Description

‘If you’ve ever wondered what would happen if limitless money met limitless power, wonder no longer, it’s all here … Terrifying, disturbing and ghastly’ Oliver Bullough, author of Moneyland

‘Explosive’ The Times

‘[A] Crisp page-turner of a book teeming with telling detail … Splendid’ Financial Times

‘The fascinating and highly entertaining tale … Fly-on-the-wall reporting and palace intrigue worthy of Machiavelli’ John Carreyrou, author of Bad Blood

Longlisted for the 2020 Financial Times / McKinsey Business Book of the Year

Blood and Oil the explosive untold story of how Mohammed bin Salman and his entourage grabbed power in the Middle East and acquired a network of Western allies – including well-known US bankers, Hollywood figures, and politicians – all eager to help the charming and crafty crown prince.

Through astonishing interviews with powerful insiders, Blood and Oil tells how MBS’s cabal played the Saudi economy and capitalised on the omnipotence of feudal power while effectively stamping out dissent, before allegations of his extreme brutality and excess began to slip out. A story of breathtaking dealings that range from Riyadh to London, Paris to America, this is a thrilling and brutal investigation into extreme wealth, one of the world’s most decisive and dangerous new leaders, and the bid for Saudi transformation that is reverberating around the world.

‘This is as close to the truth, to the real story of the corruption, vulgarities, horrors, and lies of the Kingdom and its current despot as we are likely to get. It also can be read as a Shakespearean story of utter greed’ Seymour Hersh, author of Chain of Command

Publisher Review

Hope & Scheck confront us with the conundrum of a young man who is doing good by his Kingdom - brilliantly describing how the enigmatic Crown Prince is bringing progress to Arabia as we would see it in the West - while operating with a ruthlessness and absolutism that make the stomach curl. Blood and Oil is compelling reading. We are challenged and enthralled on every page. * Robert Lacey - Author of The Kingdom and Inside the Kingdom * Blood and Oil is the best book I've read about the Middle East. It gets deep into the most opaque place on earth, without a false note anywhere. Not to mention the book is a wonderfully readable page-turner, and indispensable if you want a glimpse of the future of Saudi Arabia and the world. * Robert Baer, author of See No Evil and Sleeping with the Devil * It will leave you with a deep and nuanced understanding of the Crown Prince's thinking and its implications for Saudi Arabia and the entire Middle East * John Carreyrou, author of Bad Blood * This is as close to the truth, to the real story of the corruption, vulgarities, horrors, and lies of the Kingdom and its current despot as we are likely to get. It also can be read as a Shakespearean story of utter greed. * Seymour Hersh, author of Chain of Command * Bradley Hope and Justin Scheck chronicle the truly incredible story of MBS's rise in the deep, multidimensional way that only experienced Wall Street Journal reporters can do. The book reads like a novel, but it also plays the critically important role of illuminating a real person who is going to shape our world in ways we would all be better for understanding. * Bethany McLean, author Saudi America and co-author of The Smartest Guys in the Room * Blood and Oil is a revelatory book that resonates with a stranger-than-fiction quality as the authors' analysis of the Crown Prince's brutishness, outlandishness, and reformer's mentality is as riveting as it is profound. * Bryan Burrough, author of Public Enemies and co-author of Barbarians at the Gate * A gossipy account of the rise to power of Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, offering detailed insights into his ascent and his business, family and political relationships * Financial Times * It is lively and well written, and it draws a sharp portrait of the man at its heart * New York Times * If you've ever wondered what would happen if limitless money met limitless power, wonder no longer, it's all here. This book is by turns terrifying, disturbing and ghastly, but written with a light touch that forces you to keep reading * Oliver Bullough, author of Moneyland * Blood and Oil really is a riveting page-turner, a descent into a nest of vipers, a chilling profile of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, known by his initials MBS -- Lara Marlowe * The Irish Times *