Acquisition Announcement: BLACKJACK INTERSTELLAR by Alla Zaykova

Orbit is thrilled to announce the acquisition of Blackjack Interstellar, the first book in a new sci-fi series by debut author Alla Zaykova. Get ready for an action-packed space opera filled with smarmy space pilots, hyper-intelligent programmers, and the most loyal spaceship in the whole galaxy. 

Levi, an interstellar con artist, is all charm, no conscience. His only real love is his spaceship—his symbol of status and freedom—which he is forced to surrender as loan collateral. Desperate to get his ship back, Levi swindles a valuable antimatter-tech blueprint from an alien diplomat, which he plans to sell to the highest bidder.  

To decode the document, Levi hires Vera, a programmer whose inherited debt to the local mafia keeps her trapped on an asteroid in the galactic backwaters. Certain that Levi is merely using her, she plans to steal the blueprint for her creditors and finally gain her freedom. Their alliance is plagued by fiery tension, betrayals, and an impossible choice when they learn that an alien government intends to use the stolen technology to plan humanity’s genocide and that they will stop at nothing to retrieve their plans.

Blackjack Interstellar will publish in July 2025. 

Alla Zaykova’s short fiction and poetry has appeared in multiple magazines and anthologies including Etherea, Leading Edge and The Future Fire. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Communications and a decades’ experience writing and managing media for the New Zealand government. Alla is a member of several writer’s associations and communities, worked as the press office head for Worldcon, and managed social media for SpecFicNZ. She now lives in Australia.

Orbit US editor Stephanie Clark acquired World Rights for Orbit.