Valiant Entertainment and Blackstone Publishing have announced the inaugural titles and authors for their joint novel venture.
The press release follows:
Media Release -- Valiant Entertainment and Blackstone Publishing are proud to announce the inaugural titles in their trade publishing program. The newly created Valiant imprint will feature all new stories with some of Valiant's most popular and beloved characters.
BLOODSHOT: AWAKENING
Fred Van Lente, an award-winning New York Times-bestseller who has previously worked on Valiant's Archer & Armstrong, will be reimagining Valiant's blockbuster character in this young adult novel as an eighteen-year-old who wakes up in a laboratory with no memory of who he is or why he has such incredible powers. Breaking out of his imprisonment with nanite-powered blood, Angelo finds himself on the run, trying to piece together his memories and fight back against the sinister forces chasing him.
SHADOWMAN: THE ABYSS STARES BACK
Debut novelist Shola Adedeji dives into the shadow world of New Orleans in this terrifying new take on Shadowman. Jack Boniface returns to New Orleans after being away for years because his father has died. Jack tries to reacclimate himself to his hometown, but things have changed so much. There seem to be dark forces at work. And then Jack finds out that his father was The Shadowman, a supernatural warrior. Jack now finds himself pulled into a much larger, terrifying world, and must assume his father's mantle.
LIVEWIRE: CIRCUIT BREAKER
Author of the Effigies book series Sarah Raughley electrifies with a new story starring Livewire. This young adult novel is about a teen girl who has lived in foster care for most of her life. She becomes the ward of the incredibly wealthy Toyo Harada, only to discover that he has nefarious plans for her technopathic powers (and the world).
THE ETERNAL WARRIOR: SERVANTS OF THE DEAD
Ari Marmell, who has written for Star Wars, Dungeons & Dragons, and Magic: The Gathering, travels through the centuries with The Eternal Warrior. In this epic that spans hundreds of years, culminating with a battle in the streets of modern-day New York City, Gilad Anni-Padda finds that the mistakes made generations earlier continue to haunt him, and must battle to save his soul and the entire world itself.
Fred Pierce, Valiant's Publisher, commented, "We're very excited for this new partnership with Blackstone Publishing. Here at Valiant Entertainment, our focus has always been on strong storytelling and excellent character development. Those elements aren't exclusive to comics so having the chance to explore the Valiant Universe in other forms of publishing is always a thrill for us."
Rick Bleiweiss, Blackstone's Head of New Business Development, added, "I am so pleased that we are going to be publishing Valiant's fabulous comic book characters in newly written full novels. I know that their existing fan base will love these books and stories, and it will give many more people exposure to the worlds and figures Valiant has created that so many of their ardent followers regularly enjoy."
Brendan Deneen, Blackstone's Director of Media, TV, & Film and an editor at the company, is running point on the publishing program. "I'm excited to have worked with the Valiant team to find the perfect prose authors for these books and develop exhilarating takes for this amazing comics library. This is a great chance to bring in new readers to the Valiant Universe while also staying true to what makes these characters so iconic in the first place."
About DMG Entertainment
DMG Entertainment is a global media and entertainment company based in Beverly Hills, CA. Founded by Dan Mintz, the company portfolio has grown to include diverse holdings across film, television, comic book publishing, gaming, and location-based entertainment. Operating as both a production and distribution entity, DMG Entertainment is best known for films such as Looper and Iron Man 3, and the #1 box-office release of Bloodshot feature starring Vin Diesel.
About Valiant Entertainment
Valiant Entertainment, a subsidiary of DMG Entertainment, founded by Dan Mintz, is a leading character-based entertainment company that owns and controls the third most extensive library of superheroes behind Marvel and DC. With more than 90 million issues sold and a library of over 2,000 characters, including X-O Manowar, Bloodshot, Harbinger, Shadowman, Archer & Armstrong, and many more, Valiant is one of the most successful publishers in the history of the comic book medium.
About Blackstone Publishing
Founded in 1987, Blackstone continues to pioneer new and creative ways to bring stories to life. With multiple New York Times Best Sellers, Grammy award-winning audio productions, and three books placed on the New York Times Best Books of the Year list, Blackstone has firmly positioned itself as one of America's fastest growing and respected publishing houses. A truly independent, privately owned publisher, with offices on both coasts, Blackstone is home to a vibrant and eclectic community of storytellers and story lovers, offering hundreds of new titles each month to its catalog of 19,000+ books. The authors published are as varied as the books themselves, with works by some of the biggest names in literature including Gabriel García Márquez, Ayn Rand, Ian Fleming, George Orwell, Robert Heinlein, James Clavell, as well as more contemporary authors like Neil deGrasse Tyson, Karin Slaughter, Robert Downey Jr., Jeneva Rose, Norman Reedus, and many more.