Cut to the Ending: A Novel

By: Millage, Maria

Published by Little, Brown and Company, 2026-11-03

"Delaney Webber knows the price of Hollywood success: long hours, a caffeine addiction, and sacrificing any semblance of a personal life. But a year after a misogynistic producer torpedoed her screenwriting career, she's stuck picking up dry cleaning and sourcing authenticated Predator costumes for her eccentric boss-slash-mentor. When he offers her the chance to finish the high fantasy franchise that made him a household name-Magician's Gambit-she jumps at the opportunity to get her career back on track. There's just one problem: she's never seen it. Not-quite-reformed nerd Max Sullivan is one Teams notification away from a mental breakdown. As the assistant to one of LA's most powerful (and terrifying) talent managers, he's Living the Dream-aka barely keeping his anxiety in check while juggling hyper-specific coffee orders and overinflated egos. It's not what anyone would call "healthy," but it's worth it for the opportunity to one day make the kind of movies his dad raised him on-movies like Magician's Gambit. Max needs his big break; Delaney needs someone to teach her the difference between an Orc and a Hobbit. It's a match made in (professional) heaven and with both their careers on the line, Delaney is determined to keep things between them platonic, no matter how good Max's forearms look in a button-up. But as their Magician's Gambit lessons turn strictly unprofessional and their electric chemistry becomes impossible to ignore, they must decide if their future is worth fighting for, or if it's time to roll the credits"--