Asterix and the Chieftain's Daughter (French: La Fille de Vercingétorix, "The Daughter of Vercingetorix") is the forthcoming 38th book in the Asterix series, and the fourth to be written by Jean-Yves Ferri and illustrated by Didier Conrad. The book is to be released worldwide in more than 20 languages on 24 October 2019 with an initial print run of over 5 million copies.
Plot
One night, two Avernian chieftains arrive with a teen-aged girl, Adrenalin, who is known for frequently running away & being obstinate. The story is told of how Vercingetorix gave his daughter a golden torc & entrusted her to the chieftains' care before his defeat at Gergovia. Now, the chieftains seek to leave Adrenalin under the care of the Indomitable Gauls in order to acquire a ship to take them to Britain since Julius Ceasar intends to capture the torc, possibly as a trophy, & Adrenalin to raise her as a Roman with the aid of a Gaulish traitor. Along the way, the feisty young Gaul makes friends with the youths in the village who help her escape for the fabled island Thule that not even Ceasar knows the where-abouts of. After giving Asterix, Obelix & the others the slip, young Adrenalin finds herself on board a certain pirate ship which she intends to commandeer & eventually finding herself in the hands of the traitor only to be rescued by the pursuing Gauls. After her adventure, Adrenalin meets a young sailor who is a strong believer in world-peace and sails away with him. The story leaves the two on an island which is more distant than the legendary Thule, nonetheless fulfilling their dream of rescuing orphans, appearing to be of European, African & Asiatic decent. There seems to be a fourth, named Dopamin, who also has a habit of running off... Back at the village, the Gauls celebrate with the usual banquet.
History
Details of the book were announced at a press conference on 10 April 2019 at Parc Asterix. The story involves the teenage daughter of Vercingetorix, accompanied by two Arvernian chiefs, arriving unexpectedly at the Gaulish village. According to French media reports, she is being sought by Julius Caesar's legionaries as she is a symbol of resistance. Writer Ferri described her as a typically rebellious teenager but with the temperament of her famous father. A theme of the book is dealing with adolescence. "Adolescence is finding one's way, despite one's parents," said Ferri.