Catherine Scott-Clark Boeken

From September 11, 2001 to May 2, 2011, Osama bin Laden evaded intelligence services and special forces units, drones and hunter killer squads. The Exile tells the extraordinary inside story of that decade through the eyes of those who witnessed it: bin Laden's four wives and many children, his deputies and military strategists, his spiritual advisor, the CIA, Pakistan's ISI, and many others who have never before told their stories. Investigative journalists Cathy Scott-Clark and Adrian Levy gained unique access to Osama bin Laden's inner circle, and they recount the flight of Al Qaeda's forces and bin Laden's innocent family members, the gradual formation of ISIS by bin Laden's lieutenants, and bin Laden's rising paranoia and eroding control over his organization. They also reveal that the Bush White House knew the whereabouts of bin Laden's family and Al Qaeda's military and religious leaders, but rejected opportunities to capture them, pursuing war in the Persian Gulf instead, and offer insights into how Al Qaeda will attempt to regenerate itself in the coming years. While we think we know what happened in Abbottabad on May 2, 2011, we know little about the wilderness years that led to that shocking event. As authoritative in its scope and detail as it is propuslively readable, The Exile is a landmark work of investigation and reporting.

Unquestionably one of the most valuable and ambitious works in the entire history of art, the Amber Room was famous throughout Europe as the eighth wonder of the world. Its vast and intricately worked amber panels were sent by Frederick I of Prussia to Peter the Great of Russia in 1717 as a gift, and soon became a symbol of Russia's imperial might. For over two hundred years the room remained in Russia, but with the outbreak of war, Germany laid claims to it once again it as a showpiece for the Third Reich. When the Nazis swept into St Petersburg, it was ripped from the walls, packed into crates and disappeared from view, never to be seen again.