Jen Klonsky and Ruta Rimas at Berkley XO, the YA-adult crossover imprint launched by Penguin Books for Young Readers and Berkley Books in July, preempted North American rights to Charlotte B. Plumb’s romantasy Reap & Sow for its inaugural list, the publisher announced today. The deal was brokered by Pete Knapp and Stuti Telidevara of Park, Fine, & Brower Literary Management. Publication is slated for October 2026, with simultaneous global co-publication by Penguin Random House in the U.K., Germany, Spain, Latin America, and Brazil.
The publisher called Plumb’s debut novel a “steamy, slow-burn romantasy full of illicit pacts and dark magic about a young woman [Eda] who bargains with a demon to save her brothers only to lose her heart,” adding that the manuscript received multiple offers before landing at PRH.
“Reap & Sow was an absolute must-have for Berkley XO,” said Klonsky, president and publisher of Putnam Books for Young Readers and Dial Books for Young Readers, who also leads acquisitions for Berkley XO. “The read is smart, surprising, sly, and sexy, filled with characters you love (or love to hate) and set in a completely realized world. I don’t know how Charlotte was able to give us such a satisfying story that pairs high stakes and poignant scenes, raw heat and a most tender love story, with appeal for readers around the world.”
PRH’s global team also expressed excitement about Plumb’s debut, including Laia Zamarrón, literary director of Alfaguara IJ at Grupo Editorial, PRH’s Spanish-language division, who called it “the next great romance phenomenon.”
Berkley XO, which was founded in response to the popularity of genre titles like Plumb’s across age groups, is the only PRH imprint publishing Reap & Sow as a crossover title, rather than as YA. In July, Christine Ball, who oversees Berkley XO’s publishing strategy alongside Jennifer Loja, said that Berkley XO’s goal was to meet the needs of a market where the “lines adult and young adult fiction continue to blur.”
Per a spokesperson, Berkley XO will announce the other two titles on its inaugural list over the next month.