Blood and Oil: Mohammed bin Salman's Ruthless Quest for Global Power
Bradley Hope
From award-winning Wall Street Journal reporters comes a revelatory look at the inner workings of the world's most powerful royal family, and how the struggle for succession produced Saudi Arabia's charismatic but ruthless Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, aka MBS. 35-year-old Mohammed bin Salman's sudden rise stunned the world. Political and business leaders such as former UK prime minister Tony Blair and WME chairman Ari Emanuel flew out to meet with the crown prince and came away convinced that his desire to reform the kingdom was sincere. more
368 pages, Hardcover
First published Hachette Books
4.26
Rating
7383
Ratings
570
Reviews
Bradley Hope
7 books 114 followers
Bradley Hope, based in London, is the New York Times bestselling co-author of Billion Dollar Whale and Blood and Oil. He is a Pulitzer Prize finalist and Gerald Loeb Award winner. Formerly a reporter for The Wall Street Journal and a correspondent in the Middle East, Hope is co-founder of Project Brazen, a journalism studio and production company.Community reviews
An informative account of the rise of Mohammed bin Salman (MBS). My notes follow. When his elderly father became king in January 2015, MBS at 29 with no military experience became head of the Saudi Defense Ministry. MBS was aggressive and determined. Not first in the line of succession, he set out to demonstrate he was a force to be dealt with. more
Solid 5 stars. Because of this book I'm reading1. Black Wave by Kim Ghattas2. MBS by Ben Hubbard3. The Killing in the Consulate by Jonathan Rugman, and4. more
این کتاب رو بعد از کتاب «محمد بن سلمان» خوندم. به نظرم این دو کتاب که توی یک سال منتشر شدن میتونن مکمل هم باشنخیلی از وقایع توی هر دوکتاب مشترک هستش ولی جزئیات بعضی‌ها توی این کتاب بهتر هستش و بعضی توی اون یکیمثلا اون کتاب در مورد خاشقچی، سعد حریری و محمد بن نایف کامل‌تر هستش ولی این کتاب روابط و تلاش‌های اقتصادی بن‌سلمان و نفوذ در توئیتر رو بهتر توضیح داده. در کل به نظرم برای آشنایی با عربستان جدید، خوندن این دوکتاب خیلی مفید میتونه باشه. more
A pacy read that unpacks the unlikely story of one of the world’s most enigmatic and ruthless leaders, who remains close to Kushner and others in the US administration. It’s also a lively primer on the history of Saudi Arabia and the wider Gulf region. Highly recommended. . more
Subscribe to my newsletter at: mazmhussain. substack. comMohammed bin Salman, MBS, has become such a bête noire in the West that people have forgotten the uncomfortable fact that he remains genuinely popular among many of his own people. Part of this popularity can be attributed to a regime information control in Saudi Arabia, but a lot of his support is also genuine and even logical. Most Saudis are under the age of thirty, but they have been ruled by a hidebound genotocracy for decades that has embarrassed them while squandering much of their wealth. more
The cover of the book was superb and enticing enough to buy it. It chronicles the rise of Mohammed bin Salman, the crown prince of Saudi Arabia. From a relative non-entity to being the de facto ruler of the Kindom of Saudi Arabia, the book narrates the rise to power of MBS in a country ruled by Al Saud family. This is however, not a biography. It delves minutely into the power struggles of the royal family without going into the history of Saudi Arabia. more
Napínavé ako detektívka, vraždy, peniaze, intrigy, len všetko je to skutočný príbeh chlapíka, ktorého poznáte z TV ako človeka, ktorý nechal rozštvrtiť tureckého novinára na saudskej ambasáde, ale v jeho živote je v skutočnosti oveľa viac fascinujúcich inšpiratívnych príbehov. Dávno som už nečítal takú knihu, kde som po 300 stranách vedel o toľko viac o svete, nevadí, ak pred prvou kapitolou ani neviete ukázať Rijád na mape, je to čítavé a celé fascinujúce. more
From the authors of Billion Dollar Whale comes another riveting account of the meteoritic rise of one of the world’s youngest and most powerful leaders. There are two points I admire the most about this book. First is the details. Much of what was described here were tiny, subtle, yet undeniably important details that fill in missing pieces of public news stories that everyone thought they knew already. But once exposed here, it invokes an AHA. more
I won this book in a goodreads drawing. Mohammed bin Salman was little known until a few years ago, when he began his rise to power in Saudi Arabia. He really came to fame during the Khashoggi scandal, when a reporter was lured into the Saudi's Turkey Embassy, murdered, dissected, and smuggled out of the country in diplomatic bags. Suddenly, everybody knew his name. The authors go through his life of accumulating power in Saudi Arabia, until he is the de facto leader of the whole country. more
Bin Salman (referred to MBS in the intellignence and diplomatic community) is one of the many grandsons of Ibn Saud, founder of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. MBS's pops, Salman, is currently king. MBS, through a series of convoluted maneuverings that could at the very flightiest be called "Machiavellian", is currently crown prince, stepping over many other second and third tier members of the royal family to become heir to the throne. MBS is one of those guys who is a bit of a conundrum, to put it lightly. In his 30s, McDonald's aficionado and self proclaimed video game nut, MBS is well placed to perhaps finally jerk Saudi Arabia into the 21st century. more
