First Time for Everything

On the surface, Danny Scudd has his life in order. He grew up in a small town, where his parents run a fish-and-chip shop, and has spent five years in London chasing the journalism career he wanted. His job is reasonable, and his partner Tobbs, a self-consciously intellectual man, is good company. Danny's home is full of rare Dolly Parton records and an abundance of houseplants.

Then a trip to the local sexual health clinic raises doubts about whether Tobbs has been faithful. Tobbs insists the two of them never agreed to monogamy to begin with. Around the same time, Danny's flatmates ask him to leave because they are starting families. Newly single and without a place to live, he moves in with Jacob, a flamboyant nonbinary artist he has known since childhood, who lives in an East London commune with a colorful group of friends.

The novel follows Danny through modern queer life, including dating, work, and a great deal of therapy, areas he has long kept at a distance. As he discovers how little he understands about himself and his sexuality, he makes a run of questionable choices, both in love and in his romantic partners. He leans on a new therapist who is hard to read and on his housemates as he tries to face the feelings he has spent his life pushing down.