Margaret Atwood is writing a sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale

After more than 30 years, author Margaret Atwood is returning to the world of Gilead.

Atwood's publisher announced Wednesday that she is writing a sequel to The Handmaid's Tale, which will be released in Sept. 2019, reports BBC News. The sequel, called The Testaments, will be set 15 years after the end of the original novel and will be narrated by three female characters. In a promotional video on Twitter, Atwood said the book is inspired by "everything you've ever asked me about Gilead and its inner workings," as well as "the world we've been living in."

Released in 1985, The Handmaid's Tale takes place in a dystopian United States taken over by a totalitarian government that enslaves women and forces them to birth children. In 2017, it was adapted into a Hulu original series, which has become a sensation and is entering its third season. The series' first two seasons only had a single book from Atwood to work with as the source material, but presumably, material from The Testaments can be incorporated in the future; the series' showrunner has already said he's hoping it will last for 10 seasons.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up