Ankara Press, the commercial imprint of Cassava Republic Press, has acquired UK and Commonwealth rights to The Seven States, an epic romantasy trilogy by Ghanaian writer Cheryl Ntumy, with the first instalment due for release in May 2027.
Ankara Press, the commercial imprint of Cassava Republic Press, has acquired UK and Commonwealth rights to “The Seven States,” an epic romantasy trilogy by Ghanaian writer Cheryl Ntumy.
Assistant Editor Boluwatito Sanusi acquired the rights from Bieke van Aggelen at African Literary Agency.
The trilogy opens with “A Guide to Silk and Sedition,” due for publication in May 2027. It will be followed by “A Manifesto for Magic and Mayhem” in 2028 and “An Ode to Love and Liberation” in 2029.
Set in the Seven States, a world inspired by West African histories and cultures, the series follows Adjai Asaré, daughter of one of Avor’s most powerful silk merchant houses, as she strikes a deal with Essyen Oppong, a shoemaker, to save her bid to become Emissary. Magic is outlawed in the Seven States, and Adjai is unaware that Essyen is a mage whose presence in Avor is linked to a movement seeking to overturn the region’s laws.
The relationship between the two develops into a romance that places Adjai in conflict with her own House, which orders her to spy on Essyen. According to the publisher, the narrative centres on the tension between Adjai’s ambitions and her growing feelings, as she is forced to choose between the man she loves and the world that shaped her.
Sanusi described the series as one of the imprint’s most significant acquisitions, praising its blend of political intrigue and romance.
“Cheryl Ntumy is one of the most gifted comic and romantic voices working in fiction today, and ‘The Seven
States’ is her most ambitious, most irresistible work yet. From the moment I entered this world of formidable
women, merchant dynasties, forbidden magic and political intrigue, I was hooked. But it is the sensual, slow-
burning relationship between Adjai and Essyen that gives the series its irresistible charge. Cheryl has created a
world you want to disappear into, and two people you desperately want to find their way to each other, ” said Sanusi.
Ntumy said she was returning to her romance writing roots with the series, adding that she hoped readers would find the same enjoyment in the books that she found in writing them.
“It’s been such a joy returning to my romance roots with the sexy, colourful,
fashion-forward world of the Seven States, where power games are always afoot. I’m excited to be working with
Ankara Press to share this series with everyone! I hope the stories bring readers as much pleasure as they bring me. All I can say is, prepare to be titillated. Wink, wink!” Ntumy said.
“The Seven States” adds to Ankara Press’s growing catalogue of commercial fiction by Black writers. The imprint is set to launch officially in January 2027, publishing romance, thrillers, fantasy and horror titles.
Ntumy is a Ghanaian writer of speculative fiction, young adult fiction and romance whose work has been shortlisted for the Nommo Award for African Speculative Fiction, the Commonwealth Writers Short Story Prize and the Miles Morland Foundation Scholarship. She is a member of the Sauútiverse Collective and Petlo Literary Arts, a Botswana-based organisation supporting creative writing.