The Very Nice Box

"Laura Blackett and Eve Gleichman are linguistic magicians, and their sparkling debut manages to expose the hollowness of well-being jargon while exploring, with tender care and precision, how we dare to move on after unspeakable loss . . . [They have] constructed a mirrored fun house, one that leads us down different paths, each masterfully tied up at the end, yet reflecting and refracting our own quirky selves." -New York Times Book Review, An Editors' Choice "A very funny debut - and perhaps the most original office satire of the year." -Washington Post For fans of Elinor Oliphant Is Completely Fine and Severance: an offbeat, wryly funny debut novel that follows an eccentric product engineer who works for a hip furniture company where sweeping corporate change lands her under the purview of a startlingly charismatic boss who seems determined to get close to her at all costs . . . Ava Simon designs storage boxes for STÄDA, a slick Brooklyn-based furniture company. She's hard-working, obsessive, and heartbroken from a tragedy that killed her girlfriend and upended her life. It's been years since she's let anyone in. But when Ava's new boss-the young and magnetic Mat Putnam-offers Ava a ride home one afternoon, an unlikely relationship blossoms. Ava remembers how rewarding it can be to open up-and, despite her instincts, she becomes enamored. But Mat isn't who he claims to be, and the romance takes a sharp turn. The Very Nice Box is a funny, suspenseful debut-with a shocking twist. It's at once a send-up of male entitlement and a big-hearted account of grief, friendship, and trust.