Margaret Atwood announces she's writing a sequel to The Handmaid's Tale

Nov 28 2018, 11:10 pm

Before becoming a cult fave through Hulu, The Handmaid’s Tale was one of Margaret Atwood’s most popular novels.

The Toronto-based author introduced us to the world of Offred back in 1985 and, with no spoilers, let’s just say it left every reader wanting more.

Thankfully, on Wednesday morning, Atwood made the announcement many fans have been waiting decades to hear.

An official sequel is in the works.

“Dear Readers: Everything you’ve ever asked me about Gilead and its inner workings is the inspiration for this book. Well, almost everything! The other inspiration is the world we’ve been living in,” Margaret Atwood said on a publisher’s page.

“When the van door slammed on Offred’s future at the end of The Handmaid’s Tale, readers had no way of telling what lay ahead for her – freedom, prison or death,” reads the page. “With The Testaments, the wait is over.”

Atwood’s sequel picks up the story 15 years after Offred stepped into the unknown, with the explosive testaments of three female narrators from Gilead.

The novel comes out September 2019.

First published in 1985, The Handmaid’s Tale was shortlisted for the 1986 Booker Prize and eight million copies have been sold globally in the English language.

The Handmaid’s Tale’s series just aired its second season this year. The show is partially filmed in and around Toronto as well.

Hopefully, this means more of the series too.

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