First published 1976
Richard Nixon sits in the Oval Office as his presidency disintegrates around him. The Watergate scandal has shattered his administration, leaving him isolated and desperate. His family watches helplessly as the man they know retreats further into himself. Staff members who once competed for his attention now calculate their own survival. Congressional allies abandon ship one by one. Nixon himself oscillates between defiance and despair, clinging to power even as the evidence mounts against him. His wife Pat maintains a stoic facade while privately grieving for their destroyed life. The White House becomes a pressure cooker where every conversation carries the weight of history. Advisors craft resignation speeches while Nixon rails against his enemies. The book captures the human drama behind the constitutional crisis, showing how a president's downfall affects everyone in his orbit. This is the story of power's final moments, when even the most powerful man in America cannot escape the consequences of his choices.
Genres: biography, historical-fiction, 20th-century, american-history
Vibes: emotional, intimate, suspenseful
Tropes: downfall, power-dynamics
Setting: Oval Office, White House
Period: 1970s
476 pages · Hardcover · Simon & Schuster