Book excerpt: A dying man makes a request of his estranged son that brings secrets and grudges to the surface in a novel by the prize-winning author of Under the Net. With not much time left to live, Bruno makes a final request to those who care for him: He wishes to see his estranged son, Miles, once more. After decades of broken contact due to Miles marrying a woman Bruno once found unsuitable, the prodigal son returns home to his father—and finds himself confronting much more than just a dying man’s last demand. As Miles; his wife and his sister-in-law; Bruno’s son-in-law, Danby; and Bruno’s nurses and aides gather at this deathbed vigil, they will become entangled in a web of affairs, passions, and grudges that will change them all—even long after Bruno is gone. Author Iris Murdoch’s examination of “the subjects of death and love [is] beautifully articulated in the dramatic action,” making Bruno’s Dream one of the most entertaining and profound novels in the Man Booker Prize winner’s towering body of work (The New York Times).