One Nation Under Blackmail - Vol. 1: The Sordid Union Between Intelligence and Crime that Gave Rise to Jeffrey Epstein, VOL.1 Paperback – September 22, 2022

Must read! It’s very dense with details, so don’t try to remember every name, focus on the bigger picture.

I agree that it should be required reading. You can't understand the present political situation in America without understanding these events. I got the audiobook then once I got through it, I ordered the hardcopies for posterity. It's a crucial work.My only complaint is that the audiobook is riddled with mispronunciations. I thought it was AI, but someone is credited at the end. It won't bother most people, but if you're in my part of the spectrum, it will. The delivery itself is clear and well done otherwise.

FOCUS PEOPLE! You'll need it to make it through this book, which is a fairly comprehensive rehash of the history of the relationships and partnerships between certain sections of the government, the military-industrial complex, the banking industry, and organized crime. Now, that is A LOT OF GROUND to cover, and this book could easily have been twice or three times as long as the over 500 pages it already is.It is not so much about Epstein himself, but about the creation and functioning of the systems that allowed - and continue to allow - such a monster to not only exist, but to repeatedly get away with it. (If you're looking specifically about info on Epstein and ONLY Epstein, then you can pick up volume 2 and skip this one, though I do not recommend that you do that, for reasons I'll explain at the end of this review.)For those looking for salacious details of Epstein's sex trafficking organization - look elsewhere. That's not what this series is about. It is about the much deeper and much more troubling systemic corruption that gave Epstein his incredible wealth and power over politicians, businesses, and the law enforcement agencies that were supposed to be watching him, but ended up letting him go time and time again.Warning to conservatives: some of your heroes will be exposed as the truly evil people they are/were. I personally have no problem with this - to me, the truth is more important - but if you're the type of person who responds reflexively when bad things are said about conservative Republicans, then you'll have some issues with this book. Then again, if you can keep an open mind, and are old enough to remember the narratives presented at the time of the events referenced, you should be able to keep your preconceived ideas from blocking out the truth.You'll have a much easier time with this book if you have some knowledge of the major corruption scandals of the 20th century - specifically Watergate, Iran-Contra, the PROMIS/Inslaw scandal, BCCI, and the S&L scandal, as well as the history of Israel and it's intelligence/defense apparatus. Even if you just remember the headlines from those days, it'll help.The only thing this book is missing in my opinion is some sort of "family tree" showing in graphic form the interconnectivity of the "enterprises" involved. But, seriously, that would be somebody's dissertation given the volume of information involved. I also wish it was better edited with a little more connective detail, but then that would make this 5 or 6 volumes rather than just two. I'D love it... but I doubt many other people would.The main takeaways are that - as long and as dense as it is - this is really an INTRODUCTION to the systemic corruption of America, not the last word.If you're looking specifically about info on Epstein and ONLY Epstein, then you can pick up volume 2 and skip this one, though I do NOT recommend that you do that. This is IMPORTANT information that every American should know, not just for what happened in the past, but what is coming in the future - when blackmail will be a way of life, and where every American will live under constant threat of having the most intimate details of their public and private lives exposed. Blackmail will become THE defining crime of the 21st century, and, in many ways, already is - thanks to massive data harvesting entities and an anonymous internet where anyone can be destroyed financially with the click of a button.

Great read. It is dense, meaning less fluff and lots of details to absorb.Buying the second volume now.

Should be required reading…. I have never been so alarmed and disturbed by a book before….it is truly unsettling. I have been urging all my friends and family to read this well researched book. The information needs to be spread quickly so that everyone truly understands what is going on in the world right now

Wow! Corruption is rapid. I enjoyed reading the book, but it was hard to follow at various points because it was so much information. It exposes the depth of corruption of organized crime, politics, and businesses. I was surprised how much the Israeli and US intelligence agencies were involved. Epstein's sex blackmail assisted by Maxwell was interesting. This book I must say was hard to keep the connections straight. It was like connecting a person to all people that came in contact with that person and so on. I'm glad the author would refer back to certain chapters when discussing the connections. It's a good book to read if you're doing research. Multiple references listed after each chapter. I hoping to learn more about the main players in volume II.