For the first time since the news of the Yen Audio imprint was shared with the world, Yen Press, LLC 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.
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.
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.
About Yen Press, LLC
ÂÂYen Press, LLC is a joint venture between Kadokawa Corporation and Hachette Book Group. Founded in 2006, Yen Press has quickly risen to become one of the largest and most prolific publishers of manga and original graphic novels in the North American marketplace and a driving force in the introduction of light novels and Japanese literature to new readers through its Yen On and Yen Audio imprints. For more information, visit www.yenpress.com.
I am genuinely surprised that Spice and Wolf hadn’t been one of the first to become an audiobook.