From the New York Times bestselling author of Empire of Pain and Say Nothing comes a riveting story of wealth, violence and deceit at the heart of a glittering city.
THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES No.1 BESTSELLER
THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES No.1 BESTSELLER
´A defining book of our time´ - The Times
´The master of the non-fiction narrative´ - The Sunday Times
´A masterpiece´ - The Observer
´Compulsive´ - The Guardian
´Breathtaking´ - Jon Ronson
´Completely engrossing´ - Louis Theroux
´Phenomenal´ - Emily Maitlis
´More addictive than any box set´ - Sathnam Sanghera
From the Baillie Gifford Prize-winning and Sunday Times bestselling author of Empire of Pain and Say Nothing comes a riveting story of wealth, violence and deceit at the heart of a glittering city.
In 2019, a London teenager, Zac Brettler, fell to his death from a luxury apartment building on the banks of the Thames. On a desperate quest to understand how their son had died, his grieving parents made a terrible discovery: Zac had been leading a fantasy life, posing as the son of a wealthy Russian oligarch.
Patrick Radden Keefe follows Zac’s parents on a dark journey to find out what brought him to the balcony that night – and how a teenager’s life of make-believe drew him into the city’s terrifying underworld.