Betnava Manor has recently often evoked negative associations due to the financial problems of its owner Maribor Archdiocese. Nevertheless, as the estate with the history of more than five hundred years and its high significance, Betnava has been unfairly neglected, due to which it has only been known to the present-day public by its recent affairs. In hope for its better future, Betnava, its history and its outstanding architecture and artistic heritage have been tackled in the first book of the new series Castellologica Slovenica. The books comprise eleven chapters by experts of different research and professional backgrounds, who shed light on the history of manor and its surroundings from the first settlement and its significance for Maribor's protestant community to the Second World War. They comprehensively present the owners of the castles, from the Lords of Auersperg to Barons of Herberstein, Counts of Khisl, Counts of Brandis and, finally, Lavantine Diocese and Maribor Archdiocese. The studies discuss the highly interesting architectural history of the manor, the protestant tombstones from the Betnava cemetery, the collection of paintings, which once adorned the manor, the fate of Betnava Manor after 1945. The books features a catalogue of items from Betnava in Maribor Regional Museum.

The studies introduce original and novel findings on the history of the manor and the estate of Betnava, which will significantly contribute towards a better understanding of the significance of this outstanding monument of Slovenian castle heritage.