”We Saudis deserve better. ”Jamal Khashoggi, 2017 Странно изказване за саудитец, мъж, с отлична журналистическа кариера по цял свят, често пъти в полза на родната му Саудитска Арабия, самият той - издънка на едно от видните саудитски семейства, положило основите на благополучието си при управлението на основателя Ибн Сауд. Странно изказване за държава, къпеща се в петродолари, изпращаща свои младежи за безплатно образование в чужбина, земята на единствената Мека, в чиято посока голяма част от света се моли по пет пъти на ден. Но и държавата, в която жените започнаха на шофират чак през 2017 г. , земята на уахабизма, неразривно преплетен в управлението на тези земи от възникването си през 18-ти век, насочващ правоверните да живеят така, както уахабитите си въобразяват че е било правилно по времето на Пророка през 7-ми век, само с малко електронни джаджи за гарнитура (но, виж, музеите се считат за идолопоклонничество). more
بختصار الكتاب ليس لمن يعرف ما يحدث في السعوديه . بمعني لو كنت سعودي او تقرأ و تعرف اخبارها من الصحف العالميه و الاخبار ف النت بذلك تكون عارف محتوي الكتاب. هو موجه للقارئ الغربي الذي لا يعرف شيْ عن محمد بن سلمان ولا السعودي�� و عليه رأي في الكتاب بانه سطحي تماما. كل ما فعله الكاتب هو جمع الاخبار المتداوله في الصحف و سردها في الكتاب بدون اي مجهود للبحث او التحليل او اي معلومه جديده قدمها لي معلومات كثيره مكرره في كتب صدرت قبل عن محمد بن سلمان , ما فائده التكرار لا اعلم. more
Purchasing this book, I was hesitant. Maybe both due to my patriotism towards the kingdom and my admiration for MBS. But because of those exact reasons I chose to read it and see what Mr. Hope had to say. Having been born and raised in Saudi, an absolute monarchy, with citizens devoted to their religion and their rulers, some of the stories dont come off as shocking. more
From the moment I picked up this book, I could not put it down. It was glued to my hands, wherever I would go, I would look down and realize that I was holding it. It reads like a thriller, with an intense pace which encapsulates the atmosphere of the royals of the Saudi family. Filled with intense rivalries, Machiavellian schemes of families jostling for power, jealousies, greed and a level of entitlement which is unfathomable to comprehend. The book reads like a Game of Thrones series. more
*** 4 Stars ***After recently living in the Middle East for a year I was very excited to read this and it did not disappoint. This provided an understanding Mohammed bin Salman and his rise to power along with interesting insight to the US relationship with Saudi Arabia. A lot of discussions regarding the assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi and the infamous sheikhdown at the Ritz-Carlton in Riyadh. Excellent story telling with attention to detail, I highly recommend. Special Thanks to NetGalley and Hachette Books for allowing me an ARC in exchange for an honest review. more
Hooter: An Investigative Journalists' POV into the rise of MBS and his vision for Saudi ArabiaPiecing together through candid interviews, researching through documents - these two journalists have pieced together a fast paced thrilling behind the scenes look of the rise of MBS as he navigates the political web of Saudi Arabia and the interlinked geo political world to achieve his vision for himself and his nation. Building up from a background of the political ecosystem that he landed up in and how major pieces around the world play in for him or against him, you get a sense that politcal dramas like Game of Thrones often don't have to go too far from reality to garner inspiration. The petrodollars, religious sentiments across the spectrum, the new restless demographics, the urge to create a legacy - the authors try to cover a lot of aspects that made it to the public domain - Khashoggi, the Ritz Jail, Davos in the desert, NEOM, Trump's visit, Qatar blockade and numerous other interlinked events in the region and what was at stake behind the scenes. The interviews I think help build a softer aspect of the personality that MBS is against the cold hard dry facts of the events and the actions that were taken making for an intriguing political thriller whose story has just begun - as we know his legacy is probably yet to be written. There hasn't been much literature I have accessed about the Middle Eastern political ecosystem and I feel this has been a good read to get a sense of it specifically from MBS point of view and Saudi's Vision 2030. more
Key insigths of the book:Mohammad bin Salman (MBS) has ruthlessly consolidated power to himself through the last five to ten years. He has a clear vision of transforming the country to an international and modern tech hub before the year 2030. As he embarks on this journey, oil revenues are channeled on new infrastructure and technology projects (e. g. tech city Neom). more
When money meets power, bad things happen. After watching "The Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia" on PBS Frontline, I thought I had seen and knew enough about MBS. I thought wrong. This book is based on accounts of people who know MBS or who has faced his wrath. It has chilling and terrifying stories of the man who sees himself as the saviour of Saudi Arabia. more
