‘I really did have an empire you know’ said Dunbar ‘ Have I ever told you the story of how it was stolen from me?’ Henry Dunbar the once all-powerful head of a global corporation is not having a good day In his dotage he handed over care of the family firm to his two eldest daughters Abby & Megan But relations quickly soured leaving him doubting the wisdom of past decisions Now imprisoned in a care home in the Lake District with only a demented alcoholic comedian as company Dunbar starts planning his escape As he flees into the hills his family is hot on his heels But who will find him first his beloved youngest daughter Florence or the tigresses Abby & Megan so keen to divest him of his estate? Edward St Aubyn is renowned for his masterwork the five Melrose novels which dissect with savage & beautiful precision the agonies of family life Dunbar is a devastating family story & an excoriating novel for & of our times – an examination of power money & the value of forgiveness