Steven and his ailing lover James visit the city because James is keen to understand the place that has shaped his partner's life. During their time in Tasmania they are repulsed and fascinated by the reactionary politics of an island that has been an independent country for twenty years (when they arrive in Hobart Steven and James learn that the Tasmanian government plans to deport all known homosexuals to Australia). While in Hobart Steven also begins to examine his past, recalling the people he has loved, reconciling the changes he has witnessed, exploring questions of human intimacy and identity, and slowly gathering the strength he needs to survive his lover's death.