Little Monsters

For readers of the New York Times bestsellers The Paper Palace and Ask Again, Yes, comes a gripping novel about Cape Cod, complex families, and long-kept secrets from the author of the best-selling memoir Wild Game.

Since their mother's passing while they were young, Ken and Abby Gardner have been plagued by her absence. The link between Ken and Abby developed into something complex during their mostly alone upbringing by their father, Adam, a talented oceanographer, in their secluded Cape Cod home. As adults, their relationship is strained. Years later, there is still a great deal of overlap in the siblings' lives. Because her brother owns the studio where she lives and works, Abby, a gifted visual artist, depends on her brother's goodwill. Ken, on the other hand, is a prosperous businessman with political aspirations and a charming family.

Adam is facing his impending seventieth birthday and facing his impending death when the book begins. He has always taken medication to control his bipolar disease, but he has secretly stopped taking it because he is eager to make one last scientific discovery, even though he knows this will enrage his kids. In the meantime, Steph, a new member of the family who keeps her relationship a secret, is there, and both Abby and Ken are hiding secrets of their own. Adam is becoming increasingly tuned into the frequencies of the deep water and less into the frequencies of others around him. In this little family, Abby and Ken are competing with one another to design the most lavish gifts they can give their father for his birthday.

Little Monsters, based on the biblical story of Cain and Abel and set in the turbulent summer of 2016, is a captivating and astute family tale penned by a writer who is intimately familiar with the lush, Edenic landscape of Cape Cod, as well as its serpent population.