by Erik Prince
First published 2013
Erik Prince founded Blackwater in 1997 as a training center for military and law enforcement personnel. The former Navy SEAL recruited special forces veterans to handle dangerous security assignments worldwide. After September 11th, government contracts poured in. Blackwater operatives completed nearly 100,000 missions across Iraq and Afghanistan for the Bush and Obama administrations. Despite its success, the company faced relentless criticism. Media reports and fictional portrayals painted Blackwater employees as mercenaries and thugs. Contractual secrecy prevented Prince from responding to false accusations. Now he breaks his silence. Prince reveals the real story behind controversial incidents including the Nisour Square shooting in Baghdad and the Fallujah contractor deaths. He argues that private military contractors have long been vital to American armed forces operations. The book challenges Pentagon leadership while honoring troops in the field. Prince dismantles myths that damaged his company's reputation and tarnished the memory of contractors who died serving their country.
Genres: business, action, biography-memoir, 21st-century, military-history, american-history
Vibes: fast-paced, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: government-corruption, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Iraq, Afghanistan
Period: 21st Century
416 pages · Hardcover · Portfolio
Content warnings: violence