A RICHLY evocative love letter to a recent history, Hodkinson’s debut novel recalls the era immediately after punk but before MTV, when literally anything was possible to the newly liberated teenage minds obsessed with music and words, and maybe girls as well.

The narrative traces the early days of post-punk band Killing Stars in flashback as their middle-aged singer Barrett prepares to go back into action to plug his latest solo album and his one-time inspiration Carey is hired to ghost-write his life story.

As well as gently commenting on the vacuous nature of contemporary celebrity culture, this book applies a meticulous eye for detail to what it meant to be in a band in the early 1980s.