Ireland. Connell and Marianne grew up in the same Irish town. He's the popular boy at school, she's the awkward loner. Together they fall in love for the first time. A year later, while Marianne is blossoming at Trinity College Dublin, Connell is struggling to acclimatize to university life. The game between them has only just begun. A masterly novel about youth, friendship, sex, and a generation that is no longer allowed to dream, but persists in hoping. A contemporary novel that has become a must-read.