A fugitive fleeing the gallows. A soldier forged in battle. A hero returning home.
In 1832, Ireland is in the grip of the Tithe War, and County Kilkenny is a powder keg waiting to explode. When teenage friends Liam Flaherty and Michael Nolan stand against the British constables to protect a widow's farm, the consequences are deadly. With his best friend hanged for murder and a bounty on his own head, Liam is forced to leave his grieving mother and flee his homeland to escape the same dark fate.
Smuggled aboard the Primrose, Liam arrives in New Orleans, where he attempts to build a new life. But after a passionate affair with a wealthy widow leaves him heartbroken, Liam seeks purpose in the ranks of the United States Army-a decision that will plunge him into the heart of America's most brutal conflicts.
From the humid swamps of Florida to the dusty plains of the West, Liam's journey is one of survival and resilience. He rises from a green recruit to a hardened leader, becoming the sole survivor of the infamous Dade Massacre during the Seminole Wars. His odyssey continues through the heat of the Mexican-American War and the fratricidal bloodshed of the Civil War, where he commands a regiment at the Battle of Wilson's Creek and rises to the rank of Brevet Colonel-a man forged by terror and loss, but imbued with great inner strength and seeking redemption.
After decades of service, a chance encounter on a transatlantic voyage introduces Liam to Lucinda Poitier, a love that offers him a second chance at happiness. Liam and Lucinda triumphantly return to his struggling village, where their courage and strength drive the improvement of the local economy and infrastructure-a lasting testament to the extraordinary journey of a man who never forgot those who influenced him.
Spanning seventy years and two continents, An Irishman's Odyssey is a sweeping historical saga of heartache, terror, war, romance, and the enduring call of home."
