The Usual Desire to Kill by [Author] is a darkly funny and deeply moving novel about family, frustration, and love that never quite dies—even when you wish it would. Told through the sharply observant eyes of Miranda, a middle-aged daughter caught between generations, the story explores the strange rituals and rigid habits of her aging parents, who live in rural France surrounded by ducks, llamas, and long-held grudges.

Miranda’s father, a retired philosophy professor, argues with logic. Her mother rewrites every conversation to end with a story about the War—despite being born after it ended. Together, they’ve been married for fifty years and remain gloriously stubborn. As Miranda visits them, translating passive-aggressive commentary between the two and unloading her frustrations to her daughter and sister, one constant remains: “the usual desire to kill.”

A blend of humor, heartbreak, and brilliant dialogue, this debut novel is a must-read for fans of A Man Called Ove and The Royal Tenenbaums. It captures the messiness of family, the endurance of marriage, and the ways love survives in the strangest of homes.