Yen Press to Publish BL (Boys Love) Titles By Lily Hoshino Starting Fall 2008

NEW YORK, NY (November 12, 2007) - Yen Press, an imprint of Hachette Book Group USA that is dedicated to graphic novels, will publish its first BL (Boys Love) romances that feature adult males starting in Fall 2008. Obtained from the Japanese publisher Houbunsha and created by the talented Lily Hoshino, additional BL titles will be published throughout 2009. "We are pleased to support this market that has such a dedicated fan base." said Kurt Hassler, Co-Publishing Director for Yen Press.

Upcoming BL titles from Yen Press include:

Title: Love Quest (Rabu Kue)
Author: Lily Hoshino
Release Date: October 2008
$12.99 / 176 pages / 5"x 7.5"
Licensor: Houbunsha
Summary: Kazunori Akabane's nursing a wounded ego after being rejected by the girl of his dreams. And all because she's got the hots for some guy named Moriya! But when the two rivals suddenly meet in the school hallway, the universe spasms and the floor falls away, swallowing the rivals up! They end up in an alternate reality that looks like a whole lot like an RPG videogame, where a scantily-clad heroine with superpowers informs them that the key to their staying alive in this world and making involve the two becoming much more...intimately familiar.

Title: Mr. Flower Bride (Hanayome-kun)
Author: Lily Hoshino
Release Date: March 2009
$12.99 / 176 pages / 5" x 7.5"
Licensor: Houbunsha
Summary: Shinji Souda's not exactly happy about his family's age-old marriage customs, namely the fact that he has to marry a boy! Will a sudden confession from his bride-to-be, a beautiful boy in his class named Aoi, make Shinji change his mind? This sweet love story follows the couple through their marriage ceremony, wedding night, life as newlyweds, and even childbirth! The title story in this compilation is the prequel to Mr. Flower Groom, also being published by Yen Press. Childhood friends Ritsu and Kouichirou are married in a traditional Japanese wedding ceremony, as men of the Souda household have been for generations. But where the groom, Ritsu, thinks the custom is a mere formality and urges his betrothed to find himself a girl, Kouichirou (the bride) has other ideas. When Ritsu learns of Kouichirou's sincere intentions, will the marriage end before it even begins?

Title: Mr. Flower Groom (Hanamuko-san)
Author: Lily Hoshino
Release Date: July 2009
$12.99 / 192 pages / 5" x 7.5"
Licensor: Houbunsha
Summary: After a rocky start to their marriage, Ritsu and Kouichirou have tentatively reconciled... into an uneasy friendship. Unable to come to grips with his conflicted feelings about the marriage and Kouichirou's undisguised affection, Ritsu is shocked by his own jealous reaction to his "wife" bringing a girl home. But when Ritsu's attentions towards a past love hurt Kouichirou badly, will the bride and groom be able to bring their marriage safely back from the edge of the precipice or was their marriage always doomed to failure?

Born on December 17, Lily Hoshino (pen name) is a mangaka who primarily draws and writes boys' love manga. She also occasionally dabbles in seinen (or adult male) comics and self-publishes original doujinshi comics. She's fond of slightly unripened bananas, the taste of yuzu, and mirin seasoning.

Yen Press is an imprint of Hachette Book Group USA dedicated to publishing graphic novels for adults and young readers. Yen Press' focus is primarily on licensed manga, but will also publish across the wide spectrum of the graphic novel market, including, but not limited to: original manga publications, original American comics/graphic novels, webcomics, licensed adaptations, and children's graphic novels.

Hachette Book Group USA (HBG) is the wholly-owned subsidiary of Hachette Livre, and is comprised of the following publishing groups: Warner Books; Little, Brown and Company; FaithWords; Center Street; Little, Brown Books for Young Readers; and HBG Digital Media.