The stories in this collection exist in the risky spaces of youthful female desire and return to questions of innocence and experience. The young women here are often slightly adrift, though they don't always know or recognise this, as they veer in and out of sexual relationships.

Ulman's writing is compelling, drawing us into her slightly elliptical world with ease. The stories themselves are set around the world rather than being the product of a single culture. Though they are slice-of-life stories with undefined and unresolved endings, a mood builds up through and across the collection. These girls think they can have it all, but too often they don't yet even know what 'it' is that they want. A haunting debut - recommended.