In yet another seven figure deal, Ecco has preempted world English rights to Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney's debut novel, The Nest. The HC imprint won the book from agent Henry Dunow at Dunow, Carlson, & Lerner, with a house bid, and Ecco's Megan Lynch will be editing. HC said the book is about a "wonderfully dysfunctional" family.

The Nest opens as the three adult Plumb siblings prepare to confront their older brother Leo one winter weekend in Manhattan. Leo, fresh out of rehab, has been squandering the group's trust fund. With the children months away from receiving their money, they must confront, as Ecco explained, "tensions, old wounds, and the significant emotional and financial costs of Leo’s carelessness."

Lynch called the novel "warm" and "funny," as well as "deeply insightful about the fraught but unbreakable ties that bind us to our families.”

Sweeney, who lives in Los Angeles with her husband and children, has an MFA from Bennington.

HarperCanada's HarperAvenue imprint, and Harper UK's The Borough Press, will jointly publish The Nest with Ecco in 2016.