Adrift

By Will Dean

Book Overview

The author of the "master class in suspense" (Shari Lapena, New York Times bestselling author) The Chamber returns with a high-tension thriller about a family's descent into darkness that is perfect for fans of Dennis Lehane and Lisa Jewell.

Peggy and Drew, both aspiring writers, move to an isolated canal boat with their fourteen-year-old son. Peggy is the glue that holds their family together, even as their son is bullied relentlessly for his physique and his family's lack of money. But when Drew becomes frustrated by his wife's sudden writing success, he moves their boat further and further from civilization.

With their increasing isolation, personal challenges become harder to ignore, even as they desperately try to break toxic generational patterns. But when Drew's gaslighting becomes too much for Peggy to take, it sets off a catastrophic series of events.

With Will Dean's signature "well-drawn characters and excellent prose" (Sarah Pearse, New York Times bestselling author), Adrift is gripping exploration of the ties that bind when everything spirals out of control.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1668080052
• ISBN13: 9781668080054
• Release Date: February 2026
• Publisher: Atria Books
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 1.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.3" x 6.2" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

A hard book but good

This is a very well written novel full of tough subjects and so while the characters and their stories are fully fleshed out and real, it was quite a stressful book, at least for me. And I did have to take a break to read something lighter before diving back in to finish this book. It is definitely not something you want to get into when you want to unwind. I found myself very wound up in feelings for Peggy and Samson, trapped on that houseboat with Drew. And I cannot describe in words how much I hate Drew and all that he does. Though it is a good book to see how one man can twist up a life with careful, insidious gaslighting, bullying, depriving them of basic necessities in order to have peace and quiet to finish his book, and isolating that them from all their friends, family, and a way to escape. It is kind of like the frog and the pot of boiling water metaphor and it would be awful to get so twisted that you start to doubt your own reality. I am glad of the way it ended though. So. yeah, a good book though hard to read (mentally) and I am glad I got the chance to read it.