Send in the clowns: The new novel by bestselling author Kristen Arnett is waiting backstage!

The author, best known for her bestselling debut novel Mostly dead things, will release a new book next spring. Stop me if you’ve heard this before will deal with themes such as entertainment, ambition, art and love, the publisher told PEOPLE exclusively.

The novel is all about “humor and the joy of performing” and promises to be Arnett’s “most entertaining (and funniest!) novel yet.” And as readers expect from her work, the book will also be about love, lust and sex, as well as “moving portraits of complicated relationships.”

It follows down-on-her-luck professional clown Cherry Hendricks, who provides zany entertainment across Orlando in between shifts at an aquarium shop, all while “juggling her judgmental mother, her chaotic love life, and her equally chaotic community of fellow performers,” according to the book’s description.

When Cherry meets the slick, successful Margot the Magnificent – a much older lesbian magician – it doesn’t take long for Cherry to be smitten. Follow along as Cherry discovers how much she’ll risk to take her act to the next level and what kind of clown she wants to become.

Arnett’s latest work “explores deep questions about humor and jokes,” including “what makes things funny, how jokes are gendered, the hierarchies of different kinds of humor and performance,” according to the publisher. “Simply put, it’s a perfect comedic gem from a much-loved author.”

Readers may know Arnett from her second novel With teeth, her groundbreaking debut, Mostly dead things — what the New York Times called “an irresistible debut novel set in the blazing Florida sun,” or on social media, where Arnett has a loyal following on X (formerly known as Twitter) and Instagram.

Stop me if you’ve heard this before will be published on March 18, 2025 by Riverhead Books and can be pre-ordered now wherever books are sold.