Inspired by the Indian Mutiny of 1857, The Siege of Krishnapur is set in the fictional town of that name where a British garrison withstands a four-month siege by mutineers. Eventually rescued after undergoing terrible privations, the leading characters all find their ideals tested & their smug assumptions of military & moral superiority severely shaken. In " Troubles", Major Brendan Archer travels to Ireland in the aftermath of World War I in order to meet his fiancee Angela in a remote seaside hotel owned by her father. Angela dies unexpectedly, but Archer remains in Kilnalough, captivated by the Majestic & its inhabitants, & seemingly unaware of the approaching political storm as Ireland dissolves into revolt & civil war. Both novels combine high comedy with vivid realism & reveal Farrell as "one of the finest post-colonial novelists". (John Sutherland).