Set among a group of radical squatters in Thatcher-era London, it follows the slow drift of each individual as they move form gesture to action to catastrophe.

Lessing anatomises how good intentions curdle, how domestic care becomes coercive, and how violence comes from inertia and denial. It looks at what actually makes an act of terrorism possible, usually from dependence, avoidance, and a desire to feel righteous without ever having to choose.

It remains unsettling precisely because it is so recognisable.