I’ve been reading Ryan Holiday since 2018. I first saw him speak at a conference in Austin, TX, and was intrigued by his passion for “making old things new again.” He’s popularized Stoicism for the 21st Century and makes challenging concepts approachable and straightforward. Holiday gets a lot of praise for his Stoic Trilogy: The Obstacle is the Way, Ego is the Enemy, and Stillness is the Key. However, his best book, and probably most underrated, is Conspiracy: A True Story of Power, Sex, and a Billionaire's Secret Plot to Destroy a Media Empire.

Conspiracy is the fascinatingly true story of how Peter Thiel teamed up with Hulk Hogan to take down the media website, Gawker. Yes, that whole sentence is correct. It’s a wild story fit for the fiction section, but it’s entirely true. This story is well-written, well-researched, and you can’t put it down. There’s no superfluous information and no unnecessary backstory. Holiday does an exquisite job of presenting just the facts in a way that reads like a thriller.

If you’re looking for your next exciting read, no need to search for novels; Conspiracy should be at the top of your list.

5/5 Highly Recommend