A cruel father, a twisted affair with an older man, a mysteriously missing mother - and a brutal winter... FOUR DARKS sends sixteen-year-old Jack on a fateful journey exploring obsession, the will to survive and the desperate wish to belong. 21st December: It's the darkest day of the year—and Jack's birthday. In an effort to escape his sadistic father, Jack wanders wintry London and encounters an intriguing stranger. The man feels like the perfect present, a glimmer of hope at just the right time. But as Jack falls for the much older James, a toxic game of courtship and rejection plunges him down a dangerous path.