This volume investigates the later life and career of Henry Morton Stanley, specifically questioning how his complex alliance with Leopold II and the disastrous Emin Pasha Relief Expedition dismantled his public reputation. Frank McLynn, a historian specializing in colonial exploration and biography, utilizes primary source correspondence and historical records to reconstruct the political and personal maneuvers of Stanley. The text argues that Stanley's legacy is inextricably linked to the exploitation of the Congo and the subsequent decline of his professional standing in the late Victorian era.

Historians and reviewers frequently note the meticulous research and critical distance McLynn maintains regarding Stanley's controversial actions. Experts highlight this work as a definitive, albeit dense, examination of the explorer's later years and his role in European colonial expansion.