Simon and Schuster Acquires Young Adult Space Series, DEVASTATION CLASS

Saga Press, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, announced today that they have acquired the publishing rights in a two-book deal to Glen Zipper and Elaine Mongeon's new science fiction series, Devastation Class. The series is about an unlikely group of young cadets forced to commandeer a decommissioned Devastation-Class starship to save Earth from a ferocious alien race. Devastation Class will be published in 2017.

Victorious over the Kastazi, a treacherous race of alien conquerors, Earth repurposes its powerful fleet of starships on missions of learning and exploration. Under the command of Captain Philip Marshall and First Officer Whitney Nixon, the Alliance flagship UAS California embarks upon its first peacetime journey with a skeleton crew of seasoned officers and inexperienced young cadets in tow. For cadets JD Marshall and Viv Nixon, the mission holds special meaning. It offers an opportunity to prove themselves and begin to escape the long shadows of their legendary war hero parents. Suddenly ambushed by a second wave of invading Kastazi forces, JD and Viv make the impossible decision to spearhead a mutiny to save the California and everyone on it. In command and quickly out of options, they are forced to activate the ship's prototype Blink Reactor - an experimental technology that seemingly sends them to the unimaginable distant reaches of space. Earth's survival will hinge on them finding a way home. Standing in their way are an insurmountable enemy, a mystery eons in the making and the fabric of time, space and reality itself.

The two-book deal was brokered by Joe Monti and Navah Wolfe of Saga Press and Charlie Olsen of Inkwell Management. Simon & Schuster acquired North American rights.

Wolfe commented, "We're thrilled to be publishing Devastation Class, the first in an epic space opera series with a smart twist that fans of both Battlestar Galactica and The Lord of the Flies will love."

Glen Zipper was one of the producers of the 2012 Academy Award-winning documentary, Undefeated. In 2015 he is the producer of such highly anticipated documentary titles as Rodney Ascher's The Nightmare, Alex Winter's Deep Web and David Gelb's A Faster Horse. He is also the executive producer of Colin Hanks' upcoming directorial debut All Things Must Pass. He is repped by attorney Bill Jacobson of Jacobson, Russell, Saltz, Nassim & De La Torre.

Elaine Mongeon is Associate Producer on the upcoming feature Magic Mike XXL and the new Amazon Studios series Red Oaks. She has worked with director/producer/writer Gregory Jacobs, director/executive producer Alex Graves, and producer Arnold Kopelson on projects that include The Knick, Behind the Candelabra, Magic Mike, Contagion, Haywire, The Informant!, The West Wing, and Don't Say a Word. She is repped by attorneys Amy Nickin and Mark Merriman of Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz.

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