“If you don’t stand out, you might as well disappear”, said Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Since the beginning of the reign of his father, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, the rise of the heir to the throne has been nothing short of meteoric. In an informative and enthralling new biography, veteran journalist Karen Elliott House seeks to explain the forces that shaped him. Moving with speed, innovation, and determination, MBS has become an essential piece on the international chessboard.

After King Abdullah’s death in January 2015, the young prince moved quickly to consolidate his father’s prerogatives as the new sovereign—so much so that “King Salman and his son are indisputably the strongest rulers in the history of Saudi Arabia”. As the sixth son of the new king, MBS would not normally have been expected to become heir to the throne. But that is precisely the point: he was not supposed to. He outmaneuvered any potential opposition to his father’s reign—over which he came to wield decisive influence—neutralizing roadblocks from extended family members, religious fundamentalists, and other detractors. One of the most striking examples of his boldness unfolded at Riyadh’s Ritz-Carlton on the night of November 4, 2017, when what began as a financial discussion ended with what could be described as a tax readjustment to correct wrongdoing. As a student of history, MBS heeded Singapore’s founding father Lee Kuan Yew’s advice to clean the stairs starting at the top.