When You Come at the King - by Elie Honig (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

"A fascinating, fast-paced insider's account....[a] riveting, deeply reported book." --Anderson Cooper

"Every page hums with gripping anecdotes and breaking news journalism." --Douglas Brinkley

Imagine you've been put in charge of investigating your own boss--who also happens to be the most powerful person on the planet.

You might unearth information that will be politically, professionally, and personally devastating to your subject, and you alone hold the power to indict and potentially imprison him. At the same time, the boss can fire you and end the case--and might even turn the tables and launch an inquiry aimed at you. As the lone-wolf assassin Omar put it in The Wire: "You come at the king, you best not miss."

That's the crucible for any Special Counsel. For decades, the Department of Justice has appointed outside prosecutors to handle our highest-stakes cases. But do these independent investigations lead to just results?

In When You Come at the King, CNN senior legal analyst Elie Honig delivers a fast-paced, insider's account of the most important Justice Department investigations of the past fifty years, based on dozens of on-record interviews with firsthand participants. A Watergate prosecutor reveals she hid copies of key documents at home to guard against potential destruction of evidence by the president's allies. A member of the Iran-Contra prosecution team explains why they made a shocking election-eve revelation. A defense lawyer for Donald Trump details his private meeting with Jack Smith just days before Trump was indicted.

From Ken Starr's investigation of Bill Clinton to modern cases involving Patrick Fitzgerald, Robert Mueller, Jack Smith, and more, Honig charts how the Special Counsel system developed and evolved over time. We know the maxim that a nation can be measured by how it treats its weakest members. This book explores an inverse corollary: A nation reveals much about itself by how it holds accountable its most powerful leaders when they've done wrong.

Now, with the future of Special Counsels in doubt, When You Come at the King addresses the most important question of all: Can the system evolve to better serve the call for justice?

Review Quotes

"A fascinating, fast-paced insider's account of the trials and tribulations of the nation's highest-stakes cases from Watergate to today. In this riveting, deeply reported book, Honig offers unique historical insight and a timely and important look at the future of presidential accountability." -- Anderson Cooper

"Every page hums with gripping anecdotes and breaking news journalism of the first order. A riveting and judicious investigation of the oversized role a spate of Justice Department-appointed Special Prosecutors have played--for better and worse--in twenty-first-century presidential history. Not only does Honig, one of America's most astute legal analysts, speak truth to power but he ably delineates on the long-term consequences of what these crucial cases mean for our nation's current Constitutional checks-and-balances debate." -- Douglas Brinkley

"Elie Honig takes his gift for making complicated issues accessible and applies it to the fascinating history of our most memorable and important criminal investigations, from Nixon to Clinton to Trump, and many in between. This marvelous book uncovers new facts and ugly truths about how the most important decisions were made by omnipotent investigators and the highest-profile political subjects. By interviewing participants on both sides, Honig brings us into the room where the critical decisions were made in a way never before possible." -- Dan Abrams

"What Honig does with this terrific book is not only explain the fraught moments in history where federal prosecutors investigate a US president, he does fascinating primary reporting by talking to the actual players who were leading the charge. Honig is an incredible lawyer and explainer of all legal things on television, and with this book he also shows that he is a fantastic writer and storyteller." -- Dana Bash

"In his new book, When You Come at the King, Elie Honig does not miss. He offers an exclusive insider perspective into the most important cases in American history. Honig delivers first-rate investigative journalism and a reminder that no one is above the law. This book is a vital reminder why upholding the rule of law is crucial, now more than ever." -- Preet Bharara

"Elie Honig's When You Come at the King is a valuable (and at times eye-poppingly colorful!) look at the tough choices prosecutors have had to make investigating their own boss, the president of the United States. His examination of the delicate balancing act of the Constitution, justice, and democracy provides crucial historical context for our times." -- Garrett Graff

"A sharp-edged account...this is a comprehensive indictment of one of the most controversial figures of the Trump administration." -- Publishers Weekly on Hatchet Man

"Written with all the color and pacing of a legal thriller." -- Variety on Hatchet Man

"He is a fluid writer and careful researcher, and even as someone who has taken a professional interest in criminal justice for decades, I was surprised to learn a lot of fascinating tidbits. . . . especially valuable when Honig provides original reporting and analysis." -- Scott Turow, Washington Post, on Untouchable