Pantera Press acquires adult fiction novel by Holden Sheppard

Pantera Press is thrilled to announce they have acquired ANZ rights for Holden Sheppard’s first novel for adults, Two Kings, in a deal brokered by Gaby Naher at Left Bank Literary.

Two Kings is a gritty and heartfelt gay coming-of-age story, set in the world of FIFO workers and tradies in Western Australia. Giacomo Brolo, aka Jack, is a mess, consumed by a self-loathing all too common for closeted men who have grown up in a world of hate and shame, and content to drown his sorrows in booze, drugs and a flashy car. Everything changes when Jack returns to his regional hometown Geraldton. Forced to confront his traumatic past and his deeply conservative Italian family, he finds himself yearning for something more than the dead-end, single life he’d resigned himself to. Whatever happened to Xavier, the former schoolmate who Jack was in love with and whose rejection spurred him to leave Geraldton in the first place? Can Jack open himself up to the possibility of love, found family and connection; could he and Xavier once again be two kings together?

Publisher Tom Langshaw has shared his admiration for Sheppard’s early work, and his excitement for this new project. ‘Holden’s first two novels, for young adults, are widely loved for good reason, combining raw emotion with voice-driven, pacy storytelling,’ he says. ‘In Two Kings, his talents are on full display. The character of Jack leaps off the page, and his story of a delayed coming-of-age is by turns surprising, heart-wrenching and moving. Two Kings is gritty and brash, unapologetically so, and I’m thrilled Pantera is publishing it.’

Holden has also shared his desire for readers to connect with Jack, and the importance of having this story on shelves. ‘Two Kings is the most vulnerable book I’ve ever written. Instead of splitting myself into three narrators, as with my previous novels, in Two Kings I’ve channelled everything into one character. Like me, Jack Brolo is a misfit of a bloke trying to find his place in the world, and his labourer’s voice gives the novel this sense of rowdy, radical honesty about what being a working-class gay man looks like. I’m so pumped to share this story with the world, and I can’t wait for readers to meet Jack.

‘I’m absolutely stoked that Two Kings will be published by Pantera Press,’ Sheppard adds. ‘Everyone in the Pantera team has made me feel so welcome, and working with publisher Tom Langshaw on the edits is such a dream. I am so grateful to Pantera for believing in the power of this novel, and I feel lucky to have found such a nurturing home for my words.’

Holden Sheppard is best known for his previous young adult titles, Invisible Boys and The Brink. A screen adaptation of Invisible Boys is due to debut on Stan in 2025. Sheppard has achieved both commercial and critical success, winning many accolades including the WA Premier’s Prize for an Emerging Writer.

Two Kings is scheduled for publication in June 2025.