Godfather prequel confirmed

New novel authorised and set for release next year...

10:08 05 May 2011

A prequel to Mario Puzo's classic novel The Godfather is to be released in June 2012, publisher Grand Central has revealed.

The book, entitled The Family Corleone, has been authorised by the estate of Puzo and will be written by author Ed Falco.

The Godfather series follows the fortunes of a fictional Italian-American family, initially led by the Godfather, Vito 'Don' Corleone.

Set in the 1930s, the new novel will be based around an unproduced screenplay, written by Puzo, and will tell the tale of Corleone's rise through the criminal underworld.

The author's son, Tony, described the new novel as being "true to Mario Puzo's legacy", while Grand Central Publishing said that the novel "thrillingly brings back Puzo's classic characters in a prequel that both honours the original and stands on its own."

Puzo followed up The Godfather novel with two further books in the saga, The Sicilian, published in 1984, and Omerta, which was published posthumously in 2000.

He won Oscars for writing the Godfather and the Godfather Part II films, based on his novels, alongside Francis Ford Coppolla.

Mario Puzo died in 1999 aged 78.