From the publishers who brought you Piranesi and Circe comes a singular novel about the intergenerational cost of making and consuming art

A READ WITH JENNA BOOK CLUB PICK

'Not since Donna Tartt’s The Secret History have I loved a book filled with such magic and mystery as I have Melissa Albert’s The Children' JENNA BUSH HAGER
'A page-turner full of mystery . . . The language is dusted with magic' STEPHEN KING
'A joyously grim, open-eyed, adult fairy tale with the messiest of morals' PAUL TREMBLAY
'An insidious and masterfully cast spell of a book . . . Gorgeous and dreadful, I devoured it' MONA AWAD
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Their childhood was yours. They want it back . . .

Guinevere’s late mother, Edith Sharpe, needs little introduction. Bestselling author of the unendingly successful Ninth City series, her books brought so much joy and inspired the imagination of countless children the world over. Guin’s childhood with her mother, brother Ennis and her actor father was a blissful, bohemian affair, filled with continuous laughter and surrounded by artistic types in their Vermont barnhouse. At least, this is the story Guin presents as she prepares for the press tour for her upcoming memoir about life in the Sharpe family.

Now estranged from her brother and her parents long dead after a devastating fire, strange events threaten the veneer of serenity and familial harmony Guin is keen to project. Ennis, now a notorious artist with a troubled past, announces a new installation – his first since a disastrous last show one year prior – simply entitled Mother. And Guin can’t help but worry that the truth behind their idyllic childhood is about to blow her world apart.

Told in alternating narratives between 1990s Vermont and present-day New York, The Children is a twisting narrative of family secrets and long-held resentments, which asks whether we can ever really exorcise the ghosts of a childhood forsaken in favour of a parent’s artistic vision.
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'A poison apple of a book: glossy, sweet, and absolutely terrifying' ALIX E. HARROW
'Twisty and strange in all the best ways' HEATHER FAWCETT

"Not since Donna Tartt’s The Secret History have I loved a book filled with such magic and mystery as I have Melissa Albert’s The Children … This is a layered, haunting adult fairy tale … I loved this book, you will love it, you will buy it, you will read it so fast" - Read with Jenna

"Books about books or set in the publishing world are everywhere now … but Melissa Albert’s dark literary fantasy about the children of a famous author is a standout … A brilliant exploration of the weight of memory, the bond between siblings and how trauma shapes our lives. It’s a deliciously surprising novel, full of references to children’s literature and with the feeling at times of fairy tale … This debut novel marks [Albert] as a hugely talented writer. The world she’s created is believable, claustrophobic and unsettling in the best way. If you’ve ever wondered what life was like for Christopher Robin or Alice Liddell (the inspiration for Alice In Wonderland) after they were immortalised in print, this is for you" - Good Housekeeping

"Albert’s debut adult novel contains both the magic and the darkness of a classic fairy tale . . . Albert spins a captivating tale exploring what it means for a mother to make art – and at whose expense" - New York Magazine

"There’s a trend right now for books about books … But it’s Melissa Albert’s The Children, about the lives of a famous (fictional) author’s offspring, that’s my new favourite. Few writers could create something so unique and surprising: I practically inhaled it … Albert creates a twisty – and twisted – grown-up fairy tale that I can’t stop thinking about" - Red Magazine

"Albert’s adult debut is a beguiling read; smart yet satisfying" - i-Paper

"The Children is a triumph. Albert’s prose is sensuous and textural, creating the impression of a childhood that is both dreadful and enchanting. She writes with lyrical attentiveness to the physicality of her setting . . . and has built a compelling story that exists in the intersection between wonder and terror" - Bookseller

"From the bestselling YA author Albert, a first novel for adults that blends mystery, fantasy, and a sort of publishing world realism to create a twisty, delicious, and – I mean this in the best way – faintly sinister reading experience . . . If you are a grown-up who, at one time, believed that Narnia (or Neverland, or Oz) was real, this book is for you" - Lit Hub, Most Anticipated Books of 2026

"Melissa Albert brings all the dark magic and fraught mother/daughter dynamics of her contemporary fantasy YA novels The Hazel Wood and The Bad Ones into her adult debut" - Lit Hub, 25 Sci-Fi and Fantasy Books to Look Forward to in 2026