''Gripping . . . essential and captivating'' BRADLEY HOPE ''A sparkling read full of original observations and captivating insights'' KATJA HOYER ''Utterly compelling . . . jaw-dropping'' BRIAN KLAAS ''Fascinating, wide-ranging . . . highly-entertaining'' PETER GEOGHEGAN Strongmen are rising. Democracies are faltering. How does tyranny end? Tyrants project invincibility, but all of them fall. This is because they face critical weaknesses that can form a fatal trap. Whether it''s their inner circle turning against them or resentment of elites in the military, the masses alienated by cronyism or revolutionaries plotting in exile, tyrants always have more enemies than friends. And when they fall tyrants don''t quietly retire - they face exile, prison or death. What happens in the aftermath can change the fate of a nation. Meeting with coup leaders, dissidents and soldiers, political scientist Marcel Dirsus draws on extraordinary interviews to examine the workings and malfunctions of tyrants. We hear from a revolutionary (codename ''Satan'') who risked Stasi capture to undermine an oppressive regime, an unapologetic former leader of a Burundian rebel group which carried out a massacre, and an American-Gambian activist who plotted to liberate his homeland on breaks during his construction job. But understanding dictators isn''t enough. How Tyrants Fall is the gripping, deeply researched blueprint for how to bring them down.

Autorentext

Marcel Dirsus studied at Oxford and worked in the Democratic Republic of Congo during a failed coup in 2013. In addition to writing the politics newsletter The Hundred, Dirsus has advised major foundations and international organisations like NATO and the OECD. You can find him at marceldirsus.com and @marceldirsus on Twitter.

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**'Thought-provoking, vivid and often entertaining' *DAILY TELEGRAPH

'Compelling' FINANCIAL TIMES**

'Thought-provoking' *THE ECONOMIST
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**'Gripping . . . Essential and captivating' BRADLEY HOPE

HOW DO WE END TYRANNY?

Tyrants seem invincible, but they face constant threats from all sides. Whether it's by members of their inner circle, military elites, alienated masses, assassins, revolutionaries, or simply old age - they always fall. And when they do, they cannot retire: they face exile, prison or death. The aftermath can be catastrophic.

Meeting with improbable coup plotters, intelligence officers, rebel commanders and fugitive dissidents, Dr Marcel Dirsus draws on extraordinary interviews to unpick the vulnerabilities of the world's strongmen.How Tyrants Fall is an essential guide to decapitating tyranny, and a warning of what happens if we do.