New Novel from Thomas Harris Announced, His First Since Hannibal Lecter Series

The Silence of the Lambs author Thomas Harris has a new novel set for publication in May, his first to come out in over a decade.

Harris, 78, is an American writer best known for his series of suspense novels surrounding the character Dr. Hannibal Lecter. All five of his novels have been made into films, the most critically acclaimed being The Silence of the Lambs, which became only the third movie in the history of the Academy Awards to sweep the Oscars in all top five categories (Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Picture).

But there’s one major difference between his past novels and his new work: There will be no Lecter in it.

Grand Central Publishing announced Wednesday that Harris’ forthcoming novel will be his first “stand-alone thriller” since his 1975 debut, Black Sunday. The publisher also confirmed to the AP that Hannibal the Cannibal will not be making an appearance.

Apart from Black Sunday, Harris has only released four novels, all of which feature Lecter. These include Red Dragon (1981), The Silence of the Lambs (1988) and Hannibal (1999). His most recent work, Hannibal Rising, came out over a decade ago in 2006.

Harris’s novels have sold millions of copies, and scren adaptations of his work have made Hannibal Lecter into one of pop culture’s most iconic villains.