English author Philip Pullman has announced he will soon be releasing a trilogy of new novels set in the same universe as his wildly successful His Dark Materials series.
Pullman said the as-yet-untitled first volume of the Book of Dust series will be released on 19 October, The Guardian reported.
The first novel in the original series, Northern Lights, was released in 1995 and became a global bestseller. The book has been turned in a movie, a play, a radio drama, and a graphic novel.
Speaking to Radio 4's Today programme, Pullman confirmed that the new novels would feature heroine Lyra Belacqua. The books will feature two periods of Lyra's life: when she was a baby and 10 years on from the end of His Dark Materials.
"The Book of Dust is something I have had in mind for a long time," he said. "The story about Lyra we read in His Dark Materials came to its conclusion, but there are other stories that can be told about the people in the book and the world of the book. One of them has been occupying my imagination for quite some time.
"It's not a prequel or a sequel ... It's a different story which begins roughly 10 years before His Dark Materials and continues roughly 10 years after His Dark Materials. We see Lyra both as a baby, in which state she can't really do very much but she is a very important baby so all sorts of activity goes on around her, and we also see her in the second book as an adult aged 20."
Fans of the series, which has a cult following, were understandably pretty excited about the news.
A new Philip Pullman trilogy is the most exciting news of the day and it's only 9:52
In the dark dark world of 2017, thank God for Philip Pullman to bring some light 👌🏻🌟https://t.co/mo3ekHYpRD
Philip Pullman, trilogy, Lyra??? BEST NEWS EVER!!!!!
@dh_books @thebookseller @PhilipPullman Yes! It's like a dream come true 😁 And an October release date too 😁😁😁
Wow.. its been a long time coming. Philip Pullman has announced The Book of Dust I absolutely adored #HisDarkMaterials. Cannot bloody wait!
New Philip Pullman? Set in the ‘His Dark Materials’ universe? Hold me. https://t.co/apYzMKmRkW
Quickly, time to get rereading!
Philip Pullman announcing The Book of Dust now means I have to reread all of His Dark Materials and reorganise my TBR #booknerdstruggles