Shi Cheng, China, photo by Chinese National Geography.

Ally Condie has made a major announcement on her personal website! As reported by the Children’s Book Council, Ally Condie is planning on taking us from a futuristic land to an imagined, complex underwater world! Ally informs fans on her blog post that she is staying with the same team that she worked with while writing and publishing Matched, Crossed and Reached.

So far, Ally has signed on for two books to be published. The first book does not have a working title yet, so Ally is referring to it as “The Rio Book.” Here’s an excerpt of Ally’s (spoiler-free) edited version of the official press release:

The first book, scheduled for publication in fall 2014, tells the story of Rio, who has waited her whole life for the opportunity to leave her safe, underwater city of Atlantia for life on the surface. But when her life takes an unexpected twist and Rio must remain below, she is left with increasingly dangerous questions about the complex political and religious system constructed to govern the fragile divide between land and sea.

It sounds like Ally Condie is really delving into the fantastical, which should be fun! We’ve got stories about werewolves, vampires, angels, demons, Gods… and now we will have one about an underwater world! It is not specified if this will be about “merpeople,” but I’m sure in due time we will find out. While Ally says she is excited to write about families and sister, she also reassured her fans that there will be more amazing romance stories in our future, saying,  ”Don’t worry, there is also romance!”

What do you think about the new announcement? Feeling skeptical about a story about an underwater world? Feeling excited to learn about that world’s “complex political and religious system”? Share in the comments!!!