The Need

by Megan Mostyn-Brown

Genres: Occult & Supernatural; General Fiction; Horror; Thrillers; Supernatural suspense

Synopsis

Every family has its secrets. But in this electric, provocative, and dizzyingly fast-paced horror debut, some families have The Need.

“An instant contender for horror novel of the year.”—Joe Hill
“This one gets stuck between your teeth, in the best way.”—Stephen Graham Jones
“You need to read The Need.”—S.A. Cosby
“A thrilling and surprisingly tender exploration of our most essential, primal fears.”—Riley Keough

The Need is a rare genetic disorder. Those who have it must consume human flesh or die. For some, The Need is power. For others, it is a curse.

Talia has been on the run with her two teenagers since the kids were babies, changing names and identities every time someone gets close to discovering her familyʼs tragic secret. Sam is her son, tormented by The Need, unable to stop giving in to his darkest desires, much to his mother’s chagrin. Rosie, his twin sister, whoʼs escaped her mom’s and brotherʼs genetic curse, is desperate for a life of normalcy—like a TikTok account, Homecoming, or a kiss with her mysterious new friend Naomi. But her brother keeps eating people and, frankly, itʼs ruining her life.

Vera, a former supermodel and member of New York City’s elite Armstrong family, lives a life of luxury, haute couture, and eating people. Yes, unlike Talia, the Armstrongs secretly pride themselves on their genetic abnormality. But beneath Veraʼs opulent lifestyle is a woman whoʼs ruthlessly haunted by a mistake from her past. It has corrupted her standing with the Armstrongs, ruined her relationship with her kids, and is slowly unraveling her sanity. Vera will do whatever it takes to correct it.

On the surface, these two families have nothing in common. But Talia is harboring a secret from the twins—one that will bring them crashing into the Armstrongs. And when the truth comes out, no one will ever be the same.

Release date: September 22, 2026

Publisher: Del Rey

Print pages: 288

Sample

1

ROSIE

I’m at Carolyn’s house getting ready for homecoming when Sam calls. “It’s really f***ing bad, Rosie. Like real bad.” His voice is hoarse. I can tell he’s been crying. “I did it again,” he whispers.

The back of my throat feels thick, soupy. Sam doesn’t have to explain. I know exactly what he did.

The pool of blood creeping across the ground.

His chin stained.

Bits stuck in his teeth.

Ugh. I’m too stoned for this.

Carolyn glances over at me, mouths, Are you okay? I nod. A lie. She believes me. Why wouldn’t she? She only knows what I want her to know about my mom and brother. Which is close to nothing. We haven’t been friends for that long. Only a year. But it’s the longest I’ve ever been friends with anyone.

Carolyn goes back to painting her nails. I think the color’s called Space Cadet. She picked it out because it matches both of our dresses. Her dress is silver. It’s tight with skinny little straps. My dress is covered in purple sequins. I feel like a normal kid when I wear it. That’s why I chose it.

“Rosie, you still there?” I can hear the train going by in the background. Wheels screeching on tracks. The horn blasting. Sam must be somewhere on the other side of town. I wish I’d just let my phone go to voicemail.

Carolyn wiggles her fingers under the lamp. Her nails shimmer purple. She grabs tweezers and carefully places a silver rhinestone in the center of each. I thought they were pretty before, but now they’re perfect. Carolyn wants to be a nail tech someday. Not in a strip mall. But for celebrities like the Kardashians. Carolyn has it so easy.

“Rosie?” He sounds like he did when we were little. Scared.

It’s a trick.

“It’s homecoming,” I say, trying to stress how important tonight is. How much I want to go to this dance. Silence on the other end. I look down at my nails. Half-­moon nubs. Cuticles picked to shit. I flick off a scab. Blood rises to the surface. A tiny murder scene. I wonder how many coats of Space Cadet it will take to cover up the damage.

“I tried to call Mom, but she didn’t answer. Please. I swear to God, I’ll never do it again.” We both know there’s zero truth to that statement.

I sigh. “Drop a pin.” Click. He’s gone.

“You’re leaving?” Carolyn asks, eyes wide. “The dance is in like an hour. I still gotta do your nails.” I tell her I’m sorry. My brother freakin’ lost his keys. My mom’s at work.

“Can’t he come here?” Carolyn has a crush on my brother, but he’s seeing some senior.

“You know my brother,” I say, rolling my eyes. The truth is, she doesn’t. Not like I do. No one does. They think they do. He’s good at that, making people think they know him. We both are. Mom made sure of that.

God, I hate him.

I grab my hoodie off Carolyn’s bed. Tell her I’ll meet her at the dance.

