An Empire built on sand

REVIEW: Scott Anderson’s unsparing portrait of the Shah of Iran, Cold War America, and a doomed partnership that mistook power for permanence

Aug 06, 2025

∙ Paid

Note from the road: I’m travelling this week — when this review goes live, I’ll just have crossed the Atlantic into Nova Scotia. But I didn’t want to miss the moment: King of Kings is out tomorrow, and it’s a searing, timely book that deserves a deeper look. So here’s my take.

King of Kings by Scott Anderson

Hutchinson Heinemann, August 2025

I still rememb…

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