A 21-year-old young adult (YA) author has signed up to a seven-figure deal for 2 novels.
An imprint of Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group, Feiwel and Friends, announced that it would publish Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé’s Ace of Spades in June 2021, with the author’s second novel (as yet untitled) following after.
Ace of Spades has been described as ‘Gossip Girl’ crossed with ‘Get Out’, depicting two Black students at a majority white private school involved in a “disturbing and deadly game.”
“Welcome to Niveus Private Academy, where money paves the hallways, and the students are never less than perfect. Until now. Because anonymous texter, Aces, is bringing two students’ dark secrets to light. Talented musician Devon buries himself in rehearsals, but he can’t escape the spotlight when his private photos go public. Head girl Chiamaka isn’t afraid to get what she wants, but soon everyone will know the price she has paid for power. Someone is out to get them both. Someone who holds all the aces. And they’re planning much more than a high-school game…”
Àbíké-Íyímídé currently resides in London and attends university in the Scottish Highlands where she studies studies English, Chinese and Anthropology,.
Speaking to the press in a statement, Àbíké-Íyímídé says: “I hope readers in the U.S. see that Black people belong in stories like ‘Gossip Girl’ and ‘Pretty Little Liars,’ and that above everything else we deserve happy endings.”
“Ace of Spades is my love letter to Black queer kids, Black kids who love mysteries and thrillers, Black kids who need hope, but most of all it is for Black people to see that not only is it possible for us to get a happy ending regardless of what we’ve been through, but that we deserve them,” she says on her website.
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