It’s a lie.

I’m not gonna meet her. This is the last time I’ll ever see Carolyn. Or this town.

That’s what happens when Sam f***s up.


SAM

I light a cigarette and wait for my sister. F***, she needs to hurry up. There’s a murder of crows circling above. They can smell what’s left of Gary.

I didn’t plan this. It just happened.

An hour ago, me and Gary were getting high behind the 7-­Eleven. He’s babbling about some comic book about twins who know everything the other one is thinking. He asks if me and Rosie are like that. “You guys did share a . . . a . . .”

“A uterus, Gary. It’s called a uterus.”

“Oh yeah,” he says, relighting the joint with his Zippo and then handing it to me.

I take a hit, let the weed burn my lungs. “Not all roommates are psychically linked.”

He laughs, even though what I said wasn’t that funny. Gary’s like that. A good audience. He takes a hit off the joint and then tells me he gets it. What it’s like to live with someone you barely understand. Then he says his dad kicked him out. Found his stash. Said he was a loser because he gets high and likes video games and reads those dumb f***ing comic books.

His dad’s not wrong. Gary is a loser. But Gary’s dad’s no f***ing prize either. He’s the kind of guy who takes up all the air in the room. He owns the local car dealership. They have these cheesy commercials where Gary’s dad dresses up like a cowboy or a robot because he thinks it’ll make people buy a Subaru. Gary claps and guffaws at everything his dad says. Like a circus animal hoping for a treat. Only his dad never looks in his direction. It’s hard to watch. Makes me glad my dad is dead.

Gary looks at his feet and says he has nowhere to go. Then he starts to cry. Quietly. He covers his face. Embarrassed. I suddenly see the rest of Gary’s life. How he’s gonna keep guffawing and laughing, hoping for attention. Only no one’s ever gonna give it to him.

Because, well, he’s Gary.

He glances up. Says he’s sorry he cried. Maybe his dad is right. Maybe he is a loser.

“F***, man, what am I gonna do?” He rubs his hands down his jeans over and over. He does that when he’s nervous. I hate it. The sound. Skin on denim. I wanna put him out of his misery. Put us out of this misery. So I tell him I know a place he can stay. I lead him out to the edge of the woods. Near the railroad tracks.

Gary says he’s grateful for my help. He knew he could count on me. “You’re a good friend, man,” he says. I smile. Gary’s such a gullible f***.

I wait until the train comes. Don’t want anyone to hear his screams. He doesn’t struggle. Just looks at me, bewildered. Lets out a small yelp. I should’ve expected he’d go out with a whimper. It’s Gary, for f***’s sake.

He’s not my first. Not by a long shot.

There was the babysitter with the boyfriend who yelled at her in front of us. The old man at the gas station who smelled like Natty Light and called my mom a “hot piece of ass.” The cashier at the grocery store who liked red lipstick and popping Oxy. The math teacher who accused me of cheating. That one boyfriend Mom had.

They were all shitty people, living shitty lives. I was like their own personal angel of mercy. I gave them a way out. Frankly, they should f***ing thank me.

The crows are closer. They’re squawking. I ash my cigarette and sit down. “This was for your own good,” I tell Gary’s body.


ROSIE

Gary’s body is lying near the railroad tracks in a pile of leaves. From a distance, it looks like he’s taking a nap. But when I get up close, I can see his eyes are just sockets and his stomach is a dark cavern.

I used to get twisted over Sam’s victims. Puke. Cry. But then, when we were living in Wisconsin, I went hunting with this friend of mine and her dad. They shot a deer. The animal’s eyes fluttered. It tipped over. It screamed. That’s when I burst into tears. “It’s just food,” my friend’s dad explained. That’s how I think of Sam’s victims now. They’re just food.

After that hunting trip, I became a vegetarian. It drives Mom nuts. She used to make comments about it, which makes me laugh. I don’t judge what she eats.

Gary has fingerprints around his neck. At least Sam strangled him before ripping into him. Sometimes he just . . . goes for it. I think about what that must be like. One minute you’re having a conversation with my brother, his hair hanging in his face, his fingers constantly making the motion of flicking a cigarette even when there isn’t one in his hand, and the next minute you’re on the ground, his face buried in the soft part of your gut as he rips out your intestines. I wonder if his victims are scared. Or if they’re just like, Wow, plot twist, I didn’t freakin’ expect my day to end like this.

Sam’s sitting next to Gary’s body, smoking a cigarette like nothing’s wrong. He runs his hand through his hair and asks me if Mom is on her way. I say yeah. Then we wait for her in silence. Cuz, what am I gonna say? F*** you for eating one of our classmates?