Ubisoft and Scholastic announced a collaboration on a new young adult book series, Last Descendants, based on the hit video game franchise Assassin's Creed. Written for readers ages 12 and up by award-winning author Matthew J. Kirby, the first book in the "Last Descendants" series will launch simultaneously in September 2016 in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand. The second book will follow in January 2017.

Last Descendants is an action adventure, historical fiction saga featuring a group of teens caught up in the centuries-old Assassin-Templar feud. Inspired by the popular video game series, the first book is set concurrently in the present-day, 1860s New York City, and during the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire and will feature historical figures including William "Boss" Tweed, Hernán Cortés, renowned opera singer Adelina Patti, among others.

"Collaborating with Scholastic combines our shared passion for storytelling and using history as our playground to bring a new story to life," said Aymar Azaizia, Head of Content at Ubisoft. "The Last Descendants book series represents a great opportunity to further develop the Assassin's Creed universe in a way that appeals to both newcomers and existing fans."

"Assassin's Creed is an immersive world filled with rich and engrossing historical settings that teens will be drawn to again and again," said, Debra Dorfman, Vice President and Publisher, Global Licensing, and Media Consumer Products, Scholastic. "Scholastic has a proven track record of bringing major franchises to the publishing world and we are excited to introduce these thrilling novels by author Matthew J. Kirby to readers everywhere."