And the Anatomy of Intrigue - Peter Thiel

I got into Ryan Holiday as an author after reading 'Ego Is The Enemy '. I read a couple more of his books and they were interesting , educational and to some degree enlightening . This new book was nothing more than of a short story turned long . My old marketing professor would have circled in red chapter after chapter and written " Tautology " over and over taking this book from the authors idea of getting an A to the professors C+ .
It was and is a needless repetition of the same idea . What started out as interesting turned into a yawn fest , Ryan's description of 'Hulk Hogan ' as some broken and pitiful creature become tiresome , Peter Thiel came across as over sensitive butt head who couldn't let go & wasn't prepared to be the bigger man and gawker was the gutter sucking website that got what it had coming . None of this was ground breaking journalism or a yarn that needed 290 + pages . In the end this was 100 page book to read on a flight from LAX to JFK . Instead I over paid to see Ryan show me he still has a long way to go as an author . This book was a big step back for him . DO NOT BUY .

The book is an actionable meditation. That's a rare and wonderful thing.

The story is well told. Readers have no trouble discerning the mechanics (who was involved, their incentives, their goals, their struggles) and the sequence of events (thanks to interviews with both sides). It doesn't just tell a story. It thoughtfully considers that story and weaves the resulting insight with historical precedent to deliver an understanding of what a conspiracy is - a unique pursuit with its own, timeless form.

This approach enables us to transcend the specifics of this episode, with all the glitz, sex, publicity, and instead acknowledge that a conspiracy is a thing that is not reserved for the use of billionaires, but is a thing we can use in our own lives - be that in building careers, fighting the HOA, serving on a jury, passing legislation, or buying/selling companies.

Yet another hackneyed attempt to re-write Robert Greene’s “48 Laws of Power.” Holiday, who fancies himself a historical scholar, strains, masochistically, to draw parallels between the subject matter of his writing and largely irrelevant historical events. This got old towards the end of Robert Greens tome but Holiday has copied this method in all of his writing. He’s getting paid so I don’t blame him, but Greene’s method is an old dog that needs to be taken out back and shot.

The book’s title and theme “Conspiracy” reveal the author’s fundamental misunderstanding of the topic; specifically, that implicit in any “conspiracy” is criminality, which was conspicuously absent from behavior of both Gawker and Thiel.

Towards the end of the book Holiday reveals his liberal (communist) bias and detachment from the middle and lower class as he, not surprisingly, manages to draw irrelevant parallels between bad actors and Trump. Cry me a river Ryan.

A poor attempt at sensationalizing civil litigation. Multiple thumbs down.

This book is really dragged out for the topic about conspiracy. At the end of this book Ryan makes weak and out of context Trump comparisons to Thiel’s conspiracy actions. I wish I could get my money back!

Ryan Holiday is the hardest working writer I know. He's 30 years old with a half dozen bestsellers under his belt already. And his pace seems to be quickening. Conspiracy is about a whole lot of things I care nothing about in my head and yet I somehow couldn't put it down. Gripping saga of how a giant online media site irked billionaire Peter Thiel by outing him as gay and then the resulting decade-long conspiracy plot he put together to eventually bankrupt them. Told in hypnotic play-by-play with insider access to all the key players. As his writing evolve, I'm loving watch Ryan "embrace the gray" more and more and feeling all new levels of nuance and complexity in his work. Congrats, Ryan!

When my dentist caught me reading this book he said that these were just the kinds of books he loved but when I explained the premise I could see that it wasn't the kind of conspiracy that he loved. He didn't know Peter Thiel or Gawker and he didn't seem to remember any trial with Hulk Hogan. I remember Hogan winning the case, but I didn't know Peter Thiel had anything to do with it. I didn't even know Thiel until he spoke at the RNC. But the book is interesting even if you don't really care about these people because these people become interesting as you understand how they were living their lives and how those lives intersected.

The essence of the book is to explain the anatomy of a conspiracy. In Holiday's previous books like Ego is the Enemy or Obstacle is the Way the idea is central and the examples are from 2,000 years of history. And although Holiday cites plenty of historical examples, the Thiel/Denton rivalry is the center of the book rather than an example. Because Gawker did not know Peter Thiel was behind Hulk Hogan Nick Denton didn't know what was going to hit him. Without the conspiracy the outcome would have been different.

