For over two decades Ahmed Zaki Yamani was one of the most powerful men on earth. As both the oil minister for Saudi Arabia and the leading force behind OPEC, he was the star player in the world's biggest business.

   In 1975, he faced sudden death not once but twice. His mentor and lifelong support, the legendary King Faisal, was shot dead at his feet; and nine months later Yamani himself was kidnapped by the terrorist who was known as, "Carlos the Jackal," and only narrowly escaped with his life.

   Over the next 11 years, he strode across the world's stage a superstar in the media, until October 1986, when a terse government edict brought his life's career to an abrupt end.

   Based on hundreds of personal interviews, Jeffrey Robinson's gripping and intimate account opens a door to the very heart of one of the world's most controversial and fascinating statesmen.