In the interminably long time it's taking for Season 3 of Netflix's Stranger Things to arrive, loyal viewers are coming up with inventive ways to satisfy their impatient yearnings with Dark Horse's Stranger Things comic series, special fan events like Chicago's Stranger Con, and even a Stranger Things Maze at Universal Studios' Halloween Horror Nights.

One attractive distraction to consider is Stranger Things: Worlds Turned Upside Down, the first-ever, 224-page official companion book, being released on Oct. 30 by Penguin/Random House's Del Rey Books, and SYFY WIRE has an advance peek between the covers.

Partnering with Netflix, the publishing giant is launching this expansive, behind-the-scenes hardcover guide to the first two seasons of Stranger Things and beyond, packed with exclusive color photos, character breakdowns, illuminating concept art, production stills, revealing interviews, and more.

Author Gina McIntyre delivers a joyous collectible volume of geeky trivia, cultural artifacts, pop culture references, early screenplay drafts, Netflix pitches, costume sketches, and interesting maps of Hawkins and the Upside Down. Also included is Eleven's Morse code disc, insights into the Duffer Brothers' creative wizardry, visual effects breakdowns, and a special commentary and foreword by Matt and Ross Duffer.

Some of the not-so-secret Season 3 revelations include confirmation of the Mind Flayer, the shadowy monster still looming outside Hawkins in the Upside Down; sinister doings by Cary Elwes' duplicitous Mayor Kline; and the potential nefarious origins of the brand-new, brightly-lit Starcourt Mall and its seemingly innocent gathering of '80s-era shops.

Video of Stranger Things: Worlds Turned Upside Down by Gina McIntyre

But by far one of the coolest design elements of this essential tie-in edition is that it's made to imitate a vintage dust-jacketed find from a used book store, complete with cover tears, corner scuffs, and a worn red condition sticker! Stranger Things: Worlds Turned Upside Down is a must-have study guide and novelty memento that should provide months of immersive enjoyment of the Emmy Award-winning sci-fi horror series and a sneak peek at the next season.

"The idea behind the book was to take readers inside the world of Stranger Things — looking at everything from how Matt and Ross Duffer first became interested in filmmaking and their inspirations for the series, up through the production of the first two seasons and its explosion into pop culture," McIntyre told SYFY WIRE. "What was so interesting about the writing process was discovering just how much there was to dig into in terms of the 1980s ephemera, the special effects and production design, the music.

"It also became abundantly clear why Stranger Things has come to mean so much to so many people. It’s absolutely the kind of show that has something to offer to almost anyone. It’s scary. It’s funny. It’s suspenseful. It’s emotional. Depending on your age, it’s incredibly nostalgic. Ultimately, though, I think it really is the relationships among the characters that carry the most resonance and weight."

Check out our exclusive look inside the pages of Worlds Turned Upside Down in the gallery below, with the kids talking about their Ghostbusters costume scene and some monster morphology, then tell us if it enhances your hankering for Hawkins, Indiana, and Stranger Things' captivating cast.

According to the Duffer Brothers and executive producer Sean Levy, filming for the upcoming season should wrap by the end of the year, with an expected release date for Season 3 slated for the third quarter of 2019. Netflix vice president of original programming Cindy Holland has gone on record confirming summer 2019 and reassuring rabid fans that the delay will be “worth the wait.”

From the forthcoming book STRANGER THINGS: WORLDS TURNED UPSIDE DOWN. Copyright © 2018 by Netflix, Inc. Reprinted by arrangement with Del Rey Books, an imprint of Random House, a division of Penguin Random House LLC. All rights reserved.