JRR Tolkien's book Beren and Luthien published after 100 years

Beren and Luthien: JRR Tolkien

Beren and Luthien, a book by Lord of the Rings author John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (JRR Tolkien), was published on 1 June 2017, 100 years after it was first conceived.

The books was published by HarperCollins on the 10th anniversary of the last Middle Earth book 'The Children of Hurin'.  

Beren and Luthien is described as a very personal story that JRR Tolkien envisaged after returning from the Battle of the Somme. The names Beren and Luthien are carved on the gravestone Tolkien and his wife share in Wolvercote cemetery in Oxford.

The book was edited by his son Christopher Tolkien and contains versions of a tale that became part of The Silmarillion, the myths and legends of the First Age of the World conceived by Tolkien.

About Beren and Luthien
• Beren and Luthien is a love story that was partly inspired by JRR Tolkien's wife Edith.
• The story is about the fate of lovers Beren and Luthien, a mortal man and an immortal elf who together try to steal from the greatest of all evil beings Melkor called Morgoth.
• Events in the book take place during the First Age of Middle-earth, some 6500 years before the events in The Lord of the Rings.
• The book features illustrations by Alan Lee, who won an Academy Award for his work on Peter Jackson's film trilogy.