Sarah J. Maas Announces Two New ACOTAR Books, Reveals She Has Rights Back for All Screen Adaptations
Bestselling fantasy author Sarah J. Maas announced two new A Court of Thorns and Roses books during a March 4 appearance on the “Call Her Daddy” podcast, with the first releasing October 27 and the second following on January 12, 2027.
Warning: This article contains major spoilers for the Throne of Glass series, A Court of Thorns and Roses series and the Crescent City series.
The Announcement
The interview, hosted by Alex Cooper, covered major ground — from exclusive new book details to screen adaptations, fan theories and personal reflections on Maas’s creative process. Maas is the author of three major fantasy series: Throne of Glass, A Court of Thorns and Roses (known as ACOTAR) and Crescent City.
The conversation began with Cooper asking about an Instagram post from June 2025 that had sent fans into a frenzy. The post showed Maas closing a book that appeared to read “ACOTAR 6-7,” sparking widespread speculation about multiple upcoming books.
Maas quickly clarified the confusion was unintentional. “OK, well, first of all, I guess I have really shitty handwriting, like really f***ing s****y handwriting of my like arrows and like, numbers look messed up. Like I’m ashamed of this. Like, that was not intentional at all,” Maas said. “But I will say that that was ACOTAR Six with the arrow pointing forward to indicate like things going ahead of that.”
The post actually represented work on the next ACOTAR book — the one now set for October 27. Maas grew emotional describing the process of writing it.
When Cooper pressed about whose point of view the new book would be told from, Maas declined to reveal the POV character or the title.
“No. And that was one of the like surprising things for me, like writing this and like what came out. Like it’s, you got a lot of like, insight to like various things,” Maas said.
Cooper pushed further, and what followed was the interview’s biggest reveal. Maas explained that the back-to-back release dates exist because the story is too large to fit within a single book — or even two.
“OK, well, part of why I guess it’s tricky to talk about the length of this book is because this book’s coming out October 27th, and then on January 12th, like two months later, I can’t do math, whatever that is, the next ACOTAR book will be coming out. So there will be two books within like a very short span,” Maas said.
She pulled back the curtain on the scope of the project. What she described is not a traditional sequel or a duology, but a single story told across multiple physical volumes — a decision driven by the demands of the narrative.
Why Back-to-Back Releases
Maas addressed why the first two volumes will release so close together. Her reasoning was reader-focused — she didn’t want fans to have to wait.
“And like, how do I get the story out to my readers who’ve been waiting like so patiently like as soon as I can, like I could not live with the idea of like publishing part one and then being like, yeah, wait like a year for like, I was like, no. Like I want that in everyone’s hands,” Maas said.
She acknowledged the conclusion — part four — will come later. “And so that’s why we’re doing like this, like back to back release. So there’s gonna be like a lot of ACOTAR in a very short time. And then eventually like the conclusion will be like written like once, once I get, I wanna get these, like I don’t want anyone to wait any longer,” Maas said.
She expressed excitement about the creative freedom the approach has given her. “But it’s like, it’s a different, it’s you know, it’s ACOTAR, but just I’m telling it in a way that’s exciting to me and like gives me like the space that the story demanded and the characters demanded,” Maas said.
Screen Adaptations: Maas Has the Rights Back
One of the most anticipated topics was the potential ACOTAR screen adaptation. The interview touched on its complicated history — it was revealed that Hulu would be adapting the series back in 2021, until it was revealed in 2025 that the deal fell through.
Cooper asked directly about the status. Maas confirmed she now has the rights back to all of her properties.
“So, I have the rights back to everything now and getting the rights back to all my things has been a big part of my journey in recent years that maybe at some point soon I will talk more about, but right now my focus is on books and it’s been a little while since you guys have had something, so I’m focusing on that,” Maas said.
She didn’t close the door on adaptations. She described a vision for any future adaptation that places her firmly at the creative center.
