More than 30 years after publishing The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood is writing a sequel to the famous novel.
Penguin Random House made the announcement on Wednesday, even revealing a name for the book: The Testaments. Set to release on Sept. 10, 2019, the book will take place 15 years after Offred’s final scene in The Handmaid’s Tale and will be narrated by three female characters.
“Everything you’ve ever asked me about Gilead and its inner workings is the inspiration for this book,” Atwood said in a statement on a video she tweeted. “Well, almost everything! The other inspiration is the world we’ve been living in.”
Yes indeed to those who asked: I’m writing a sequel to The #HandmaidsTale. #TheTestaments is set 15 years after Offred’s final scene and is narrated by three female characters. It will be published in Sept 2019. More details: https://t.co/e1umh5FwpX pic.twitter.com/pePp0zpuif
— Margaret E. Atwood (@MargaretAtwood) November 28, 2018
Penguin Random House clarified that The Testaments “is not connected to the television adaption of The Handmaid’s Tale.”
The Hulu show, which stars Elisabeth Moss as Offred, deviated from Atwood’s story in its second season. However, showrunner Bruce Miller said that not only has she been involved in the adaption, but that the two began “talking about season two in the middle of season one.”
“[Atwood] plays a huge role,” he told The Hollywood Reporter. “She’s the mother of us all. Usually when you adapt a classic book, you’re not lucky enough to have the author around. We are very lucky to not just have her around, but very much energetic and involved. She was in the writers’ room very early in the season. We’ve been talking throughout, and she’s been reading everything. She’s very involved. She’s our guiding star, and always has been.”
A third season of the show is expected to premiere in April or May of 2019.