The novel opens with Michael and Nancy throwing a party for friends and neighbours. When Michael sees Nancy deep in conversation with one of them, John, he suddenly realises that this is the man she should be married to, that this is the better man for her, and he plots to get the two of them together. Gradually the reader realises that all is not well with Michael, that he is in fact suffering from a mental illness and as his behaviour becomes more and more bizarre, we begin to learn just how disturbed he is. I found this a thoughtful and insightful portrait of a troubled man and his mental disintegration, and a moving and unsettling exploration of how his mental state affects his friends and family. It’s a slow-paced novel, which adds to the tension, and it’s impossible to predict how things will turn out. Unrelentingly grim, it’s a well-written, sensitive and empathetic portrayal of lives in crisis.