Shortlisted for the 2014 Folio Prize, "Last Friends" is the final volume of the trilogy that began with "Old Filth" and "The Man in the Wooden Hat." These stories, told with bristling tenderness and dark humor, revolve around the titan of the Hong Kong law courts, Old Filth QC, and his clever, misunderstood wife, Betty.

In "Last Friends," the narrative picks up with Terence Veneering, Filth's great rival in both work and, though it was never spoken of, in love. Veneering's beginnings were not typical for an establishment silk; he is the son of a Russian acrobat stranded in northeast England and a devoted local girl. He escapes the war to emerge in the Far East as a man of panache, success, and fame. However, at the stuffy English Bar, he is always treated with suspicion: where did this blond, louche, brilliant Slav come from?

Veneering, Filth, and their friends weave a tale of love, friendship, grace, and the bittersweet experiences of a now-forgotten Empire.