Black Mirror meets Succession in this speculative page-turner about a struggling author's desperate attempt to fix his narcissistic mother’s debilitating depression—with dire consequences.

When Maria Bailey, a famous high-powered CEO and textbook narcissist, retires, she spirals into a depression that no amount of therapy or prescriptions has been able to solve. She moves in with her son Kai and his girlfriend, Emma, in their small city apartment, where her emotional abuse only intensifies.

When Emma finally has enough and moves out, Kai desperately searches for a quick fix for his mother. Enter Dr. Findlay, a mysterious neurosurgeon with a technique that can remove all negative emotions, leaving behind only unbridled happiness. Surprisingly, Maria is on board, and goes under Findlay's knife.

Postsurgery, a life without the “bad” emotions seems to fix all of Maria’s problems. She doesn’t even fly into a fit of rage when Kai finally asks her to move out. She's actually . . . pleasant to be around. But she also doesn’t experience shame. Or regret. Or guilt. When the consequences of Maria’s happiness take a dark, shocking turn, Kai is left to pick up the pieces and grapple with the destruction his mother left in her wake—both pre- and postsurgery.

Emma Cline’s dark humor meets the sci-fi thrills of Severance in this astonishing debut from an exciting new voice in speculative fiction, which dares to ask how far you'd go to feel "good."