In 1827, in a hut on the plains of New South Wales, two strangers spend the night in talk. Carney, an illiterate Irishman, is to be hanged at dawn. Adair, also Irish, has been sent to supervise the hanging. The novel moves between Australia and Ireland to explore questions of nature and justice.
Awards
Shortlisted for Book Data/ABA Book of the Year Award 1997.