To Holiday a central question is whether Thiel was the hero bringing down a bully in Gawker or whether Thiel was the bully bringing down free speech. Layered in that question is how the legal system favors deep pockets rather than justice so once Thiel is unmasked the media re-writes their David and Goliath story to dump on Thiel for being the bad guy despite the fact that none of the issues or facts of the case changed. Holiday recognizes this as being ridiculous, although he himself has mixed feelings about the process and outcome.

A bigger problem seems to be how to end the book. Peter Thiel would shortly thereafter support Trump for President and this troubles Holiday because Holiday is unable to see Donald Trump objectively, the thing he has a genius for in Napoleon or Machiavelli and other figures of history. He sees Trump as the same kind of bully as Gawker and questions Thiel's support. Holiday is unable to put himself in the mind of the Trump voter and see that Trump is a fighter against the very people middle America see as bullies. Trump may seem important in this moment in time, but he is just another president that will likely be historically unimportant. Does history care that Walter Annenberg supported Richard Nixon? I think with time that Ryan Holiday won't care either.

I came away from the book asking why we let lawyers create a legal system that rewards lawyers rather than citizens. The law was on the side of Hulk Hogan, but the judicial system was on the side with the deepest pockets and lawyers get rich as a result. Peter Thiel played the part of Erin Brockovich, but he loses style points for being a billionaire. Judge Welch asked Senator McCarthy have you no decency sir and no one important is asking that question anymore. The free speech that was supposed to be a check on the government has become a license to hurt private citizens while actual political speech is constantly under attack in places like universities. Holidays books are like that. You come away thinking.

I think the fundamental premise of the book is exaggerated - that Thiel's funding of the Hogan lawsuit amounts to conspiracy. To me, the fact that someone privately operates to further a cause they take interest in, in an entirely legal, auditable, and interviewable manner, falls short of being in the same league as plotting to take down a government or defrauding a group of people. If the focus of the writing is discussing the archetype of conspiracy by elaborating on the details of this supposed instance of one, it could do without the Robert Greene-esque anecdotes or Holiday's opinion of Donald Trump.

This is probably Ryan Holiday's best book to date, although I have enjoyed all of his books. Conspiracy has two things going for it: (1) the fascinating subject matter and (2) Holiday's access to the key participants. Holiday personally interviewed Peter Thiel and Nick Denton, and he tries to evenhandedly convey their perspectives. It is unclear to me whether he interviewed Hulk Hogan. It does appear that he interviewed some other witnesses from the litigation. The story itself is genuinely very important and interesting -- kudos to Holiday for recognizing that. Peter Thiel is one of the most important businesspeople in the world today and books about him are scarce.

There are a couple of cons, of course: (1) If you are a lawyer, you will find the description of the legal proceedings a bit lacking. I would love to hear a blow-by-blow account of the court filings. Note also that in a couple of cases Holiday makes statements that lawyers will find misleading or inaccurate (e.g., when the trial date is continued, as virtually all trial dates are in my experience, Holiday treats this as an unusual event and says [paraphrased]: "Only in the law would someone use the phrase 'continuance' to describe the termination of a trial" -- some non-lawyers might find this funny, but I think most lawyers will groan because the trial was obviously not terminated and the term "continuance" seems apt). (2) At times, the writing is a bit wooden. If you think of it as being in the category of news reporting, though, it is not bad.

I listened to the audio version and have no complaints about the narration.

Holiday takes his first stab (somewhat) at journalism and reporting in this book and the result doesn't disappoint - nor does it even feel like journalism, quite frankly. It's something deeper. Despite the hallmarks of a work of journalism - timeliness, exclusive access, and massive amounts of research, there are broader issues at play and a central question at its theme: what does an actual conspiracy look like in the modern age, and what are we to make of its broader implications?

