Tag Archives: michael a. stackpole

Yen Audio Announces the Audiobook Adaptation of Four Yen Press Properties

Yen Press has announced the audiobook adaptation of four current licenses: Dark Souls: Masque of VindicationBlade & BastardThe Holy Grail of Eris, and Whoever Steals This Book. These fantasy and action-adventure titles offer something for everyone, ranging from high-stakes danger, mystery, and even romance. 

Yen Audio will debut the audiobooks in August 2026, with the voice casts to be announced at a later date.

Dark Souls: Masque of Vindication

By Michael A. Stackpole

A nameless undead awakens in an ancient crypt, and thus does the journey begin. Drawn mysteriously toward the horizon, he ventures into a land of perils beyond death. A once shining kingdom has been fractured, and mindless Hollows prowl the dark corners. To see it united and restored, the old king must be freed by his get—the youth Balarion. The undead and his companions, surviving champions of the halcyon era, accompany Balarion on this journey to release his father, battling foes both monstrous and clever. Yet it is not their enemies that give them doubt—it is their quest. Can a world so troubled truly be set right again, or is it fated to vanish into the dark?

Dark Souls: Masque of Vindication

Blade & Bastard

By Kumo Kagyu

Deep in the unexplored reaches of the dungeon, a corpse is discovered—one that shouldn’t exist. After Iarumas is resurrected, his memories of life before death are gone, and he spends his days delving into the dungeon to retrieve the bodies of dead adventurers. Can they be revived as well? Or will God reduce them to piles of ash on the altar? Either way, Iarumas collects his finder’s fee. And though his skills earn him some grudging respect, he’s also scorned for this cold, utilitarian attitude. The living keep their distance—Iarumas consorts primarily with the dead. That is, until he meets Garbage, a feral young swordswoman who’s the sole survivor of a massacred party. With Garbage by his side, Iarumas ventures deeper, scouring the dungeon for clues to his past, avoiding monsters, traps, and the inevitability of a permanent ashen demise.

Blade & Bastard

The Holy Grail of Eris

By Kujira Tokiwa

Never neglect to read the fine print

As a viscount’s daughter, Constance Grail is an ordinary girl whose only notable trait is sincerity, leaving her with no real options when someone steals her fiancé and falsely accuses her of petty theft at a ball. While Connie awaits her undeserved punishment, a ghost appears to offer a bargain. The spirit is none other than Scarlett Castiel, a noblewoman once praised for her beauty, lineage, and undeniable charisma—and executed some ten years earlier for her wicked deeds. When Connie accepts this proposal, she is possessed by the infamous spirit who instantly turns the tide on her tormenter, thus saving the hapless girl from her miserable fate. It’s never wise striking a deal without knowing exactly what you’ve committed to, though…or you might find yourself bound to a ghost dead set on revenge against her own enemies!

The Holy Grail of Eris

Whoever Steals This Book

By Nowaki Fukamidori

Mifuyu is a high school student living with a large collection of books left by her great-grandfather—the vast library known as Mikura Hall. Although her father is the current caretaker, Mifuyu herself doesn’t share her family’s passion for literature.  But when several books are stolen from the library, triggering an ancient curse, the town is transformed according to the various stories—and the only way to put things right is for Mifuyu to catch the thief. With the help of a mysterious girl named Mashiro, Mifuyu sets out on an adventure through the different story worlds!

Whoever Steals This Book

Kadokawa and Yen Press Announce the Simultaneous Publication of an Original Dark Souls Novel!

FromSoftware returns to its epic roots with a new novel set in the world of Dark Souls, widely considered one of the best video games ever made.  Penned by bestselling author Michael A. StackpoleDark Souls: Masque of Vindication expands the mythos of the game and gives the millions of devoted fans who made the franchise a phenomenon an opportunity to revisit the epic adventure and settings that captured their imagination through fresh eyes.

In an underground tomb, a man who should have been dead awakens in the dark, gradually regaining his senses—

He has forgotten his past, including his name. Given the great pains taken to insure his confinement, his revival may have been anticipated, but the remains of the grave robber that is his sole companion may give a clue as to his reawakening. When the corpse of the thief rises against him, a sorcerer’s instincts emerge, and he puts it down with a flash of light from his palm. With this gesture, the memories of the cadaver flicker through him, rekindling a sense of himself…

The desert night stretches out beyond the graveyard, and the starry sky tells the sorcerer that a long time has passed since his death. Naming himself Ferranos after the meaningless word graven outside his tomb and armed with a dagger of a failed grave robber, he embarks on an epic adventure guided by fate.

Dark Souls: Masque of Vindication will be published globally both in print and digitally on October 25, 2022 by Kadokawa Corporation in Japanese and by Yen Press in English, marking the first simultaneous print release between the two companies.