The fourth entry in Anthony Trollope's Palliser series about Parliament, this volume follows up on Irish member of Parliament Phineas Finn. After suffering a profound personal loss, Finn returns to his native Ireland to lick his wounds and start a new life. But before long, the siren song of London and its political movers and shakers begins to beckon. Will Finn give up his hard-won independence to put himself back into the parliamentary fray?