The result is the retelling of the infamous 2016 case that brought down the New York-based online media juggernaut Gawker, from its innocuous origins a decade ago to the players who engineered its colossal verdict. Anyone who followed the story from the headlines as it happened knew something seismic had just occurred, and if you were anything like me, the developments were riveting to witness (not to mention welcome news - I was no fan of Gawker). Yet soon thereafter it was revealed that the case was funded by a billionaire whose express intent was to sue Gawker out of existence because of a personal vendetta. People had a hard time wrapping their heads around that - was this the noble act of a private citizen fighting for something he believed in, or a chilling revelation that a billionaire can destroy a media outlet because of something they said about him that he didn't like? To this day, you can find strong arguments on either side of that issue.

But now, for the first time, we get a chance to peak behind the curtain at the specific ways Peter Thiel, the billionaire, and Nick Denton, the media man, and all the supporting characters both public and private rumbled towards this crash course of destiny in a Florida courtroom some two years ago. Holiday aims to discover and document just how a party executes a conspiracy - through resources, secrets, and so, so much patience - but more importantly, what are we to make of this?

The word conspiracy carries so much weight in the modern age, eliciting crackpot tin foil hat theories like massive government cover-ups or plots too ridiculous to be taken seriously. But what Thiel and his team pulled off was textbook conspiracy, one that achieved its goals, however murky you may find the ethics. The details are riveting enough, but the issue is leaves you to dwell on is vital.

The issue is that it's far too often people resort to idleness or complaining when confronted with a societal reality they find disfavorable. It is exceedingly rare that people to take action. Thiel believed he was taking action for a greater good - the removal of a snarky, morally bankrupt media outlet that harmed far more individuals than just himself. If a conspiracy is what it took to take that action, and he did everything within his legal means to do so, is that as bad as we may have initially thought? And if not, why do we see so few conspiracies, for equally good intentions?

Obviously, those questions open the door to even deeper ones, questions the book brilliantly digests and ties together. For any informed citizen, it is genuinely worth the read.

Conspiracy is unexpectedly the best book I’ve read in 2018. Here's why:

I love how ruthless, brilliant, and cunning Peter Thiel was to execute this strategy to take down Gawker.

Reading the book was like watching a real-life chess game play out.

I'm a lover for beautiful strategy in action (Think Brad Stevens, Gregg Popovich, Bobby Fischer, Phil Ivey)

I admire Peter’s patience (5 years in the making), devotion to work in secrecy (imagine not telling anyone what you’re working on for that long), and waiting for the right moment to strike (imagine spending the first year plotting and planning, and seeing it to the end over 5 years).

He struck hard and struck from all sides (more than 1 major lawsuit).

Peter found their weaknesses and put Gawker to the test by taking their staff to the stand and letting a jury decide the verdict.

His resilience against several setbacks made this takedown feel impossible. But he prevailed.

You also see Nick Denton, CEO of Gawker, tell his side of the story. Of why him and his team feel so strongly to publish the “truth” not caring about the consequences.

Nick is fierce too in the world of strategy and power. But he is blindsided by Peter’s attack and you can see why when you read Conspiracy.

This book tells the whole story.

Plot twists, turns, and Ryan's commentary with his attempt to be as objective as possible... having real conversations with both Thiel, Denton, and many other parties involved.

I personally care less about the outcome and more about the beautiful execution of the plan.

I also love this because I remember being a journalist at The Hustle watching this case with the team unfold, not believing the outcome AND that Peter Thiel was involved for YEARS plotting.

Even if you don't know who Hulk Hogan, Peter Thiel, or Gawker is... this book will change how you think about the concept around conspiracies, and why Ryan believes the world should have MORE of these, not less.

This could be a psychological thriller only it's real people and stuff that actually happened. This is a fascinating case and Holiday does a good job explaining the players and the stakes involved in a fascinating way that will make you want to binge the whole book. I can't wait for the movie!!

Another profound work by one of the best writers of our time, Ryan Holiday. This reads like a fast-paced, action-packed thriller. The fact that it’s a true story is nothing short of extraordinary. Leadership and strategy lessons abound in this fantastic read. Kudos to Ryan for capturing such a mesmerizing story in the written word. I’ll be giving this to many friends and colleagues in the business world as it shines a light on the importance of patience, strategy and ruthless execution!! This is a must-read.

