A dark exploration of illicit desire, madness and paternal irresponsibility. In The Paris Syndrome, John Roman Baker explores one of society's strongest taboos, before turning it on its head to confound the moral judgements of the reader. Francis has two sons. When one of them disappears in Paris, he returns to the city of his youth to search for him, and once more the city becomes a place of illusion, frustration, deceit and passion. Francis is desperately in love with his son, but what other secret desires are at play and how will he cope when he returns with his obsessions to his drab English home town?