A Death on W Street

"What Kroll deftly does is not just trace the growth of this absurd allegation and of course debunk it, but he brings to life the idealistic and admirable Rich and the love he had for his family and friends."

“Thoroughgoing, riveting narrative…An exemplary investigation, exactly as the author describes it: ‘a true-crime story for the post-truth era.’”

"An incredibly well-told tale... very humane and empathetic and also very provocative."

“In Kroll’s new book, he chronicles Rich’s real life and death, as well as the dark forces that interrupted his family’s grief and made their tragedy into an online fascination and a hideous, dangerous distortion of reality.”

“A Death on W Street is a brutal look at the damage a lie can do to people’s lives as well as to institutions that we, as Americans, revere—or at least should revere.”

“The superbly talented Andy Kroll is right when he calls the Seth Rich case a ‘skeleton key’ to a darkening political landscape. Kroll’s vivid, gripping account of the manipulation of one man’s death by conspiracy-mongers, including people in Donald Trump’s inner circle, exposes a sinister undercurrent in American life that has now taken on frightening power.”

“This is truly a sad story—because of the death of good, young person, but mostly because of the death of an idea of rational and civil discussion in our society, replaced by insane conspiracy-mongering and by constant provocation. You will understand more about how we got to this place when you finish this powerful volume.”

“Kroll has long been a reporter to watch in Washington, but his book A Death on W Street, announces him as a masterful longform storyteller, too. He’s written a compulsive and cautionary horror story about America’s descent into conspiracies, lies, and indecency. Part murder mystery, part political thriller, Kroll exposes those behind the spread of viral falsehoods, including Fox News, and describes the awful damage these lies inflict on the individuals besmirched, as well on democracy itself.”

“Seth Rich was murdered. Then his life was stolen, hijacked by online conspiracy-mongers, right-wing opportunists, and clownish connivers who disfigured his memory and tormented his loved ones. In the anguished tale of the Rich family, and their pursuit of justice for their son, Kroll deftly unspools the master narrative of our troubled and paranoid era, in which lies and disinformation have trumped the truth. Engrossing and eye-opening, A Death on W Street is tenaciously reported and deliciously crafted—an essential read for those seeking to understand how we got here and where we are headed.”

“Masterful reporting, inspired thinking and writing, a narrative that does not flinch from entering the disturbed soul of an America hijacked by conspiracy theory. I cannot think of a more vital book for our unsettled times.”