Tor snares The Shape of Monsters and a sequel by CL Hellisen
Tor UK, an imprint of Pan Macmillan, has acquired The Shape of Monsters and A Million Points of Light by author CL Hellisen. Publisher Bella Pagan bought world rights to the fantasy duology from Caro Clarke at Portobello Literary.
The Shape of Monsters is described as “a treasure trove of dark magic and family secrets, where betrayals linger and power corrupts. Tor UK will publish The Shape of Monsters – which was originally commissioned and published as an Audible Original, performed by Omari Douglas – in autumn 2026.
The blurb reads: “In a world where power is everything, Aleks and Vaira Kercheval ran from their heritage. A magical fire destroyed their family as children and they escaped to safety, but the siblings hadn’t seen each other for years. Then Vaira inherits Aubrey House. Forming a reluctant truce, brother and sister travel to the abandoned mansion – but crossing the threshold plunges them into a world of magic, monsters and a war between rival mages. Magic shattered their family. Now power will demand their souls.”
CL Hellisen, who has published nine novels under the name Cat Hellisen, said: “I’m excited by the opportunity to work with editor Bella Pagan and her team on The Shape of Monsters and its sequel. These stories have been a part of my life for years, so it’s a delight to know that my books have found a home at Tor UK, and I can’t wait for readers to come join me in my love of dark Gothic fantasy about betrayal, magic and twisted obsessions.”
Pagan said: “I adore The Shape of Monsters, steeped as it is in magic, darkness and mysteries that are tortuously unfolded. Alek and Vaira come to life on the page as they discover and embrace their potential… with terrifying consequences.”
Hellisen won the 2015 Short Story Day Africa with their story The Worme Bridge, and they were also recently shortlisted for the Robert Holdstock Award for Best Fantasy Novel at the British Fantasy Awards for their novel Cast Long Shadows, published by Luna Press.
