The book begins like a science fiction novel, reminiscent of a hostile earth seen through the eyes of an outsider, but before long reveals that its events are all too real. It opens with a horrifying scene which many readers will recognise: the brutal 1983 murder of a gay man in Fairview park, by a gang of teenage boys.
Offering an often viscerally atmospheric portrait of Dublin along a specific timeline, the novel weaves real historical events, such as the first Pride, decriminalisation, and the mobilisation of a community for change, in and out between the fictional life events of the protagonist Fran.