S. Jae-Jones – Jill Grinberg Literary Management

S. Jae-Jones

S. Jae-Jones is an artist and the New York Times best-selling author of Wintersong and Shadowsong, which have been published in ten foreign territories. Her most recent work is the Guardians of Dawn series, published by Wednesday Books. Zhara (2023) was selected by Barnes & Noble as its YA Book Club pick, and was followed by Ami (2024), Yuli (2025), and the forthcoming final installment Suhwa (2026). She was previously an editor at St. Martin’s Press in New York, and was also a contributor to the Pub(lishing) Crawl blog and co-host of their podcast. Born and raised in Los Angeles, she now lives in North Carolina.

Agent

Katelyn Detweiler

Guardians of Dawn: Zhara

Sailor Moon meets Cinder in Guardians of Dawn: Zhara, the start of a new, richly imagined fantasy series from S. Jae-Jones, the New York Times bestselling author of Wintersong.

Magic flickers.
Love flames.
Chaos reigns.

Magic is forbidden throughout the Morning Realms. Magicians are called abomination, and blamed for the plague of monsters that razed the land twenty years before.

Jin Zhara already had enough to worry about—appease her stepmother’s cruel whims, looking after her blind younger sister, and keeping her own magical gifts under control—without having to deal with rumors of monsters re-emerging in the marsh. But when a chance encounter with an easily flustered young man named Han brings her into contact with a secret magical liberation organization called the Guardians of Dawn, Zhara realizes there may be more to these rumors than she thought. A mysterious plague is corrupting the magicians of Zanhei and transforming them into monsters, and the Guardians of Dawn believe a demon is responsible.

In order to restore harmony and bring peace to the world, Zhara must discover the elemental warrior within, lest the balance between order and chaos is lost forever.

Praise for Guardians of Dawn: Zhara

“Perfect for fans of Marissa Meyer’s ‘The Lunar Chronicles,’ this heartwarming, heartbreaking start to a series will leave readers aching for more.” –School Library Journal, starred review

“With strong East Asian influences and themes in the worldbuilding, this magic-filled story will hook readers with its endearing lead; they will finish this volume and beg for the sequel.” –Kirkus

“[The] languorous pacing of the narrative, which unfolds via Zhara and Han’s alternating perspectives, allows for expansive worldbuilding in this East Asian–inspired historical fantasy adventure, a series launch, by Jae-Jones.” –Publishers Weekly

“While this volume serves as Zhara’s origin story, there is no shortage of well-rounded friendships and world-ending disasters to keep readers on the hook for future installments.” –Booklist

“There is something warm and nostalgic about this story that reminds me of my childhood–lush worldbuilding, a charismatic cast, and an epic adventure with all the romance of classic fantasy. This is the kind of book you curl up with in a good armchair, with a favorite blanket and a big mug of tea.” –Marie Lu, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Stars And Smoke

Publisher

Wednesday Books / Macmillan

Publication Date

August 1, 2023

Age Category

Young Adult

Genre

Fantasy

Rights

JGLM

Guardians of Dawn: Ami

Sailor Moon meets Beauty and the Beast in Guardians of Dawn: Ami, the second book in a new, richly imagined fantasy series from S. Jae-Jones, the New York Times bestselling author of Wintersong.

When the Pillar blooms, the end of the world is not far behind.

Li Ami was always on the outside—outside of family, outside of friendships, outside of ordinary magic. The odd and eccentric daughter of a former imperial magician, she has devoted her life to books because she finds them easier to read than people. Exiled to the outermost west of the Morning Realms, Ami has become the sole caretaker of her mentally ill father, whose rantings and ravings may be more than mere ramblings; they may be part of a dire prophecy. When her father is arrested for trespassing and stealing a branch from the sacred tree of the local monastery, Ami offers herself to the mysterious Beast in the castle, who is in need of someone who can translate a forbidden magical text and find a cure for the mysterious blight that is affecting the harvest of the land.

Meanwhile, as signs of magical corruption arise throughout the Morning Realms, Jin Zhara begins to realize that she might be out of her element. She may have defeated a demon lord and uncovered her identity as the Guardian of Fire, but she’ll be more than outmatched in the coming elemental battle against the Mother of Ten Thousand Demons…unless she can find the other Guardians of Dawn. Her magic is no match for the growing tide of undead, and she needs the Guardian of Wood with power over life and death in order to defeat the revenants razing the countryside.

The threat of the Mother of Ten Thousand Demons looms larger by the day, and the tenuous peace holding the Morning Realms together is beginning to unravel. Ami and Zhara must journey to the Root of the World in order to seal the demon portal that may have opened there and restore balance to an increasingly chaotic world.

