The world is on fire. And what will you do? In a city rocked by global catastrophe, home-grown terrorism, shortages and wildfires, Cass is quietly raising three small children by herself.

Her husband, Nathaniel, has left to serve as a medic in a war overseas. As life in the city becomes increasingly impossible, Cass knows she can no longer wait for Nathaniel’s return. Packing up their lives, she and the children set off in search of a place of greater safety.

But Cass will learn that not all promises and not all sanctuaries are what they seem – and as the fires around them begin to close in, she’ll discover just how far she’ll go for her children in a world teetering on apocalypse. Sensual, claustrophobic and vivid, Briefly Very Beautiful announces the arrival of a major new talent, painting an unforgettable portrait of a mother trying to hold her family together.