A man returns to his hometown to clear out the flat of his recently deceased mother. While there, he cannot resist visiting his former lover. As the storm rages in the night outside, he finds in the man’s embrace some kind of quiet; some kind of home. As we are drawn into the narrator’s past, we see how a childhood marked by abuse and a life lived on the edges can shape someone – and what respite and beauty can be found in love and trust. Unsentimental yet aching with longing and vulnerability, Angelo Tijssens’ ‘The Edges’ is a deeply humane and moving debut.