Set during the times of Henry Tudor VIII, the story begins through the eyes of a child, the young Irish Princess Elizabeth Fitzgerald. Better known as Gera to family, friends, and her people, Elizabeth soon learns that court favor is never a guarantee. Her young life is quickly overrun with deceit, devastation, and the never ending lies that are commonplace in the court of Henry Tudor. Once favored by the English King, Gera's family is persecuted and condemned for treason. On the run and fleeing for their lives, the Fitzgerald's find themselves scattered to preserve what little is left of their great family. Gera wonders if she will ever truly be free again. It is during the precious years when a girl turns into a woman, that young Gera meets the dashing King's man Edward Clinton. A man that young Gera knows she could love, but one she seems not to be destined for.

As Gera has grown into a woman, she has made it her life's goal to seek revenge on the tyrant King and redeem her family's honor. The bold, beauty will stop at nothing in her determination to fulfill that dream. As one year turns into another, Gera finds that it is not the person one is that matters. The only way to get anywhere in Henry's court is through who favors you and who they know. Determined to rise in the Tudor court, Gera quickly befriends and serves the two Tudor Princesses knowing that one of them may just be the link that Gera needs to finally see that justice is served for the Fitzgerald's of Ireland. Plotting to destroy Henry and see the rise of his daughters is tricky business and Gera seems to be watched from all angles. Will Gera remain true to her cause or fall into the realms of her heart? Can she ever find a balance in her life to go back to the only home she has ever really belonged?

Author Karen Harper is able to make each scene vividly appealing. From the greens of Ireland to the front and back streets of London, Harper's descriptions strike with amazing accuracy and give the reader a feel of reality. Quite out of my typical genre, I find that I am fascinated by Harper's characters and crave another of her tales. Irish Princess was a stunning tale of one woman's painstaking fight and ultimate triumph in the game called life. I found myself crying for their pains and elating at the triumphs. Karen Harper seems to have truly captivated the spirit and strong will of one woman fighting against all odds to write her own destiny in a time when women were used at the whims of men. Every reader will come away ready to shout "A Geraldine!"