This novel is about the need to belong and the effects of feeling different and being on the outside. It connects three life stories and their divergent resolutions. Maya, the central character feels different because she is of mixed race and tries to find out how she can integrate herself in society, but also how she can integrate the 'mixed' parts of herself as well as her past and present. Freddie and Jackson, two homeless young men are drawn to placing themselves outside of society after constant rejection, and are lured to cashing in on a wave of terrorism in London. An isolated, mysterious stranger who appears to want complete fusion, and spends his time watching an endless array of reality programs on television is found dead by local police, sparking off an investigation that links the various characters to contribute to the development of a warm story about identity development and the value of friendship.