The Sum of One Man's Pleasure

1963 â€" Finn Kenny has fled life in Ottawa after being implicated in an RCMP purge of suspected Communist sympathisers and homosexuals. He ends up on Vancouver Island working as a groundskeeper. Theodore Spencer, owner of Spencerwood Industries, is Finn’s saviour, having offered him a job and a home at Finn's lowest moment. When Spencer dies unexpectedly, Finn’s life is turned upside down once again as Lady Katherine, Spencer's widow, ascends to power.

Thrown together by grief and suspicion, Finn and Lady Spencer must overcome their mutual dislike to keep Spencerwood Industries solvent. With the help of Percival and Birdie Bishop, the Spencerwood estate's caretakers, they discover that everyone holds secrets at the core of themselves.

In his searching sixth novel, Danial Neil examines the stories we make of our own lives, the versions of ourselves we show to those closest to us, and the ways we find common ground in this world.