John is a repressed man who is shocked to find himself in middle age, secretly raging at his life as a stay-at-home dad.
When his failure to intervene in a violent confrontation in a playground brings his identity crisis to a head, John ups and moves his family to the rural idyll of Coldwater, as far away from London as possible.
Upon arrival, John is quickly befriended by next-door neighbour Tommy, a charming, confident man, devoted husband to the local vicar Rebecca. He is a man of faith, a pillar of the community and self-appointed leader of the village’s all-male book group.
John is both impressed and slightly fascinated by Tommy. His wife Fiona despises him. As a successful former chef hoping to launch a new venture in Coldwater, Fiona sees the move as an opportunity to leave the past behind them. To not only re-build their lives as a family but re-ignite the long-lost spark in their fading marriage. When her husband’s relationship with their enigmatic new neighbour becomes increasingly intense, Fiona’s suspicions are aroused. She is unconvinced Tommy is all he seems to be.
But John remains blissfully unaware that Tommy is harbouring horrifying secrets, and it’s only after a series of unsettling incidents start to occur that John begins to wonder who the real Tommy actually is.
And when John’s long-repressed rage comes to a head with disastrous results, he soon finds himself unexpectedly indebted to his new friend.
This is the story of a normal man, in a normal marriage, who finds himself in a far from normal situation. A man who discovers a newfound sense of his own power, right at the moment he falls under the influence of someone incredibly dangerous.