It’s 2013 and Circus is a divorced 40-year-old jazz musician. He is selfish, obsessed with women, and afraid he will never make it big – he lives for music. He barely sees his 15-year-old daughter, Koko, and has just found out that the one woman he has ever truly loved is pregnant with his child. Instead of facing the consequences and doing the right thing, he runs.

This is an incredible debut. I was completely drawn in by the melody of the prose. The story is written like a jazz album, the chapters are scattered, and the story is often off-key, but Laura Warrell keeps you captivated with an ensemble cast. Chapters switch point of view between Circus, Koko and a stream of women Circus meets for fleeting moments throughout his life as a travelling musician. A woman working at a bar he plays at, a stranger on the train, a woman on the run – each woman is a part of Circus’s world, and each is given their own solo to tell their story. I wish Warrell had lingered on some of them a touch longer as I felt like so much was left out.

Although it starts as a story about Circus, Koko completely steals the spotlight from her father. This is her coming-of-age story. She is a typical teenager, desperate to fit in at school. Warrell captures the experience perfectly,showing Koko’s crush on a teacher, her first heartbreak, and the discovery of her sexuality. It is heart-wrenching seeing her let down by everyone in her life, especially by Circus, who she idolises.

This is a story of heartbreak, of passion and risk, and, surprisingly, it is a story of redemption. But ultimately, it is a love story. A mix of Daisy Jones & The Six and Malibu Rising, Sweet, Soft, Plenty Rhythm is perfect for fans of Taylor Jenkins Reid. You won’t be able to put it down.