At a Glance
- May Cobb’s new novel All the Little Houses arrives Jan. 20, 2025
- Set in mid-1980s Longview, Texas, the story pits dynasty heiress Nellie Anderson against a picture-perfect new family
- Malin Akerman narrates the audiobook
- Why it matters: The book promises the same sultry suspense that made The Hunting Wives a Netflix hit
Bestselling author May Cobb is turning up the heat again. On Jan. 20, Sourcebooks Landmark will release her newest thriller, All the Little Houses, a tale of privilege, jealousy and small-town power plays in 1980s East Texas.
Cobb, whose previous novel The Hunting Wives leapt from page to screen on Netflix, calls the upcoming book “my wildest book since The Hunting Wives.”
A Dynasty in Danger
The story centers on Nellie Anderson, golden girl of the wealthy Anderson clan that rules Longview. Whatever Nellie wants, her mother Charleigh secures-no questions asked.
Charleigh’s own climb began on the poor side of town, where she endured humiliation from the in-crowd. Now she remembers every slight and protects her daughter’s status with ruthless precision.
The equilibrium shatters when a “prairie-kissed family” rolls into town: trad-wife mother, woodworking father, wholesome teenage daughter. Their wholesome image threatens Charleigh’s carefully built empire.
“Full of mean girls, mean moms and bad boys up to no good in the piney woods of East Texas, All the Little Houses is my soapy, sultry love letter to The Little House on the Prairie,” Cobb tells News Of Los Angeles.
Star-Studded Audio
Listeners get an extra treat: Malin Akerman, who starred in the Hunting Wives adaptation, voices Charleigh in the audiobook.
“I’m utterly thrilled that the wildly talented, bold, and brilliant Malin Akerman is narrating the character of Charleigh,” Cobb says. “What an absolute dream come true!”
Exclusive Chapter Preview
News Of Los Angeles shares an early excerpt from Chapter 4, read by Akerman:
Charleigh stands in her kitchen at dawn, the Folgers brewed down to sludge. Three giant mugs haven’t calmed her jitters. The cause isn’t caffeine or her husband Jackson’s impending visit-it’s Nellie.
Nellie stormed in the night before, tires shrieking, door slamming. Charleigh had stirred Hamburger Helper, knowing her daughter would skip the shrimp linguine she and Alexander enjoyed.
Upstairs, Nellie refuses dinner. Through the door she yells, “Don’t wanna eat right now, Mom!” The word mom slices the air.
Charleigh enters anyway. Nellie sits cross-legged on the bed, face beet-red, tears shining.
“Trouble with Dustin?” Charleigh asks.
“God, no. As if I give a shit about him.”
“Language.”
“Oh, please. Learned it all from you.”
Nellie finally spills the real problem: a new girl named Jane has stolen the spotlight at the swimming hole. Jane’s free-spirited, “slutty and gross,” yet everyone obsesses over her.
“She’s already ruining my summer!” Nellie shouts.
Charleigh grips her daughter’s shoulders. “Whoever this little Jane bitch is, I’ll take care of her.”
Key Takeaways
- All the Little Houses lands Jan. 20 in print, digital and audio formats wherever books are sold
- Cobb positions the novel as her most unrestrained work since The Hunting Wives
- Fans of the Netflix series can expect similar twists, dark humor and Texas-gothic glamour
- Akerman’s audiobook performance adds Hollywood sparkle to the small-town scandal
Pre-orders are open now.
