Dismantling Mr Doyle

On the surface, the Doyle’s are the archetypal Irish family – loving, secure, traditional. They have their small rebelions, but somehow power still remains firmly in the hands of Mr Doyle, a benign patriarch controlling all their lives. But in the world outside, things are changing, the old order is being dismantled and the traditional roles the Doyles have always accepted are finally being challenged.

Right at the heart of the Doyle household, threatening their own minature universe, sits a revelation that will throw them unwillingly and inexorably into the conflict. To avoid becoming casualties, each of them must change, and some will survive better than others. This is a novel about the intricate nature of the parent/child relationship which will strike a chord with anyone who has ever loved a parent and sometimes wondered why. Once again, James Ryan brings his rare combination of wit and tenderness to a tale of human fragility.