My Only Boy

‘Hell is round the corner in My Only Boy, its skilfully imagined near-future, far-right Britain all too believable. But what I admire most is the way its grand sweep is studded with small human moments: brilliantly noticed instances of the ways we want and yearn and love’ Chris Power, author of A Lonely Man

‘[A] sharply observed state-of-the-nation novel in which the personal is also always political. It’s smart, beautifully written, joyful and terrifying-without doubt, Rankin-Gee's best work yet' Lucy Scholes, Prospect Magazine

'Thoughtful, challenging...Rankin-Gee explores the pull and push of queer desire turned unexpectedly heterosexual – while all around them, London burns’ Marie Claire, ‘Editors Pick’ Best summer reads of 2026

'A surprising romance is set against a backdrop of climate crisis, political instability and corporate corruption in this bleak but witty novel’ The Guardian

The sensational new novel from the highly-acclaimed author of Dreamland: a once-in-a-lifetime love story

It is Elle’s job to manage disasters.

But lately things have started to spin out of control. 

At work, the latest catastrophe has been live-streamed to the nation. A shock election sees an extreme-right coalition storm to power. Then, on a night so hot it feels like London’s pavements are melting, she meets Ed. 

Elle and Ed are not meant to be drawn to each other. Elle has only ever been attracted to women, and Ed, billed as ‘the great gay novelist of our times’, is about to release his first book. But something inexplicable sparks between them. 

Can the unexpected attraction they feel last when it presents such a profound challenge to their identity? And as the country fractures and the heat rises, how will they choose between the people they’ve known themselves to be – and the people they are willing to become.

Both an unforgettable love story and a state-of-the-nation thriller, My Only Boy asks universal questions about desire, complicity, and what happens when your sense of self collapses along with the world around you.

'Only Rosa Rankin-Gee could write so wonderfully about the imminent implosion of everything we'd ever dreamed of, while two unlikely lovers find joy in a broken world. Golden' Justin Myers, author of The Glorious Dead

‘Completely original... this book charmed, provoked, and unsettled me in equal measure. Read it’ Maggie Millner, author of Couplets: A Love...read more...