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Nineteen twenty-one. In Ireland, the bitter War of Independence drags on, but secret moves to arrange a cease-fire hold out hopes of peace. Michael Flynn has secretly returned from forced exile in America to visit his infant son and, with the help of a British security officer, Commander Wilson, and an old friend, Jack Quinlan, he becomes involved in the attempt to bring about a truce.

But there are factions on both sides of the war, including Michael's brother-in-law, Kevin Ryan, who will stop at nothing to prevent a cease-fire. In England, an Irish prisoner, Patrick Coughlin, escapes from the British Army and determines to return to Ireland and join the struggle for independence. An English girl, Kate Steele, is also on the run from the police. They meet, and thrown together in adversity, they escape to Ireland where, unknown to them, their very presence in the country threatens to undermine the delicate cease-fire negotiations.

In these dangerous times, all those involved are required to make personal compromises before peace can be achieved. Personal as well as national issues are not resolved until the story reaches a dramatic climax on St Stephen's Green, in Dublin. As with previous books, The Last Coachman and This Bitter Land, John Michael Doyle has again intertwined fact and fiction with huge success, and delivers another must read novel!