Tom and Annie are an unhappy, middle-aged British couple whose emotional and physical connection has dried up due to repressed resentments and secrets, both usual and unusual. Their three children are in various stages of independence, and Tom's mother is in the early stages of dementia. When the economy starts to fail in 2008, Tom loses his job, and both his mother and son move home. His son's marriage is also failing, and the contrast between the relationships is one of the novel's most intriguing elements.