Connolly, old, recently widowed, body declining, is marooned in the house of his son in Wales. An Irishman from Carlow he joined the British army to escape poverty and found himself on the wrong side of the Irish conflict and the wrong side of the Irish Sea. At the end of his life Connolly can only wonder what form an 'Irish' life might have taken for him, and at the worth of his life as an outsider in England.

Patrick Corcoran's first novel is a delicately written exploration of exile, loss and guilt. Connolly is a memorable creation, and his at times humorous contemplation of the responsibilities of living a 'good' life results in a haunting novel about the Irish community in Britain.

Born in Cardiff, Patrick Corcoran was educated at Atlantic College, St Donats, and at Bristol University. He has won several prizes for his short stories, and was a finalist in The Daily Telegraph short story competition. He works for the Family Court Advisory Service, and is married with three children.