Everything We Know About Margaret Atwood's 'The Handmaid's Tale' Sequel (So Far)!

Movies and books are very different. Even some of the worst films get sequels and spinoffs made like it is nobody’s business. But the same cannot be said about the world of literature. While some titles have gotten to continue past the last page, not all are so lucky. Some books we know we are never going to get sequels to. For years, readers have come to terms with this sad truth and have only been able to imagine what could have been. But today, that is all about to change as a classic is set to continue and will be written by the original scribe. 

The fine folks over at Penguin Random House have announced to the world that the famed author Margaret Atwood is finally penning a sequel to her 1985 novel, The Handmaid’s Tale, entitled “The Testaments”, and is set to take place about 15 years after Offred’s final scene in its predecessor. The book every avid reader can’t wait to get their hands on will be narrated by three female characters instead of just the one.

For those that may have missed out on all the hype surrounding this alltoo relevant to today’s world story that came out in the '80s, The Handmaid’s Tale revolves around a dystopian society in the country formerly known as America, called Gilead. The story, that centers on a handmaid named Offred who struggles to survive in this male-dominated, female-subjugated world, was a best-seller when it was first published and became a hit once again around the time of the 2016 election. It is not hard to see comparisons to what happens in the book to some of the things happening in today's society. And that was definitely a factor when Atwood decided on going back into the world of The Handmaid’s Tale.

The chart-topping novel is also the basis for an acclaimed series on Hulu, which has garnered several accolades including 2 Golden Globes and 11 Emmys to date. The series, which stars the extremely talented Elizabeth Moss, veered off from Atwood’s material in its second season and plans to do so in its third installment. But that bodes well for the book, as its story has so much room for expansion that if the show can keep audiences glued to the screen, imagine how enthralled readers will be when Atwood herself is behind the wheel of the next novel.

Fans should be aware that, in the press release, it does in fact firmly stress that this new piece will not be connected to the television adaptation of the book on the hit streaming service. In the end, fans of all things Handmaid's Tale not only get a third season of their beloved show, but they finally get a sequel to the book that started it all. Blessed be the Atwood, we so appreciate this.

The Testaments is set to hit bookshelves on September 10, 2019.

(Image via Hulu)

- D.J. Rivera, YH Contributing Writer