𝐒𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐬 𝐈 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤 𝐦𝐲 𝐝𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐡𝐞𝐫. 𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐛𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐞𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐢𝐠𝐡-𝐬𝐨𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐭𝐲 𝐛𝐮𝐥𝐥𝐬𝐡*𝐭, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐜𝐫𝐚𝐰𝐧𝐲 𝐠𝐢𝐫𝐥 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐰 𝐮𝐩 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐦𝐲 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞, 𝐥𝐮𝐫𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐩𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐞.

This is May Cobb in all her decadent, salacious glory, but it's unlike anything she's done before! Imagine a love letter to 𝑳𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒍𝒆 𝑯𝒐𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒐𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑷𝒓𝒂𝒊𝒓𝒊𝒆 but set in the 80s and written in a Burn Book. This book just became my entire personality, and if you haven't pre-ordered yet, what are you even doing?

Not much happens in the tiny town of Longview, Texas, but Nellie Anderson prefers it that way so she can remain the center of attention. While she's not a stunner, she's reasonably attractive, but where she really shines is her personality--wait, no. Nellie does NOT light a room. In fact, the room gets dimmer when she enters. People give her a wide berth, and she always gets what she wants. When she hits a roadblock, that's where her mother Charleigh comes in. Charleigh knows full well that her daughter is a nightmare, but with memories of growing up poor and being labeled an outcast, she's eager to give Nellie the very best.

Charleigh, her husband, and Nellie are considered Texas royalty, and everyone wants to be on their good side. They throw the best parties, all designed by Charleigh's best friend, interior designer Jackson, who quickly became one of my very favorite characters. Their good life is disrupted by the arrival of a new family to the Texas prairie, the Swifts. They are living the simple life with traditional roles, living off the land with their two teenage daughters and hawking their handmade furniture and love potions. Nellie despises their daughter Jane, who comes in with her simple handmade clothing and natural sun-kissed beauty and steals center stage from Nellie.

The intensity heats up when the Swifts begin getting more and more attention from the locals and Charleigh realizes that Texas just isn't big enough for both of them. What follows is an absolutely diabolical, deftly plotted story about mean girls and even meaner moms and all the secrets they try so desperately to keep tucked away in their little houses. The dialogue is absolutely loaded with malice, venom, and sass--all the things that girls are made of, right? You are in for SUCH a huge treat with this book, and the ending had me hyperventilating! You better read those author's notes if you want to know a secret! So many thanks to Sourcebooks for providing me a copy of this absolute stunner. Pre-order now and get this on release date, January 20, 2026.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. This was terrifyingly salacious book about mean girls of all ages - whether they’re teenagers, adults, or mothers. All of the characters were intimidating to me and bold as ever. They stop at nothing to get what they want both then and now. The 1980s time for this novel to take place was great nostalgia. The plot was entertaining and easy to follow and the character development was definitely chef’s kiss and helps make this such a juicy read. When I finished I was grateful for my homebody introvert lifestyle!

I knew I enjoyed Cobb’s stories, but this new title pushed my enjoyment over the edge. I became obsessed with this book. The mean girls featured are rich characters that Cobb crafted so well. I didn’t know what was going to happen between them, but I knew I couldn’t wait to find out. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

This book was very extremely good love everything about it ?! The main character was very unlikable very spoiled didn’t care for her too much her mom didn’t make it any better lol I loved the storyline it was great thank you

Okay… this book? A total, unapologetic, unhinged thrill ride. Juicy, scandalous, nostalgic, and completely addictive. I know comparisons to The Hunting Wives are inevitable — and yes, I loved that one too — but this book did something different. This time, I didn’t just see the characters… I started casting them in my head like I was running a full-blown HBO pitch meeting by Chapter Three. And once I saw Alexander as Alexander Skarsgård, I couldn’t unsee it. Jackson? Obviously Matt Bomer. Charleigh? Jessica Chastain, no contest. And Abigail? Brianne Howey in her Southern belle prime. I was creating dream casting lists as I read, fully convinced this must be turned into a series.

But before I get carried away fangirling (too late?), let’s get something straight — this isn’t just a book. It’s a moment. It’s sipping frozen margaritas poolside while clutching your Kindle like it holds state secrets. It’s reading in a single sitting because you need to know who ends up dead. It’s the kind of soapy, steamy, Southern drama that makes you feel like you’re watching Dallas reruns with a glass of rosé and no one to judge you.

Set in the 1980s in Longview, Texas — a town as hot with secrets as it is with humidity — the story dives into two families on opposite ends of the social spectrum.

The Andersons are rich, beautiful, and completely rotten under their glossy surface. Swedish heartthrob Alexander, married to drama queen Charleigh, is raising their daughter Nellie — a teenager so unhinged she makes Regina George look chill. Their glamorous life is closely intertwined with Jackson, Charleigh’s gay best friend and interior designer, whose queerness and sophistication make him an outsider in this gossipy town, but also one of the most fascinating characters in the book.