I kept thinking about all the people who wanted to write this story and I had a hard time imagining many other writers bringing the depth that Ryan brought to this story. It was an entertaining story, which made it a fast read but there are plenty of bones to naw on in this book. Ryan cleverly weaved in anecdotes from history and philosophy, which really hits home just how bizarre this story is in 2018. It's a great book to read before going out with friends/family for dinner -- I found myself sharing the story with friends and family over dinner and capturing their attention rather quickly with the twists and turns of this plot.

This is a fantastically well done book with one small complaint. At times it drags on a little bit. However it is so good otherwise that I very highly recommend it. I thought about this book several times before I actually got it because the title doesn't make it seem that interesting but the reviews looked good so I dove in. Holliday goes deep into the story with insightful analysis. It's very compelling story telling. This is an important story and an important.and precedent setting legal case. Excellent. Very, very highly recommended.

Ryan Holiday has written a fine tribute to his friend. When i think of Ryan Holiday now, I think of Tina Turner's song: Private Dancer, only with substitutions of Dancer for word Writer. "Writer for money" "Any old Subject will do". This book is about champerty. This is a huge social issue that will nearly alter the constitutional arrangement and bill of rights in favor of money. Do not expect to be enlightened by this book. Private Dancer.

Redundant and fluffy. The author is trying to make all his references to the war and sound smarter than he is, like a crusty old professor, who references everything to historical context, and the ancients. (eyeroll).

A huge skip! Disappointing and not well-written.

I wanted to read this book to understand more about how Peter Thiel thinks and strategizes. There are certainly interesting snippets about that throughout the book. Unfortunately, they are buried in a meandering and length narrative, that drags-on longer than it should.

Ryan Holiday is trying to accomplish two things in this book: The first is to give an account of the Bollea v Gawker trial, which is extremely interesting in its own right, both due to the personalities involved and the legal issues of the case. The second is to use the case to develop a "Theory of Conspiracy", which explains the numerous historical examples and musings on strategy, war, and leadership.

If the book had focused on only of the two, it would have been a solid, tight read. By attempting both, however, Holiday grossly dilutes the overall product.

A great read. Part thriller, part literature, part philosophy. Ryan Holiday creates a narrative of a conspiracy that unfolded over many years. It leaves you to learn lessons, make or abstain from judgments, but forces you to think about how you feel and think about many modern topics. I highly recommend this. The perfect travel read also.

The book is a bit grandiose in the connections it draws. For example, the conspiracy to take down Gawker, an online tabloid website, is likened, in one chapter, to the American ambush of Normandy beach on D-Day. While such analogies are a stretch, the book is nonetheless informative and entertaining. I wouldn’t say this book is a must read like some of Ryan Holiday’s other works; instead, it is good book to pick up on a weekend where you have some extra time to kill.

I followed the Hulk Hogan - Gawker lawsuit when it was in the news and thought I knew the story. Boy was I badly mistaken. Ryan Holiday takes you on a behind the scenes tour of what happens when people with means challenge the status quo. What was even better was that even though you probably know how this ends "Conspiracy" reads like suspense fiction. I found it hard to put down. Kudos to Holiday. He hit this one out of the park.

Excellent storytelling, analysis and insight.

Had to drop a star for the last chapter for his editorializing on Trump. I'm not an American, and his trade policies aren't good for us, but I still found many of Holiday's statements unbalanced and biased, which is weird considering how thoughtful the rest of the book is.

A terrific telling of the conspiracy to take down Gawker. Whats more is the final chapters of the book reshape how we view an effort to better the world but perhaps the unintended consequences of the events within this book. A modern day Lorax story...careful what you wish for.

This is a really interesting story expertly told. It's not David v. Goliath but Goliath v. Bigger Goliath. It involves outrageous behavior, barefaced lies, brilliant strategy, utter stupidity, and everything in between. This is a true story that reads like fiction, and Holiday does a great job of bringing in relevant historical references to illustrate and explain the story. If you like the books of Michael Lewis, I think you'll like this. (I bought the Audible.com version of the book.)

I found the story interesting and Holiday does an ample job of weaving the broader lessons and history of conspiracies into the modern tale. It does linger a bit too long in some areas, taking asides that don't seem to advance the story, but generally those were minor distractions. The one huge distraction: Holiday himself. I listened to the audio version which he narrates and found his affect and inflections incredibly distracting. The more audio books I listen to, the more convinced I am that, memoir aside, it's always better to have a pro do your reading!

