Kiyash Monsef to Release Sequel to Hit Fantasy Novel “Once There Was” — See the Cover! (Exclusive)

"When I look at this cover, I see possibility and mystery and wonder – all the ingredients of a great story," the author says

Kiyash Monsef is releasing a continuation to his New York Times bestselling fantasy novel Once There Was – and PEOPLE has an exclusive first look at the cover. 

The new book, The Bird of a Thousand Stories, will be out Feb, 4, 2025. 

The series follows young Iranian American girl Marjan Dastan who uncovers a family secret: her father was a veterinarian to mythical creatures. She takes on his duties in the aftermath of his death.

The second book, advertised for ages nine and up, finds Marjan reconnecting with old family members as she goes about her double life. But when the creatures are threatened, she "must interpret the messages the animals are trying to send her and track down the fabled Bird of a Thousand Stories before someone with more nefarious plans finds it," according to a description.

Talking about the majestic cover, Monsef tells PEOPLE, "When I look at this cover, I see possibility and mystery and wonder – all the ingredients of a great story. The creatures that Marjan encounters on her adventures have survived in our collective imagination because of the stories that people have told about them over the centuries, and so I think it's fitting and wonderful that the cover embodies all the elements that make a story worth telling again and again."

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The author also teases what readers can expect from the sequel – and assures newcomers that it does stand alone.

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"I'm a big fan of stories that can stand on their own, so it was really important to me that this book welcome new readers as much as it does people already familiar with the world, characters and creatures of the previous book," he says.

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When it comes to the continuation of Marjan’s journey, Monsef says she and her friends will "face a world that's bigger, stranger,and more deeply interconnected than anything they've ever encountered before, full of new creatures inspired by stories and mythology from all over the world."

The series will continue to expand, as The Hollywood Reporter announced in 2022 that Ron Howard and Brian Grazer’s Imagine Entertainment, who previously released Under the Banner of Heaven and Judy Blume Forever, acquired the rights to develop a movie adaptation of the first novel.

The Bird of a Thousand Stories, comes out Feb, 4, 2025. and is available for preorder now, wherever books are sold.

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