDS series. There’s no other series quite like this: an epic shared universe, written by the very best in the genre. It depicts the most extraordinary heroes and villains as real, fallible human beings. Alternate history, superheroes, epic battles, gritty realism, bombshell twists – it’s perfect for both people who adore this genre, and those who are looking for something entirely new.’
Chris Lotts said: ‘George and I are very pleased that Gollancz is soon to publish this massive last volume in the Wild Cards trio of novels that began with Fort Freak and Lowball. It’s a rousing and very gritty story that shows Wild Cards at its best.’
High Stakes features the writing talents of Melinda M. Snodgrass, John Jos. Miller, David Anthony Durham, Caroline Spector, Stephen Leigh and Ian Tregillis.
Officer Francis Black of Fort Freak, vigilante joker Marcus ‘The Infamous Black Tongue’ Morgan and ace thief Mollie ‘Tesseract’ Steunenberg are stuck in Kazakhstan. There, the coldblooded Baba Yaga is forcing jokers into an illegal fighting ring, but her hidden agenda is much darker: her fighters’ deaths serve to placate a vicious monster from another dimension. When the last line of defence against this world weakens, all hell breaks loose. Literally. Can the most unlikely of heroes save the world?
High Stakes will be published in ebook on February 28th and paperback on May 4th 2017.
Rights to develop WILD CARDS for TV have been acquired by Universal Cable Productions, the team that brought you The Magicians and Mr. Robot, with the co-editor of WILD CARDS, Melinda Snodgrass as executive producer.