“I look at any TV movie adaptation as kind of like another facet of the worlds that I’ve created and it’s something that I want to be in charge of, I want to be figuring out, like I want to be learning everything that I can. I’m a type A control freak a little bit, but I want to know everything about how it gets made, not because of that control, but just because I love movies. I love TV. I want to be a part of that and I want to see everything adapted the way I envision it and the way I know fans want it,” Maas said.
She was pointed about refusing to compromise creative vision for commercial demographics. “I don’t ever want to hear like, ‘Oh, we need to change this to appeal to XYZ’s demographic.’ I’m like, ‘No, that’s not how you make art. That’s not how I create my stories,’” Maas said. She added that when an adaptation does happen, “it’s gonna be me and I will dedicate everything that I have to making it right.”
Maas noted she wants to be part of not just visual design but the audio experience as well. “I’ll be in there, you know, looking at all the design, but also like, ‘What does it sound like?’ ‘cause music plays such a big part, so I’m not just gonna, like, the music is gonna have to be like a huge project,” she said.
She framed the prospect of adaptation in deeply personal terms. “I view it as my legacy in a way where I’m like, I put my books out into the world. That’s one way that the fans are interacting and seeing these characters, but the physical version of that needs to be aligned. It can’t just be someone’s take on that. I’m like, ‘No,’” Maas said.
Lighter Moments: ‘F*** Marry Kill’ and Dream Casting
Cooper brought levity with a round of “F*** Marry Kill” featuring three of Maas’s male characters: Rhysand from ACOTAR, Hunt from Crescent City and Rowan from Throne of Glass.
Maas’s response was playful. “OK. OK. OK. I’m trying to think of the realities of my own marriage and what has worked and what doesn’t work. I’m like, ‘Which one of them farts the least?’ That’s the one I want to marry, because I live with that reality,” she said.
“I know this is hard. I kind of want to f*** all of them to be quite honest and marry all of them. I don’t want to kill any of them,” Maas said. Cooper’s response was succinct: “You’ll f*** them all.”
On dream casting for Rhysand, one of ACOTAR’s most popular characters, Maas was brief but definitive: “I have yet to find my perfect Rhys.”
The Tamlin Debate
One of the interview’s most emotionally complex portions centered on the character Tamlin, who has prompted intense fan debate about whether he deserves a redemption arc.
Maas’s answer revealed the tension she feels between her storytelling instincts and the real-world impact her characters have had on readers — particularly women who are survivors of abusive relationships.
“I don’t know. It’s tricky because I’ve had so many women, especially including some like very dear friends of mine who like come up and told me about like how they saw their own abusive relationship mirrored in Tamlin,” Maas said. “And so if I were to ever write like more about Tamlin, it would be done in a way where like, it doesn’t erase what he has done and it doesn’t like invalidate the feelings of like my readers who have connected to that.”
She emphasized any exploration of Tamlin would need to be “genuine to him and to reality” while being “well aware of like what he means for like, different types of people and different experiences and to honor and respect them for that.”
Maas shared that one of her closest friends is a survivor of domestic abuse who “often refers to her ex as Tamlin.” She described having direct conversations with this friend about the implications.
“I’ve actually talked to her that like, how would you feel like, you know, like if just like me as the creator, like separating us as friends, like, would that feel like a betrayal to you? And so like we’ve had like interesting conversations about it, but it’s something I’d really want to think about,” Maas said. “And I’ve given myself like several options because it’s something, hat’s probably like the hardest thing for me to figure out, like, to be quite honest, like, that’s tricky for me.”
She concluded with a raw admission. “It’s tricky for me also just emotionally because like partying wants to be like, that f***er can burn in hell forever. But like as a writer I’m like, but like, what is the story? What is like, and like, not to excuse him for any of it, but explore it,” Maas said.
Fan Questions: Throne of Glass, ACOTAR Mysteries
The interview’s final stretch featured a rapid-fire segment where Cooper posed long-circulating fan questions.
