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A graphic novel adaptation of author H.D. Carlton’s bestselling dark romance book “Haunting Adeline” is set to be released next year, Variety has learned.
Developed and published by Deviant Ink Publishing, a romance
and dark romance-focused illustrated formats publisher, the project will first release as a comic book series scheduled to launch in early 2027 in comic book stores nationwide, followed by collected graphic novel editions for the broader bookstore market. Blackstone Publishing, which is currently in attendance at San Diego Comic-Con amid the announcement, will distribute the comic book series and collected graphic novel editions.
“’Haunting Adeline’ coming to San Diego Comic-Con is something I never even conceived of, yet it feels so right, like Zade and Addie are entering into another home,” Carlton said in a statement to Variety. “I’m thrilled for my readers to immerse themselves into this world in a whole new way. I’d say I’m excited to see them lose their minds over it, but I think we all know they’ve already lost them long ago, and now it’s time to see their unhinged selves flourish at Comic-Con.”
Per Amazon’s synopsis for Carlton’s bestselling, self-published book “Haunting Adeline”:
“For Adeline Reilly, moving back to Seattle was supposed to be the perfect fresh start. With her flourishing career as an author, and the inheritance of her late grandmother’s gothic mansion, there is nothing to stand in her way. But Adeline isn’t alone in Parson’s Manor. It isn’t the angry souls haunting the hallways of her childhood home that Adeline fears–it’s the mysterious break-ins, roses appearing, and threatening messages that somehow sound more like eerie promises. Adeline has a stalker. Yet, she quickly discovers she’s not the first person in her family to fall victim to a shadow in pursuit. Left behind are her great-grandmother’s haunting journals detailing the story of her own phantom, and subsequently, her brutal murder. Parson’s Manor now holds more than just Adeline’s memories—it houses a grim future that could lead to history repeating itself. If she doesn’t fall in love with her stalker first.”
Deviant Ink and Blackstone say the upcoming “Haunting Adeline” comic book and graphic novel formats “will bring the world of Zade and Addie to life for the first time in an official sequential-art format, developed for adult readers, collectors, and longtime fans of the series.”
News of the graphic novel project comes amid intense discourse in the BookTok community over Carlton’s July 14 announcement that a film adaptation of “Haunting Adeline” is currently in the works. At the center of the controversy is a debate between readers regarding adapting the book’s divisive stalker-romance storyline and explicit sexual abuse plot points for the screen.
Carlton posted a new video message to Instagram Friday to “apologize” to those who “believe” in “Haunting Adeline’s” “right to exist as a book or a movie” who have been experiencing backlash for supporting the film adaptation, which Carlton says is still on track.
Variety has confirmed no additional details regarding the “Haunting Adeline” film are available at this time.
Additional creative team announcements, cover reveals, retailer information and preorder details for the “Haunting Adeline” comic books and graphic novels will be released in the coming months.
The graphic novel deal between Carlton, Deviant and Blackstone was arranged by Kimberly Whalen of The Whalen Agency.
“Dark romance readers are some of the most passionate fans in publishing, and ‘Haunting Adeline’ is one of the titles that proved just how powerful that audience has become,” Deviant Ink Publishing publisher Eduardo Alpuente said. “This adaptation gives us the chance to honor the atmosphere, danger, and emotional intensity of H.D. Carlton’s novel while creating a visually striking new experience for fans. This is exactly the kind of project Deviant Ink was created to bring into the world.”
“The fans got here before the industry did,” Blackstone Publishing CEO Josh Stanton added. “They were already making the art, sharing the edits, building the mood boards, collecting the merch, and turning ‘Haunting Adeline’ into a visual world. What interests us is not just the size of that readership, but the intensity of it. These fans do not engage with the story casually. That makes comics and graphic novels a smart next step, and working with Deviant Ink gives the project a creative partner built for atmosphere, character, and obsession.”
