The O'Briens and the O'Flahertys is a fast-paced tale of political intrigue and aristocratic vanity-a romp through 1793 Dublin as Ireland pitches towards the United Irishmen Uprising of 1798. It follows Murrogh O'Brien as he tries to find his way between his nostalgic father, the politically savvy Irish-Italian nun Beavoin O'Flaherty, the dashing flirt, Lady Knocklofty, the idealistic United Irishmen, and his comically old-fashioned aunts, only to be caught up in a sweep of arrests and revelations in the novel's dramatic fourth volume. The O'Briens' original footnotes and authorial digressions detail the failure of colonial policy in Ireland, contributing to the novel's long-standing reputation as a credible historical account of the turbulent 1790s.

This Broadview Edition includes extensive historical documents on Irish politics in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, as well as a selection of contemporary reviews of The O'Briens and the O'Flahertys.