Sam Raimi will be joining the ranks of producers hoping to find the next big film franchise based on a YA book as he has just acquired the rights to the post-apocalyptic angel themed novel ‘Angelfall.’

The book, by Susan Ee, has a very interesting backstory. Originally a self-published e-book, ‘Angelfall’ started off as a modified NaNo novel with Ee’s goal to write 80,000 words in 6 weeks. What came out of this self-challenge was an novel that ranked No. 1 on Goodreads’ list of best independent novels and was a finalist for the 2011 Cybils award for best young adult fantasy and sci-fi books before being picked up by Amazon Children’s Publishing and officially being released by them last August. Her second book in the series yet untitled is set to be released next fall.

Here’s a synopsis for ‘Angelfall:’

Six weeks after angels of the apocalypse descend to demolish the modern world, street gangs rule the day while fear and superstition rule the night. When warrior angels fly away with a helpless little girl, her seventeen-year-old sister Penryn will do anything to get her back… even if that means making a deal with an enemy angel Raffe, a warrior who has been left bleeding and wingless. Having only each other to rely on for survival, the two journey towards the angel’s stronghold where she must risk everything to rescue her sister and he must decide whether to put himself at the mercy of his enemies for the chance to be made whole again.

Rob Tapert (‘Poltergiest,’ ‘The Grudge’) and Good Universe will produce the film alongside Raimi with Joe Drake and Nathan Kahane (who served as EP’s on ‘Evil Dead,’ ‘The Possession’) who will executive produce.

Susan Ee with Sam Raimi,Joe Drake, Nathan Kahane, and Rob Tapert (The Possession). Photo credit: EW

“Susan is a brilliant writer,” comments Raimi. “She has created a fantastic world with instantly engaging and real characters. I immediately connected with the material and knew that she had conceived the perfect combination for a great fantasy film.” Ee states that she is enthusiastic about the team that will be transforming her words onto the big screen. “I’m tremendously excited to be working with a creative powerhouse like Sam Raimi,” she told EW. “Having Angelfall be received so enthusiastically by the readers and then having a world-class director/producer like Sam Raimi want to make a movie of it is simply the definition of joy for me.”

Although no director or writer has been named for the film, Ee is optimistic. “I’m hoping the movie will be a great multi-layered experience with a thrilling plot, a fabulous audio-visual experience, and an emotional connection. This story has a lot going on internally that the reader/viewer can infer, so I’m hoping for wonderful actors who can convey that in a way that resonates well with the audience and a superb director who can bring it all together.”