Ravenloft Novel Coming in 2025

Penguin Random House will publish a new novel set in the Dungeons & Dragons campaign setting of Ravenloft in 2025. A listing for an untitled Ravenloft novel has recently appeared on various book retailer websites, along with Penguin Random House's official website. No author was named in the listing, but a description for the book states that it will feature the infamous Count Strahd and potentially other Domains of Dread as well. The book will have a recommended retail price of $30 and will be released in April 2025.

Penguin Random House has upped their Dungeons & Dragons novel releases in recent years, with books set in the Dragonlance, Spelljammer, and Forgotten Realms settings. While some books (such as the recently completed Dragonlance Destinies trilogy) have featured classic writers, other books have used contemporary fantasy authors and are geared more toward a mix of existing, new, and casual D&D fans. Some characters from the Fallback novels have also appeared in art slated for the 2024 Core Rulebook release. Given that we're getting more D&D novels, it seems this new line of licensed novels is a success for Penguin Random House.

You can check out the description of the new Ravenloft book below:

Journey to the Domains of Dread and face the fearsome Count Strahd von Zarovich in this upcoming official Dungeons & Dragons novel!

A group of adventurers must fight their way through a dark and twisted realm known as the Domains of Dread, where powerful darklords rule over worlds filled with supernatural horrors.

 

[LuisCarlos17f]

I like this new because my opinion is if Hasbro wants D&D to become a multimedia franchise they shouldn't focus too much into Forgotten Realms only, and Ravenloft novels could attrackers readers who aren't players. Let's remember for a lot of time only there were FR novels.

If some no-player readers started to write their own Ravenloft fanfiction, this may be good for the IP, because it would be like free advertising.

The 5e Ravenloft has been redesigned to allow more creative freedom, and then writters don't need to make many efforts to keep the coherence with the continuity.

* How would be a novel of Cerilia/Birthright according to the current tendencies of fantasy literature for young adults? Those with female main characters (maybe with some piece of fay blood) but more focused into palace intrigues with some supernatural elements.

 

[sevenbastard]

Said it before and I will say it again. This all leads me to belive they will do a reboot of Curse of Strahd. Adjusting to the 2024 rules, remove some problematic content, expand it a little, and work in years of advice on how to run it.

Note, I'm not against that. Taking a good product and improving it is fine by me.

 

[humble minion]

Strahd as an antagonist seems distinctly ... unimaginative, I have to say.

No author attached seems odd. April is only 7 months away, the thing must be pretty much complete by now given my (very imperfect...) understanding of the printing/editing lead times of such things.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

No author attached seems odd.

Delilah S. Dawson.

It's half way down the page, under "author".

 

[humble minion]

Delilah S. Dawson.

It's half way down the page, under "author".

Ah, I somehow missed seeing that despite looking several times, thanks for the pointer.

I haven't read anything of hers. Heavy emphasis on YA fiction, plus a significant stint doing Star Wars tie-ins (and you don't get repeat deals with for companies like Disney unless you can write to deadline and collaborate effectively with the IP owner). Lots paranormal romance (which is of course a perfect for for Strahd and Ravenloft, if you can resist writing a happy ending...) and a lot of steampunk.

 

[sevenbastard]

Delilah S. Dawson.

It's half way down the page, under "author".

From her Wikipedia "Some of her fantasy has been written under the name Lila Bowen. She has also written erotica as Ava Lovelace"

I'm suddenly a lot more interested.....

 

[Birmy]

The Fallbacks by Jaleigh Johnson, as well as two movie tie ins

There's also the Spelljammer novel "Memory's Wake."

 

[Dire Bare]

Reading all of the D&D novels back in the day was a big part of how I enjoyed and interacted with the franchise. I'm exciting WotC and Random House are bringing the novels back!

 

[Paul Farquhar]

She seems to have a reasonable track record. A lot of the scepticism comes from the poor track record of D&D novels, and the trite synopsis.

 

[EldritchHistory]

There's also the Spelljammer novel "Memory's Wake."

Is that set in the Forgotten Realms?