On the character Lorcan from Throne of Glass and what he did, Maas said: “Oh, someone explained this to me, like a couple months ago. I dunno, I didn’t know how to feel about it then. I dunno how I feel about it now. I mean, like, maybe like bonus content and like a surprise Christmas present sometime for all.”
About the mysterious Throne of Glass character Vaughn and his whereabouts, Maas was brief. “You know, that’s actually a thing that I think about a lot. A lot. And that’s all I’ll say about that,” she said.
When asked whether “the Settling” is the same or similar as “the Drop” — concepts from her book worlds — Maas gave the most evasive answer of the segment. “OK, let’s skip, just skip. Just skip. Just come out, come go,” she said.
On why the character Aelin had to lose her powers at the end of Throne of Glass, Maas was reflective. “I do think that, like, I actually really grappled with that one. Where I was like, I hate the idea of her having to give up something that she learned to love and embrace. But at the same time, I do think that there needs to be some level of sacrifice when it comes to making a decision that big. To give up something that you love for something else, like that’s powerful. I don’t think it would, the ending, would’ve felt as deserved,” she said.
She revealed the ending was not truly an ending in her creative imagination. “But then I also think it opens up again in my endless thinking about things, just in me as her creator and writing this. What does it look like for her after that? You know, like you go from like all this power and you give it up and, how does that feel? I find that there was, even with that as an ending, it felt like a different start of a journey. That just was fascinating for me,” Maas said.
How Mates Work
When asked to explain the mechanics of “mates” — a central fantasy concept across her series — Maas offered a clear breakdown.
“It’s kinda like your destined true love… [But] there’s a biological component to it, where you can be mated with someone who’s not your true love. There’s true-true mates, and there’s nature made a mistake. Like Rhys’ parents did not love each other, it was not a great relationship, but they were mates,” Maas said.
This acknowledgment addresses a point of much fan discussion — the mate bond in her universe is not a guarantee of a perfect relationship.
The House of Wind Question
Cooper raised a logistical question that has nagged ACOTAR readers: The House of Wind in the Night Court is accessible only by 10,000 stairs, presenting an obvious problem for Fae characters without wings.
“How do Fae get into the House of Wind? Because they don’t have wings. Like, do they climb the stairs?” Cooper asked.
Maas offered a brief tease: “This might be something that you find out.”
Mor’s Powers
The character Mor has been a source of fan curiosity because her powers have only been described as related to “truth,” fueling theories there’s more to her abilities.
“Truth. But you like to have other powers beyond that. But I’m not gonna reveal any more about it, there might be more about that. You know what, everything is possible. Everything you’re asking right now could just be like, yes. The answer is yes. You’ll find out,” Maas said.
That sweeping statement — “everything is possible” and “the answer is yes” — applied to all the rapid-fire questions, suggesting many fan mysteries could find answers in upcoming books.
Unpublished Manuscripts and the ‘Twilight of the Gods’ Board
Cooper also asked about a now-deleted Pinterest board Maas created titled “Twilight of the Gods,” which fans had speculated might represent a new book series.
Maas’s answer revealed something striking about her creative process. “Really? That was just like a story that I like. It was kinda like Crescent City where like, I always have manuscripts and other stories in my head. I think I have… probably like three or four like unpublished full books for different series on my computer. That I dunno if they’ll ever see the light of day, but, sometimes I just get a story in my head and I wanna start writing it and I get ideas for it, and it comes out, and sometimes I wanna share that with the world and sometimes I don’t,” Maas said.
The revelation that Maas has three or four complete unpublished manuscripts for entirely different series on her computer speaks to the prolific nature of her creative output and raises the possibility that readers may someday have access to entirely new worlds from the author.
Watch the full “Call Her Daddy” episode here.
Production of this article included the use of AI. It was reviewed and edited by a team of content specialists.
This story was originally published March 5, 2026 at 11:30 AM.
