Darling Beasts

by Michelle Gable

Genres: Family Life; Siblings; Magical Realism; Women's Fiction

Synopsis

Succession meets Nothing to See Here: The heirs to a publishing fortune are knit back into each other’s lives when they are forced into the spotlight for their father’s political campaign—and exotic animals begin to appear as an omen before each new debacle they face.

Gabby, Talia, and Ozzie Gunn, heirs to a media empire, are in trouble. After several bad investments and one major scandal, their father is now trying to restore their family’s good name with a senatorial run. Even worse? He’s demanding they move to California to join the campaign or risk being cut off.

It’s easy to say you don’t care about money when you have enough, but with mounting debts, unconventional hobbies, and in the case of Gabby, Portum Bestiae Syndrome—a very expensive condition in which strange symptoms arise and then an exotic animal appears—the siblings don’t have much of a choice. In California, they’ll just have to keep their distance and survive until it’s all over.

But almost immediately, the Gunns find themselves right in the thick of things, dodging headlines and the creatures that seem to pop up in the most inconvenient places. Not only that—the change in scenery even has them bonding, on hot-air balloon rides and sunny beaches. But when a family secret rears its head, reopening old wounds, this new existence is thrown into chaos, and the stage is set for a long-overdue reckoning…

Release date: July 8, 2025

Publisher: Graydon House Books

Print pages: 304