Anime NYC 2026: Yen Press Announces Four Acquisitions
As a lead-up to the Yen Press Industry Panel at Anime NYC taking place on Saturday, August 22, four announcements were made on Yen Press‘ social media, which included new additions to the Yen Press and Yen Audio imprints.
Joining Yen Audio is an audiobook adaptation of another classic tale from the master storyteller Mamoru Hosoda (The Boy and the Beast) as well as an audiobook adaptation of an intriguing fantasy tale that recently joined the Yen On lineup (Rise of the Lowborn: Ascending the Ranks by Crushing Incompetent Nobles).
The Boy and the Beast
By Mamoru Hosoda
Tokyo’s a big city—big enough that it’s easy for a grieving boy like Ren to slip through the cracks. But Ren slips a little further than he meant to, tumbling into the beast world of Jutengai! He ends up with a new name—Kyuta—and a new life learning the way of the sword as the apprentice of the bear Kumatetsu. Kumatetsu’s got problems of his own, though, and the boy and the beast may have more to learn from each other than they realize. But the boy’s arrival in the realm of the beasts has put both their worlds in danger, and they’re going to need more than life lessons to face it!
Rise of the Lowborn: Ascending the Ranks by Crushing Incompetent Nobles
By Kosaka Hanane
Illustration by Kurogiri
Hazen Heim is a newly appointed imperial military officer who had the poor luck of being born without a silver spoon in his mouth. This means that instead of landing a cushy gig through nepotism, he’s being sent to the front lines to deal with the worst of the worst. Awaiting him are scumbag supervisors who constantly steal credit, low-life leaders who love to abuse their power, and bumbling members of the brass who have never had to make a hard decision once in their lives. Fortunately, Hazen racked up decades of knowledge and experience in his past life as a legendary mage. Now it’s his turn to put the tyrants in their place, and they’re going to learn that when they go low, he goes lower…
Two manga series join the Yen Press imprint—The Goblin Samurai and My Crush’s Crush, bringing in quirky fantasy and complicated romance.
The Goblin Samurai
By kikurage
There are legends of a nameless goblin swordsman. Missing one eye, with no mastery of magic, and born from a low-ranking tribe, yet he is well-spoken—and a warrior of peerless skill. With grace that matches his peerless swordplay, the tale of this wanderer from another world begins!
My Crush’s Crush
By Sekina Aoi and Ryo Tsuzura
When Sora Akizuki confesses his feelings to Miya Fuwa, he gets rejected outright. As it turns out, she likes Asahi Suzukaze, the president of the mysterious “Clinical Trials Club.” When he joins the club to learn more about Asahi, he discovers that she also has a crush on someone else! Could this chain of crushes get any more complicated…?
