Bird Box was one of the most talked about movies last Christmas.

The Sandra Bullock-starring Netflix thriller is based on Josh Malerman's 2014 novel of the same name. It follows a mum trying to get her children, Boy and Girl, to safety after a supernatural apocalypse strikes. However, the three of them have to be blindfolded to prevent the slide into insanity that happens if they see the villains in the film. Following on the success of the film adaptation, the author has now announced he is writing a sequel - and it will be released later this year. In an interview with Esquire, Malerman explained that he had been inspired to write the sequel - due out later this year - after he watched the film and was keen to know what happened next. https://twitter.com/JoshMalerman/status/1107645330319949824 And while the author said fans were keen to know more about Boy and Girl, he felt the Bird Box universe "is Malorie's story." He continued:

"In the time between Bird Box coming out and the time since I’ve been writing Malorie, I’ve been asked a ton of times: people want to know what happened with Boy and Girl. "But as much as I care about Boy and Girl, this isn’t their story. The Bird Box world is Malorie’s story, and I wanted to know more about her. "I wanted to get to know her even better. "At the end of the movie, I turned to my girl Allison and said, 'I want to know what happens next!' and she’s like, 'Well, you know, you could make that happen,' so it really was this warm feeling."

Malorie will pick up eight years after Bird Box left off, with the characters in a "sort of similar" kind of situation. Malerman added:

"They’ve left [the sanctuary they found]. [It is] similar in that they’re trying to make things work. It’s not like it opens with them in paradise."

He explained that while he can't say if there will be any resolution about the origins of the monsters, readers "will get to know both Malorie and the creatures better."

• Malorie is due to be released in October this year.

---

A good book can do just about anything; from taking you on a wild and fantastical adventure to making you feel like an all-knowing super sleuth (if you figure out the killer twist). Every week at #Bookmarked, we will be taking you through some of our all-time favourite books - as well as the newest novels hitting shelves in Ireland.