Set in contemporary Belfast, ‘Silverback’ opens with the trial of Robert Rusting, accused of murdering his father, a former loyalist hardman who, once that line of business was over, had taken to cross dressing and performing as his female alter ego in local nightclubs. James Fechner, a surgeon, is on the jury, and finds himself drawn to Rusting, who is acquitted but perhaps not innocent. After the trial, he inserts himself – in another guise – into Rusting’s life, and the two form a close, ambiguous and dark relationship.