Miles Goodyear's whole life has been planned out for him. Born into a wealthy brewing family in Chesterfield between the wars, he knows he will go to the local grammar school, followed by St John's College, Oxford. After graduating, he will then follow his older brother into the family business where he will remain until the next generation eventually takes over when he retires. But life - and a series of bad decisions - go against him and, as a result, things turn out very differently from what was originally planned. If Only They Could Talk is the story of one man's reflection on his life, his failed relationships, his regrets and his dashed hopes. It's about someone born with so much, who loses everything as he struggles to cope with a changing world. Or at least that's what his relatives are led to believe as they clear out his house following his death. Gradually, the house reveals its secrets, but nothing his relatives find there can prepare them for the final twist to Miles's story.