Anna and the Apocalypse made its World Premiere one year ago at Fantastic Fest 2017. Now the movie is getting a national US theatrical release this holiday season, and an all-new story inspired by the film is headed to bookstores on October 23. The Anna and the Apocalypse novel gives readers an extended look and insight into Anna and her friends lives with new storylines that take place before and during the holiday zombie apocalypse.

Anna and the Apocalypse, Orion Pictures' feature film musical winning over audiences at film festivals worldwide with its humor, horror and musical dance numbers, is heading to select theaters November 30 with a national rollout to follow. Ahead of the film's theatrical release, Anna and the Apocalypse is set to arrive in bookstores as an all-new horror comedy novel from co-authors Katherine Turner and Barry Waldo.

Anna and the Apocalypse promises an extended look at Anna and her friends as they navigate the teen angst-filled halls of high school and wage an all-out war against a zombie invasion, expanding on the creative vision of Anna and the Apocalypse creator, the late Ryan McHenry and director John McPhail. Said the novel's co-authors Katherine Turner and Barry Waldo.

"Anna and the Apocalypse is a wonderfully realized world, full of strong characters, epic friendships and gripping adventure. The book gave us the chance to delve deeper into relatable, kick-ass characters and really dig into their lives and relationships. The Anna universe is so full of heart and so much fun to explore, it was just a gift to us as writers. It's definitely the best zombie high school Christmas horror comedy book we've ever written!"

The Anna and the Apocalypse book, based on the original screenplay by Alan McDonald and Ryan McHenry, is available for pre-order now at major online book retailers and AnnaandtheApocalypsebook.com and will be released on October 23, 2018. 

School's out for the end of the world. Anna and the Apocalypse is a horror comedy about a teenager who faces down a zombie apocalypse with a little help from her friends.

Anna Shepherd is a straight-A student with a lot going on under the surface: she's struggling with her mom's death, total friend drama, and the fallout from wasting her time on a very attractive boy. She's looking forward to skipping town after graduation―but then a zombie apocalypse majorly disrupts the holidays season. It's going to be very hard to graduate high school without a brain.

To save the day, Anna, her friends, and her frenemies will have to journey straight to the heart of one of the most dangerous places ever known, a place famous for its horror, terror, and pain...high school.

This novel is inspired by the musical feature film, Anna and the Apocalypse, produced by Blazing Griffin in association with Parkhouse Pictures and Creative Scotland, and distributed by Orion Picture in North America, Vertigo Releasing in the UK, Spendid in Germany, Pony Canyon in Japan, MovieCloud in Taiwan and various other partners around the world.

Katharine Turner is a British writer who lives in Los Angeles, California. She loves reading books, watching movies, the otters at The Los Angeles Zoo, piña coladas and getting caught in the rain.

Barry Waldo started telling stories at a young age in rural Arkansas. He went from his first job at Showbiz Pizza Place to getting an MBA at The University of Chicago Booth School. After working at Disney, he led a team crafting the story for Mattel's Monster High and worked with Little, Brown Books for Young Readers to launch the bestselling Monster High book series by Lisi Harrison. He's also worked with Shana and Ahmet Zappa to create the world of Disney's Star Darlings, and with will.i.am of the Black Eyed Peas.

When Barry found himself on a rainy train ride from London to Scotland, listening to a young Scottish gent explain how he was developing a zombie Christmas musical, the idea for the Anna and the Apocalypse novel was born. Barry lives in London and Scotland with his husband.