‘An absolute marvel’ Max Porter

They are: co-workers.
They are: lovers.
They are: going to Japan tomorrow.

Joe pulls pints, plays computer games with his young daughter, and dreams of elsewhere. Kathy studies by day, drinks by night, and has a secret alter ego as a clown. When they meet behind a city-centre bar in Cork, a seismic change occurs between them. They begin to fall in love. Over years – through the routines of a thousand mornings, arguments, confessions – they learn how to give themselves up to each other and to share the space of each other’s lives, all the while etching their connection into the pavements, bars, living rooms and kitchens of the city.

After years together, they finally manage to save up for their dream holiday: a trip across Japan. They travel, they laugh, they squabble, they remember and forget why they ever thought being together was a good idea. Then, deep in the forests of the Kumano Kodo, their world comes apart…