This is a wild one. Ryan Holiday tackles the recent media firestorm over the bankruptcy of Gawker via Hulk Hogan's lawsuit, which was later revealed to be funded by Peter Thiel. Duh duh duuuh.

Taking interviews from both sides of the conspiracy, Holiday weaves a narrative that reads like a heist thriller, complete with mysterious codenames (who is "Mr. A?"), sting operations, and tense courtroom drama. Quite the page-turner.

Such an interesting book! I did not know anything about this case or situation before I read the book, but I am recommending it to all my friends who are even peripherally interested in things like this

The book is a bit grandiose in the connections it draws. For example, the conspiracy to take down Gawker, an online tabloid website, is likened, in one chapter, to the American ambush of Normandy beach on D-Day. While such analogies are a stretch, the book is nonetheless informative and entertaining. I wouldn’t say this book is a must read like some of Ryan Holiday’s other works; instead, it is good book to pick up on a weekend where you have some extra time to kill.

I followed the Hulk Hogan - Gawker lawsuit when it was in the news and thought I knew the story. Boy was I badly mistaken. Ryan Holiday takes you on a behind the scenes tour of what happens when people with means challenge the status quo. What was even better was that even though you probably know how this ends "Conspiracy" reads like suspense fiction. I found it hard to put down. Kudos to Holiday. He hit this one out of the park.

Excellent storytelling, analysis and insight.

Had to drop a star for the last chapter for his editorializing on Trump. I'm not an American, and his trade policies aren't good for us, but I still found many of Holiday's statements unbalanced and biased, which is weird considering how thoughtful the rest of the book is.

A terrific telling of the conspiracy to take down Gawker. Whats more is the final chapters of the book reshape how we view an effort to better the world but perhaps the unintended consequences of the events within this book. A modern day Lorax story...careful what you wish for.

This is a really interesting story expertly told. It's not David v. Goliath but Goliath v. Bigger Goliath. It involves outrageous behavior, barefaced lies, brilliant strategy, utter stupidity, and everything in between. This is a true story that reads like fiction, and Holiday does a great job of bringing in relevant historical references to illustrate and explain the story. If you like the books of Michael Lewis, I think you'll like this. (I bought the Audible.com version of the book.)

I found the story interesting and Holiday does an ample job of weaving the broader lessons and history of conspiracies into the modern tale. It does linger a bit too long in some areas, taking asides that don't seem to advance the story, but generally those were minor distractions. The one huge distraction: Holiday himself. I listened to the audio version which he narrates and found his affect and inflections incredibly distracting. The more audio books I listen to, the more convinced I am that, memoir aside, it's always better to have a pro do your reading!

This is a wild one. Ryan Holiday tackles the recent media firestorm over the bankruptcy of Gawker via Hulk Hogan's lawsuit, which was later revealed to be funded by Peter Thiel. Duh duh duuuh.

Taking interviews from both sides of the conspiracy, Holiday weaves a narrative that reads like a heist thriller, complete with mysterious codenames (who is "Mr. A?"), sting operations, and tense courtroom drama. Quite the page-turner.

I usually only buy self help and philosophy books, but Ryan Holiday wrote this book so I had to try it out. I absolutely was not disappointed. This book is so engaging, intriguing, and interesting I'm reading it twice. I love Ryan's books on stoicism and marketing, but this book shows that if he wanted to he could write a deeply engaging fiction novel as well. You will not be disappointed.

Such an interesting book! I did not know anything about this case or situation before I read the book, but I am recommending it to all my friends who are even peripherally interested in things like this

His books are made in a rush, he keeps explaining the same thing over and over and over and over..... he just counts pages. he just got lucky and was sober greene assistant, if it wasn't for that, ryan would be working at your favor local shop..
no research through history about the subjects he writes about, i will never buy any of his book again. this is the 3rd book i've read by him and will be the last book.

all his his books can be summarized in 2 pages max.

