Tag Archives: isuna hasekura

Yen Audio Announces Narrators for Upcoming Yen Audiobook Titles

J. Michael Tatum

Following the November 2021 announcement of upcoming releases from Yen Audio at Anime NYC, Yen Press has announced the narrators for these new audiobook adaptations of beloved light novel series.

Spice and Wolf Vol. 1 will be narrated by J. Michael Tatum. J. Michael Tatum is an actor, writer, ADR director, and adaptive scriptwriter. Nurtured by anime classics, Tatum has lent his voice to several popular anime franchises over the years. After being cast as Rikichi in 2005’s Samurai 7, Tatum was able to attain a slew of dream roles, most notably Kyoya Ootori in Ouran High School Host Club, suave, demonic Sebastian Michaelis in Black Butler, France in the Hetalia franchise, Tomoe in Kamisama Kiss, and the equal parts maniacal and vulnerable Rintarou Okabe from Steins;Gate. Recently, he can be heard in the epic My Hero Academia as Tenya Iida. Most relevantly, he also played Kraft Lawrence in the 2009 anime adaptation of Spice and Wolf. The Spice and Wolf Vol. 1 audiobook is scheduled to release on March 15, 2022.

Fans of the iconic light novel series are sure to be thrilled with this casting, especially on the heels of the recent announcement by creator Isuna Hasekura of a new Spice and Wolf anime after nearly thirteen years since the airing of Spice and Wolf Season 2.

Caitlin Kelly

So I’m a Spider, So What! Vol. 1 will be narrated by Caitlin Kelly. Originally from Cleveland, Ohio, Caitlin Kelly got started in voice acting in Tokyo, Japan. She fell in love with narrating audiobooks in New York. She has recorded over 250 titles and won Earphone Awards, SOVAS, and Audie nominations for her work. Kelly loves working in all genres but usually finds herself in fantasy worlds, notably narrating Holly Black’s Folk of the Air series. Caitlin currently lives in Tokyo with her husband and daughter. The So I’m a Spider, So What! Vol.1 audiobook is scheduled to release on April 12, 2022.

Andrew Grace

Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai Vol. 1 will be narrated by Andrew Grace. Andrew Grace is a Los Angeles–based, multi-racial, SAG-AFTRA actor. He recently completed work on an upcoming series for Showtime and another for the CW. He has lent his voice to The Summit of the Gods and The Journalist on Netflix, as well as other exciting projects premiering mid-2022. On stage he played the lead role in Cupid and the End of Love,his original stage play, which ran for over six months including at the Hollywood Fringe Festival (2019). Grace can also be seen in numerous commercials for brands such as Apple, Verizon, and Intel. In his free time, Grace enjoys writing stage plays and indie folk records, and shooting abstract photography. Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai Vol. 1 is scheduled to release on June 14, 2022.

Spice and Wolf

Story by Isuna Hasekura

The life of a traveling merchant is a lonely one, a fact with which Kraft Lawrence is well acquainted. Wandering from town to town with just his horse, cart, and whatever wares have come his way, the peddler has pretty well settled into his routine—that is, until the night Lawrence finds a wolf goddess asleep in his cart. Taking the form of a fetching girl with wolf ears and a tail, Holo has wearied of tending to harvests in the countryside and strikes up a bargain with the merchant to lend him the cunning of “Holo the Wisewolf” to increase his profits in exchange for taking her along on his travels. What kind of businessman could turn down such an offer? Lawrence soon learns, though, that having an ancient goddess as a traveling companion can be a bit of a mixed blessing. Will this wolf girl turn out to be too wild to tame?

Spice and Wolf

So I’m a Spider, So What!

Story by Okina Baba and Tsukasa Kiryu

I used to be a normal high school girl but in the blink of an eye, I woke up in a place I’ve never seen before and—and I was reborn as a spider?! How could something that’s nothing more than a tiny spider (that’s me) possibly survive in literally the worst dungeon ever? Are there no rules? There should be some rules! Who the hell is responsible for this? SHOW YOUR FACE!

So I’m a Spider, So What!

Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai

Story by Hajime Kamoshida

Bunny girls do not live in libraries. This is simply common sense. And yet, that’s exactly where Sakuta finds one in the wild. More bewildering is who the bunny girl is: Mai Sakurajima, a girl one year older than Sakuta, famous at their school for her acting career even though she’s currently on break. To top it all off, it seems like no one else in the library can see Mai at all, no matter what she does or…wears. Wanting to find out more about this mystery and maybe get a little closer to this beautiful upperclassman in the process, Sakuta launches an investigation to discover why an unforgettable bunny girl keeps becoming totally invisible.

Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai

Yen Audio Announces Three Future Audiobook Series

For the first time since the news of the Yen Audio imprint was shared with the world, Yen Press has announced new audiobook series at the Yen Audio Panel at Anime NYC. Three fan-favorite Yen On series will have full audiobook adaptations in 2022—Spice & Wolf (March 2022), So I’m a Spider, So What? (April 2022), and Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai (June 2022). Voice actors for the three upcoming audiobook series will be announced at a later date.

Spice and Wolf

Story by Isuna Hasekura

The life of a traveling merchant is a lonely one, a fact with which Kraft Lawrence is well acquainted. Wandering from town to town with just his horse, cart, and whatever wares have come his way, the peddler has pretty well settled into his routine—that is, until the night Lawrence finds a wolf goddess asleep in his cart. Taking the form of a fetching girl with wolf ears and a tail, Holo has wearied of tending to harvests in the countryside and strikes up a bargain with the merchant to lend him the cunning of “Holo the Wisewolf” to increase his profits in exchange for taking her along on his travels. What kind of businessman could turn down such an offer? Lawrence soon learns, though, that having an ancient goddess as a traveling companion can be a bit of a mixed blessing. Will this wolf girl turn out to be too wild to tame?

Spice and Wolf stands out as one of the most iconic light novel series to make its way to the Western world—a Yen Press classic that is remembered as one of the first light novels released by the prolific publisher. The audiobook adaptation of Spice and Wolf is scheduled to debut on March 15, 2022.

Spice and Wolf

So I’m a Spider, So What?

Story by Okina Baba

I used to be a normal high school girl but in the blink of an eye, I woke up in a place I’ve never seen before and—and I was reborn as a spider?! How could something that’s nothing more than a tiny spider (that’s me) possibly survive in literally the worst dungeon ever? Are there no rules? There should be some rules! Who the hell is responsible for this? SHOW YOUR FACE!

So I’m a Spider, So What? has been the breakout Yen On hit of 2021, a light novel series that has become immensely popular following the success of the hit anime adaptation. This fan-favorite isekai filled with comedy, action, and a whole lot of surprises is one of the brightest stars in the current generation of light novels, and it’s on track to be a future Yen On classic. The audiobook adaptation of So I’m a Spider, So What? is scheduled to debut on April 12, 2022.

So I’m a Spider, So What?

Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai

Story by Hajime Kamoshida

Bunny girls do not live in libraries. This is simply common sense. And yet, that’s exactly where Sakuta finds one in the wild. More bewildering is who the bunny girl is: Mai Sakurajima, a girl one year older than Sakuta, famous at their school for her acting career even though she’s currently on break. To top it all off, it seems like no one else in the library can see Mai at all, no matter what she does or…wears. Wanting to find out more about this mystery and maybe get a little closer to this beautiful upperclassman in the process, Sakuta launches an investigation to discover why an unforgettable bunny girl keeps becoming totally invisible.

Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai stands out as one of this generation’s most beloved romance stories in the world of anime and light novels. This tale of attraction and magical realism took the anime world by storm when the show debuted in 2018, with the original light novel becoming equally popular in the English-speaking world following its Yen On release in 2020. The audiobook adaptation of Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai is scheduled to debut on June 14, 2022.

Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai

Yen Press Announces New Manga Acquisitions

Yen Press has announced its latest publishing acquisitions, which include manga debuts for The White Cat’s Revenge as Plotted from the Dragon King’s Lap, Wolf & Parchment, and Sword Art Online Project Alicization. New light novels titles include A Certain Magical Index SS and Goblin Slayer Side Story II: Dai Katana and a new art book  acquisition for Keito Koume Illustrations: Spice & Wolf – The Ten Year Calvados.

Additional titles will be announced during the Yen Press Industry Panel at Anime Expo Lite on July 3rd.

