Negrense author Thea Guanzon has once again landed on the New York Times best seller list with her third book, “Tusk Love,” released earlier this month.
The novel, which launched simultaneously in the United States and the United Kingdom on July 1, quickly climbed the ranks.
By July 20, “Tusk Love” had secured the fourth spot on the New York Times best seller list, positioned just below Stephen King’s “Never Flinch.” It also made a strong showing in the UK, reaching fifth place on The Sunday Times’ best seller list.
“Tusk Love” is a “saucy romantasy” that follows a merchant’s daughter yearning for adventure. She gets more than she bargained for when she falls for a brooding stranger.
The story develops into an unexpected alliance when the daughter is ambushed on the perilous Amber Road and must join forces with a half-orc blacksmith apprentice, Guanzon told DIGICAST NEGROS on Sunday, July 20.
Guanzon describes it as “basically the story of how these two characters from two very different worlds end up falling in love and of choosing each other over their own destinies that had been pre-planned for them.”
String of Best Sellers
This isn’t Guanzon’s first taste of international success.
Her previous works, part of “The Hurricane Wars” trilogy, have also achieved best-seller status.
“The Hurricane Wars,” a romantic fantasy novel published in 2023, appeared on both the New York Times and USA Today best seller lists.
Its sequel, “A Monsoon Rising,” released in December 2024, became a No. 1 International Bestseller on Germany’s Spiegel list.
Ali Hazelwood, the New York Times best-selling author of “The Love Hypothesis,” lauded Guanzon’s talent, stating, “Thea Guanzon’s talent is limitless, and she is the kind of writer that comes around once in a generation. Mark my words: lives will be changed by The Hurricane Wars trilogy.”
Guanzon, 35, who resides in Manila, said she is currently immersed in writing the third and final book of “The Hurricane Wars.”
Breaking Barriers
Reflecting on having all three of her books achieve best-seller status, Guanzon said “It’s been such a surreal and also an incredible feeling. I have loved writing ever since I was a kid, so to actually have books that are on the best-seller list in the US and Europe… I don’t have the words to describe how still in disbelief I am.”
“I’m just so thankful for all the readers who have supported me and my stories here and abroad, “ she said.
Guanzon also highlighted the significance of her success as a Filipino author based in the Philippines, where English is not her first language.
“The mainstream traditional publishing industry tends to be more centered on Western-centric stories written by authors who are based in the West,” she said.
“For me to be able to break into these lists, I think it’s amazing and it also shows that there is space for all of us at the table…Southeast Asian Asian writers and Southeast Asian stories. It shows that there is a reader demand for this everywhere else, so I hope that more aspiring Filipino and Southeast Asian authors will be encouraged in some way to create their own stories,” she added.
Guanzon holds a Bachelor of Arts in International Studies, with a specialization in International Politics and Peace Studies, from Miriam College.
She completed her high school and elementary studies at St. Scholastica’s Academy in Bacolod City.
The author is the daughter of doctors Casten and Joy Guanzon of Bacolod City.*