Not often, there is a book, that has NO positive figures. This is one of those books. Spoiled, corrupt, entitled. and above all of them, the star of the show, Mr. BoneSaw, ruthless "visionary," with cohorts of greedy financial institutions and investors, tailing him to get a bite of Saudi wealth. more
A deep dive into the rise of MBS’s long and much awaited rule over the kingdom. I came across details which had never been posted on any online platform. Incredibly insightful and positively thrilling read. . more
Not a bad book. I didn’t know anything about MBS prior to this and he’s a shady guy. This is a rare non-bias (from what i gathered) account on the guys’ life written in 2020. Give it a shot. . more
即使書裡的人物有點複雜，但內容���我忍不住一直讀下去，其實我早在2018年就接觸到沙烏地的2030願景，再加上近年非常有野心的大型規劃，包括新未來城與紅海計畫，讓我對這個國家很感興趣看完這本書後只能說，我過去對於這個國家的認識大概停留在上個世紀吧，雖然書裡的內容停在疫情初期，但還是讓我學到很多，書裡提及的議題相當廣泛，除了MBS的崛起外，還包括親王對於科技投資的熱衷、管理顧問公司與投資公司在沙烏地瘋狂淘金、還有親王們奢靡的生活整體來說，這本書給想了解沙烏地局勢的讀者一個很好的開端，完全沒有閱讀門檻，加上作者們的精彩描述，值得一讀. more
From seemingly out of nowhere, the man known as MBS rose to become a powerful global player in a few short years - or at least that's how it looked from the outside. The authors do an excellent job providing background and context, tracing his earlier years and the many internal squabbles and power plays within the Saudi royal family through which he manoeuvred himself into his current position one step from the throne before tracking his rise to international recognition. By casting himself as a reformer and visionary, he garnered praise and wooed investors across the globe, but the honeymoon phase has been well and truly over since at the very latest the brutal, dangerously miscalculated and badly bungled murder of dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi in October 2018 if not before. The prince has proven that in pursuit of his goals and the power he covets, he can be not only ambitious and audacious, but brutally ruthless, wielding his power with a heavy hand and more than willing to spill blood in addition to shelling out sheer unfathomable sums of money to get what he wants. It shouldn't surprise anyone to hear that he once evinced an admiration for the most famous work of one Niccolò Machiavelli - he does rather seem to be using The Prince as his chief playbook. more
Ozaj pozoruhodná kniha o chlapovi, ktorý, ak nezasiahne vis maior, bude najbližších 50 rokov vládnuť najbohatšiemu ropnému štátu. Kniha sa dá čítať, aj keď o onom konci sveta neviete absolútne nič. Odbočky do histórie sú akurátne časté a akurátne dlhé, čo nebýva v tomto type kníh, poznačených americkou kultúrou "z jedného long readu minimálne 500 stranová kniha" zvykom. Je to príbeh Saudskej Arábie a korunného princa Mohameda bin Salmana, ktorý za 10 rokov prevzal moc v kráľovstve, zbavil sa komplet všetkých kritikov, dal pozatvárať pol kráľovskej rodiny za korupciu, vydupal si miesto na svetovej scéne, začal vojnu Jemene, nechal rozkrájať novinára (poznáte z TV), spustil IPO Saudi Aramca, kúpil podiel v každej americkej firme, na ktorú si spomeniete, je najväčší podielnik v najväčšom investičnom fonde v dejinách, vedie najväčší suverénny investičný fond v galaxii, povolil ženám šoférovať auto a stretávať sa s mužmi v kaviarni, rozhasil celý blízkovýchodný status quo a dohádal sa s takmer každým na svete, spôsobil zápornú cenu ropy na jar a teraz spustil výstavbu najväčšieho mesta na zelenej lúke od čias Romula a Rema. Keďže je to MBS, tak by sa mu to, na rozdiel od jeho predchodcov, aj mohlo podariť - to mesto sa volá NEOM a tiež znáte z TV. more
I was extremely pleased with this book. The amount of investigation done by Hope and Scheck is surreal. To be able to have such a detailed story on one of the most powerful and secretive man in the world is truly astonishing. more
Almost unbelievable- but proof that truth is stranger than fiction. more
Certainly an entertaining read, but more sensational than educational, imo. I understand that not everyone is a fan of the dry, academic style read when learning history or about governments and power in foreign nations. However, I feel there are some investigative journalists (for example, Joby Warrick, Bob Woodard. and Patrick O’Keefe really knocked it out of the park with last year’s “Empire of Pain”) that manage to execute a perfect blend of both, which is really what makes the difference between a 5 star rating and a 4 star rating, to me. Not that this wasn’t an excellent read. more
This was an interesting and very detailed account of the rise of Mohammed bin Salman, also referred to as "MBS" through the Saudi Royal family. Authors Bradley Hope and Justin Scheck are long-time writers for the Wall St. Journal. Justin Scheck (L) and Bradley Hope (R) : Blood and Oil: Mohammed bin Salman's Ruthless Quest for Global Power is a somewhat no-frills, matter-of-fact look inside the inner workings of the Al Saud, or House of Saud - the ruling royal family of Saudi Arabia. The book details MBS's rise to power, much of his power-brokering and influencing, as well as many other pivotal events in recent Saudi history. more