A Certain Magical Index SS

Story by Kazuma Kamachi
llustrations by Kiyotaka Haimura

Kamijou Touma faces his roughest challenge yet-a classroom hot pot party! Meanwhile in London, the women’s dorm in a base of magicians may never see another day as wild as this one. And in the underbelly of Academy City, Accelerator stumbles upon someone who has been waiting for him all this time…? Here begins the supplementary SS series of A Certain Magical Index!

Originally published in Japan during the serialization of A Certain Magical Index, A Certain Magical Index SS was the first spin-off of the popular light novel series. The side stories featured in A Certain Magical Index SS are led by fan favorite characters such as Touma, Hamazura and Accelerator.

A Certain Magical Index SS

The White Cat’s Revenge as Plotted from the Dragon King’s Lap

Story and Aki
Art by Yamigo Kureha

My life was pretty ordinary. Go to college, live in an apartment, hang out with people. But because of that pompous, irritating girl I grew up with, I got dragged into a huge mess. As usual. Now I’m in another world where she’s a well-respected shrine maiden…and I got turned into a cat. How did it come to this?!

Adapted from an online novel, The White Cat’s Revenge as Plotted from the Dragon King’s Lap falls into the growing category of shojo isekai titles. This adorable and beautifully illustrated manga will appeal to a large audience of shojo fantasy fans eager for more.

The White Cat's Revenge as Plotted from the Dragon King's Lap

Keito Koume Illustrations: Spice & Wolf – The Tenth Year Calvados

Art by Keito Koume

Never before has the stunning color art of the manga adaption of Spice and Wolf been seen like this! As a compendium of the illustrations delivering a story that ran strong for ten years, this is a must-have for any fan of everyone’s favorite apple-loving wolf!

Over a decade ago, the series Spice & Wolf became one of the first light novels to gain mainstream popularity, a series that remains a fan favorite to this day. Keito Koume Illustrations: Spice & Wolf – The Tenth Year Calvados is a deluxe collection of Spice & Wolf illustrator Keito Koume’s artwork for the manga adaptation which includes cover art and a full color manga excerpt.

Keito Koume Illustrations: Spice & Wolf – The Tenth Year Calvados

Wolf & Parchment (manga)

Story by Isuna Hasekura
Art by Hidori

When Col leaves the cozy mountain village of Nyohhira aspiring to become a full-fledged member of the clergy, a certain impetuous wolf can’t help stowing away aboard his ship to follow him for a chance to have a grand adventure of her own!

A gorgeous manga adaptation of the light novel, Wolf & Parchment is a spin-off of Spice and Wolf taking place 10 years after the end of the original series. The ongoing series features Lawrence and Holo’s travelling companion Col as well as their daughter Miyuri.

Wolf & Parchment (manga)

Sword Art Online Project Alicization (manga)

Story by Reki Kawahara
Art by Koutarou Yamada
Original Illustrations by abec

Deep in an unfamiliar forest, Kirito awakens with sensations far too convincing for a virtual world… With memories of a life he doesn’t remember living. A boy and a girl…and a name that sticks in his mind: Alice.

Sword Art Online Project Alicization is a manga adaptation of Sword Art Online’s Alicization Arc, the basis of the ongoing anime titled Sword Art Online: Alicization. Fans of the anime have been eagerly anticipating the release of the Sword Art Online Project Alicization manga along with the upcoming Season 2 of Sword Art Online: Alicization.

Sword Art Online Project Alicization (manga)

Goblin Slayer Side Story II: Dai Katana (light novel)

Story by Kumo Kagyu
Art by lack

Not a soul knows how the death and destruction started. Only one thing is certain—it came from the north. Deep within the Dungeon of the Dead is where the the Demon King resides and the only hope humanity has of defeating this great evil rests on the shoulders of a handful of adventurers. This tale of Sword Maiden’s past smells of ash and sounds like the ringing of bare steel.

Goblin Slayer Side Story II: Dai Katana takes place a decade prior to the events of the original series. The spin-off series tells the story of Sword Maiden and her party of six as they journey to slay the Demon King, a feat which made her a legend in the world of Goblin Slayer.

Goblin Slayer Side Story II: Dai Katana (light novel)