Shortlisted for the Arthur C. Clarke Award, John W. Campbell Award, British Fantasy Society Awards and the Brave New Words Award.From the award-winning author of The Beauty, Aliya Whiteley, comes a mind-bending story about what it means to love. "This book will cement Aliya Whiteley's reputation as one of the finest of a new generation of weird fiction writers." - Helen Marshall, author of The Migration.When people shed their skin every seven years, it's just a fact of life that we will cast off all the attachments of our old life. And when our loves are part of us, those memories of love can be bought, if you know the right people.Introducing the new drug, Suscutin, that will prevent the moult. Now you can keep your skin forever. Now you never need to change who you are.But it's not so simple for celebrity bodyguard Rose Allington, who suffers from a rare disease. Her moults come quickly, changing everything about her life, who she is, who she loves.Meanwhile, her former client, superstar actor Max Black, is hooked on Suscutin, because he knows moulting could lose him everything. When one of his skins is stolen, and the theft is an inside job, he needs the best who ever worked for him on the job - even if she's not the same person.The Loosening Skin peels away the layers of these stories, exploring our definitions of love, sex and friendship, and what it means to love.