Conspiracy has the makings of a book that’s been written to pontificate on the nature of conspiracies and their morality, and occasionally drifts from intriguing to banal, though still manages to be entertaining and elucidating on average. Bonus points of amusement for historical references, minus points for abusing the word conspiracy, bonus points again for being a generally well written book. 5 sta

This is a great story, and Holiday makes some interesting points. But there's just too much of his “interesting points”. They become repetitive, and formulaic. Too often the book is “my thoughts on conspiracy “ rather than the story of this conspiracy.

Power, wealth, lessons from history, research, exposition, morals, politics, philosophy, celebrity, culture, consequences, call to action, hero's journey, click bait.

So much more than just a retelling of a (supposed) first amendment battle. So much more.

Conspiracy is a great story told by a great storyteller. It involves a reclusive billionaire, a pro wrestler, and a media outlet (Gawker) run by a truly colorful founder. The plot is simple: the media outlet offends the billionaire (Peter Thiel), he in turn launches a covert conspiracy to destroy the outlet and 10 years later emerges victorious by bankrolling the lawsuit of wrestler Hulk Hogan in a case relating to an illegally recorded sex tape of Hogan that the media outlet published. The most interesting aspects of the story are not in the facts of the case, which are ridiculous in and of themselves, but the questions that such a plot leave with the reader. Was Thiel justified in his action? Was justice served? Was this whole thing good for society at large or bad? The reader must come to his own conclusion about these questions but in the end I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes a good story.

I just finished reading Ryan Holiday’s new book, Conspiracy: Peter Thiel, Hulk Hogan, Gawker, and the Anatomy of Intrigue. I found his storytelling technique unique as he wove the various pieces together and placed them in a historical context going back to ancient times. I am glad he strived to be neutral vis-a-vis Peter Theil and Nick Denton: at the beginning of the story, I thought this was a kiss-up to Theil but by the end he presented both men as human beings - with strengths and weaknesses. Same applies to Hulk Hogan. There were really no heroes. Holiday has added to the annals of historical conspiracies and has done so with thought-provoking insights on the pluses and minuses of winning and losing.

While Theil’s effort to shut down Gawker Media was successful, the impact of his conflicting views on privacy rights continue to play out. As the alleged connections between FaceBook, Cambridge Analytica, and Peter Theil’s Palantir Technologies are unfolding, it would be beyond ironic if the very guy who conspired successfully to bring down GAWKER due to outing him in 2007 ended up enabling millions of people’s privacy data to be compromised AND misused to get Donald Trump elected. It would be a fitting update to the last two chapters of Holiday’s book and build on his premise about unintended consequences AND how conspirators’ tools built to win the current war sow the seeds of destruction in the next one. It will be interesting to see how Theil handles this from a PR perspective.

Excellent book. I appreciate how Ryan Holiday is willing to extend beyond his comfort zone with each new title. He takes his own advice and strives to grow as an author and as a professional. By reading the book, you learn the intricacies of the case, but also several other historical stories that he relates to the conspiracy.

I've gifted more copies of https://www.the store.com.au/Obstacle-Way-Ryan-Holiday/dp/1591846358 than any other, however, there's potentially a new challenger for the title! Conspiracy is a fantastic work filled with intrigue, strategy and more historical anchors than you'd expect. Buy it! You wont be disappointed.

I bought "Conspiracy" because I'm interested in the downfall of Gawker, but unfortunately this book has very little new information on the topic. Mr. Holiday is not a journalist and it shows. The actual reporting in here would at best make for a 3,000 word newspaper or magazine article. The rest of the book is pointless and irrelevant quotations from philosophers and musings by the author about what "conspiracy" means. There are chapters of this book in which literally nothing happens.

Ryan consistently puts out some of the best content available. From Obstacle Is the Way to Ego is the Enemy, The Daily Stoic and now Conspiracy. It may be his best book yet. Read it and decide for yourself.

I usually like Ryan Holiday; I don’t agree with a lot of his leftist liberal ideas and insights but still appreciate nuggets of wisdom mixed in. This book is horrible : a pointless story with a very bad audible reading that is read aloud with a boring monotone voice from Holiday. I regret buying this book. Don’t purchase this book.

A well written book. Great tittle for a read where the author has educated and broaden the meaning of the word conspiracy for me. Mr. Holiday weaves his story from real events into a tapestry of intrigue and historical comparisons.