He's Irish, he's ageing, he drinks, is a touch cynical and when he has time writes a newspaper column. On the eve of the country's first election as an independent state, Dan Starkey's life is about to change after he finds the young woman he has just made love to dead and his only ally is a nun

Conn, a member of the IRA and a former hunger striker, is serving a life sentence for murder. During peace talks, he is released on a 24-hour parole and uses the time to search for his girlfriend Leyla’s killer. He finds only lies and intrigue surrounding her death, and he begins to realize that his lover was not what she seemed.

A ten year old Protestant girl travels to Belfast to take part in a music festival, and is billetted with a Catholic family.