Then there are The Swifts, new to town and ready to shake things up. Abigail is the epitome of old-fashioned Southern virtue — modest dresses, Bible in hand, and a fierce maternal streak. Her husband is straight out of a Western fantasy, and their three daughters are walking contradictions — beautiful, awkward, rebellious, and strange. When Nellie’s obsession with Jane Swift starts unraveling, you know this isn’t just a teen feud — it’s a powder keg.

And that’s just the beginning.

There’s infidelity. Power plays. A possible haunting. Love potions. An explosive murder. (YES.) And the whole thing unspools like the most addictive TV drama never made. I tore through this story like a box of chocolate truffles — unable to stop, completely wrecked by the ending, and practically begging for more.

I screamed when I hit the final page. Not because I was disappointed — but because I need a sequel immediately. There are loose ends flapping in the Texas wind, secrets still buried, and characters I absolutely refuse to say goodbye to. May Cobb, you brilliant sorceress, I need more. Give me more Nellie madness, more slow-burn unraveling, more chaos. Give me book two. Give me everything.

Final thoughts? This book is deliciously wild. A binge-worthy, sun-soaked, margarita-drenched ride through wealth, lies, and small-town revenge. It’s Dynasty meets Desperate Housewives, but with more lipstick-stained prayer books and Southern-fried secrets.

Huge thanks to NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS Landmark for the digital reviewer copy in exchange for my honest, wildly enthusiastic thoughts. Y’all, prepare yourself — you won’t want to leave Longview anytime soon.

What an incredibly addictive read by May Cobb. I was hooked from the beginning and could not put this one down. I am truly appreciative for this opportunity to read.

Obsessed with All the Little Houses by May Cobb! This book had me hooked from literally page one. If you love dark and gossipy thrillers with a nostalgic small town vibe, run to pick this up. It’s set in 1980’s Texas with a cast of cutthroat moms, scheming daughters, and so much tension simmering under the surface. Charleigh is the type of character you love to hate. She’s so sharp and calculated, and I loved watching her past and present collide. Highly recommend if you love thrillers full of drama and juicy secrets. Definitely a new fave!

Wow!! A quick 5 star read! Oh, how I loved this book-except the end! Just drops you there, you know who did it but that’s all you know. Noooooo! Thankfully, the author is currently working on a sequel! Yay! This book was SOOOO juicy, salacious, twisty. I devoured it. So many folks behaving so badly makes for great reading IMO. Cannot wait for the follow up & what happens next. It definitely leaves you with a cliffhanger! Best May Cobb book yet.

This was such a good book. I loved the story and the writing so much. The characters were great and the story flowed smoothly. Will definitely read more books by this author in the future

Adults can behave badly too...

Personal review: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

After Hunting Wives, I didn’t know if she would do Texas rich people drama again, but she did, and it was incredible. Fast paced, unlikable characters, rich people drama - this book was fun and binge worthy. The characters were unlikeable in that loveable way! 😂 The prairie kissed family were such a fun twist with the rich East Texas insular neighborhood elite.

Synopsis:

It's the mid-1980s in the tiny town of Longview, Texas. Nellie Anderson, the beautiful daughter of the Anderson family dynasty, has burst onto the scene. She always gets what she wants. What she can't get for herself… well, that's what her mother is for. Because Charleigh Andersen, blond, beautiful, and ruthlessly cunning, remembers all too well having to claw her way to the top. When she was coming of age on the poor side of East Texas, she was a loser, an outcast, humiliated, and shunned by the in-crowd, whose approval she'd so desperately thirsted for. When a prairie-kissed family moves to town, all trad wife, woodworking dad, wholesome daughter vibes, Charleigh's entire self-made social empire threatens to crumble.

Who will be left standing when the dust settles?

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for providing this book, with my honest review below.

All the Little Houses is a ‘whoa drop all else and finish this’ drama that stops at the worst (best?) possible moment and will drive you crazy figuring out what happens next in this 80’s soap world May Cobb has created.

The book was a ton of fun once the characters and their backstories were clear in my mind - the Andersons, made up of shallow wife Charleigh who wants to make sure her demon seed daughter Nellie has an easier time growing up than she did, and seemingly perfect husband Alexander and The Swifts, new to town and as poor as Charleigh was growing up, made up of not so nice mom Abigail and her equally hateful daughter Julia, charismatic dad Ethan, eager to escape daughter Jane (who Nellie hates), and baby Molly. Jackson, Charleigh’s decorator who observes and becomes part of the drama, is the breath of fresh air needed to break from these intense families, along with the others in town. With characters like these you know you’re in for drama and while we aren’t quite talking Dynasty, the 80’s small town Texas setting holds its own during the hot summer the book takes place.

May mentions in the Q&A in the back of the book that she’s writing a sequel to All the Little Houses and thank goodness for that because the story, and it’s ending, absolutely beg for it.