Paul Porterfield's dreams of becoming a concert pianist are spurred on when he acts as a page turner at a recital given by the brilliant, temperamental Richard Kennington. Months later, while on holiday with his pushy mother in Rome, Paul meets Richard again. Their earlier attraction develops into an intense affair which is abruptly ended by Richard's return to America. Embittered, Paul throws himself into his studies at music school but soon realises that he cannot be just a page turner all his life.

With artful storytelling, wrenching honesty and arch humour, David Leavitt reveals the bittersweet truths of strained relationships and failed ambitions in his finest novel to date.