Praise for Ami

“An action-packed and inherently magical sequel.” –Kirkus

“A new guardian rises and tensions build in this action-packed second installment. Readers will tear through the fast-paced story as the stakes become higher than ever.” –School Library Journal

Publisher

Wednesday Books / Macmillan

Publication Date

August 6, 2024

Age Category

Young Adult

Genre

Fantasy

Rights

JGLM

Guardians of Dawn: Yuli

Princess Yulana has a few problems. Her late grandfather has died without naming an heir, civil war threatens to tear the Morning Realms apart, a strange waking dreamer sickness is sweeping through the land, and a plague of hungry ghosts roam the steppes. On top of all of that, Kho, her former best friend turned rival, is getting under her skin. A struggle for power divides the north, and the outcome rests on the winner of the Grand Game―a competition that will determine not just the future of her people, but the course of the entire empire.

When the world is out of balance, the Guardians of Dawn are reborn.

As the Guardian of Wind, it is Yuli’s responsibility to bring order to chaos, along with the Guardian of Fire and the Guardian of Wood. But can she restore balance to the Morning Realms when she can’t even win the political games being played at home? The fate of the Morning Realms depends on the Guardians of Dawn, and whether Yuli can manage both the demonic and political chaos at once.

Guardian of Wind, there you are.

Praise for Yuli

“The intriguing characters, who represent diverse aspects of identity, are one of the story’s biggest strengths; their portrayals feature well-written banter, relationships, and character arcs.” –Kirkus

Publisher

Wednesday Books / Macmillan

Publication Date

August 19, 2025

Age Category

Young Adult

Genre

Fantasy

Rights

JGLM

Guardians of Dawn: Suhwa

Min Suhwa has always longed to see the greater world outside the small, cloistered convent in which she was raised. Hidden there for her safety when she was a small child, Suhwa has learned to keep her unusual illusion magic to herself, but when the Bangtan Brothers come to town to perform, she can’t resist the chance to go see them for herself. But the world outside her convent is dangerous―the Morning Realms have fallen to civil war, and Huntsmen prowl the land in search of magicians and the fabled Guardians of Dawn, legendary elemental warriors with incredible powers. When Suhwa’s illusion magic brings her afoul of one of the Huntsmen, she must flee for her life.

Meanwhile, the Guardians of Dawn and their allies are fighting a war on two fronts―against the northern insurrection seeking to claim the Sunburst Throne and destroy all magicians, and against the rising threat of the Mother of Ten Thousand Demons. Zhara, Ami, and Yuli must travel to the Azure Isles to seek the Guardian of Water and save the Morning Realms from annihilation, restoring balance to order and chaos once and for all.

Publisher

Wednesday Books / Macmillan

Publication Date

August 18, 2026

Age Category

Young Adult

Genre

Fantasy

Rights

JGLM

Wintersong (Wintersong #1)

A New York Times bestseller

The last night of the year. Now the days of winter begin and the Goblin King rides abroad, searching for his bride…

All her life, Liesl has heard tales of the beautiful, dangerous Goblin King. They’ve enraptured her mind, her spirit, and inspired her musical compositions. Now eighteen and helping to run her family’s inn, Liesl can’t help but feel that her musical dreams and childhood fantasies are slipping away.

But when her own sister is taken by the Goblin King, Liesl has no choice but to journey to the Underground to save her. Drawn to the strange, captivating world she finds―and the mysterious man who rules it―she soon faces an impossible decision. And with time and the old laws working against her, Liesl must discover who she truly is before her fate is sealed.

Rich with music and magic, S. Jae-Jones’s Wintersong will sweep you away into a world you won’t soon forget.

Praise for Wintersong

“This is an exquisitely and lyrically crafted tale of longing, sibling loyalty, and the importance of women in a time when women were so often overlooked. Eerie, unsettling, and above all, full of music.” –Booklist, starred review

“Structured as a sonata, the final movement culminates in a bittersweet sacrifice that will leave readers… savoring the delicious tragedy.” –Kirkus

Publisher

Wednesday Books / Macmillan

Publication Date

February 7, 2017

Age Category

Young Adult

Genre

Historical Fantasy

Rights

JGLM

Shadowsong (Wintersong #2)

Six months after the end of Wintersong, Liesl is working toward furthering both her brother’s and her own musical careers. Although she is determined to look forward and not behind, life in the world above is not as easy as Liesl had hoped. Her younger brother Josef is cold, distant, and withdrawn, while Liesl can’t forget the austere young man she left beneath the earth, and the music he inspired in her.

When troubling signs arise that the barrier between worlds is crumbling, Liesl must return to the Underground to unravel the mystery of life, death, and the Goblin King—who he was, who he is, and who he will be. What will it take to break the old laws once and for all? What is the true meaning of sacrifice when the fate of the world—or the ones Liesl loves—is in her hands?

Praise for Shadowsong

“A harrowing, surreal catharsis of mental illness framed as a steamy fairy tale.” –Kirkus

Publisher

Wednesday Books / Macmillan

Publication Date

February 6, 2018

Age Category

Young Adult

Genre

Historical Fantasy

Rights

JGLM