Book News! Grand Central Publishing Announces the Acquisition of Meredith Wild's #1 NYT Bestselling Hacker Series

GRAND CENTRAL PUBLISHING ANNOUNCES THE ACQUISITION OF MEREDITH WILD’S #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING HACKER SERIES

The Five-Book Series Will Be Published by Forever, an Imprint of Grand Central Publishing 

New York, NY—April 7, 2015

Grand Central Publishing (GCP), a division of Hachette Book Group, is excited to announce the acquisition for its Forever imprint of the Hacker Series, five novels by #1 New York Times bestselling author Meredith Wild.  Leah Hultenschmidt, Editorial Director of Forever, acquired world rights in a significant seven-figure deal brokered by Kimberly Brower of the Rebecca Friedman Literary Agency.  The first four books in the series, which were originally self-published by the author – Hardwired, Hardpressed, Hardline and Hard Limit – will be released as Forever ebook editions on April 7 with Forever trade paperback editions following on May 12.  The highly anticipated fifth and final book in the series, Hard Love, will be released simultaneously in both ebook and trade paperback editions on September 15. 

Rights to the Hacker Series have already been sold in 12 countries, including Transworld in the UK, who will also release their edition of the first four e-books on April 7. 

The Hacker Series is a major self-publishing success story.  The series has already sold 1.2 million ebooks and approximately 200,000 print-on-demand trade paperbacks. 

National accounts like Barnes & Noble and Hastings initially placed modest orders, but found they had to reorder frequently to keep the books on the shelves.   “The rapid sales of Wild’s Hacker books caught my attention,” says Jules Herbert, Romance Buyer at Barnes & Noble.  “Wild is definitely an author to watch.”

Meredith Wild, a Smith graduate and former tech entrepreneur, had always aspired to write fiction.  In 2013, after devouring a number of romances, she wrote Hardwired, a novel about young, savvy businesswoman Erica Hathaway and the intensely powerful relationship she develops with charismatic billionaire Blake Landon.  The book struck a chord with fans and appeared on USA Today’s bestseller list. 

As each new book in the series was released, Wild’s audience grew exponentially.  All four books have landed on major national bestseller lists, with the most recent title, Hard Limit, debuting at #1 on both the New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller lists in December 2014. 

Of her decision to ink a deal with a major publisher, Wild said, “I know that Blake and Erica will be in good hands with the Forever team. The past two years have been an incredible whirlwind experience for me, and I'm thrilled that this partnership will allow me to devote more of my time to writing."

“We are absolutely delighted to have Meredith Wild join the GCP and Forever family,” said Jamie Raab, President and Publisher of GCP.  “She’s an incredibly savvy businesswoman who has accomplished so much on her own, and we’re thrilled to be able to expand upon her amazing success and put the Hacker series in the hands of even more readers.”

Leah Hultenschmidt said of the Hacker Series, “Readers find Meredith’s smart, accomplished heroine a refreshing change, and the books are completely addicting.  I’m so excited to have the Hacker Series as part of the Forever list.”   

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About Meredith Wild

Meredith Wild is an internationally bestselling author of romantic fiction.  In the US her books have placed on the New York Times, Wall Street Journal and USA Today bestsellers lists as well as being named to Amazon’s Top-Selling Books of 2014 list. When not writing, Meredith refers to herself as a techie, whiskey-appreciator, and hopeless romantic.  She lives in the White Mountains of New Hampshire with her husband and three children and online at MeredithWild.com or Facebook.com/MeredithWild.