Jean Brusse is the retiring, indifferent protagonist of Laurent’s new novel. Surrounded by dominating women (a sister who plans his life, an authoritarian boss, and an unhappy wife), Jean remains emotionally constrained until they each move out of his life. Once freed, however, his solitude is interrupted by a series of encounters with those who are compelled to confess their secret and embarrassing frustrations to him. At first, these confessions seem merely witty and inventive: eventually, their undertone becomes increasingly harrowing. Jean remains emotionally untouched until Sibylle, one of his early confessors, falls for him and forces him to confront his underdeveloped ability to love.