"[A] deeply researched, keenly analytical, and frequently provocative chronicle of this singular judicial entity. . . . A senior legal analyst for CNN and former assistant U.S. attorney, Honig is well-suited to the task of providing a historical overview of the special counsel's function with the ever-evolving context of politics, partisanship and political skepticism." —Booklist (STARRED review)

"A fascinating, fast-paced insider’s account....[a] riveting, deeply reported book.” —Anderson Cooper

“Every page hums with gripping anecdotes and breaking news journalism." —Douglas Brinkley

Imagine you’ve been put in charge of investigating your own boss—who also happens to be the most powerful person on the planet.

You might unearth information that will be politically, professionally, and personally devastating to your subject, and you alone hold the power to indict and potentially imprison him. At the same time, the boss can fire you and end the case—and might even turn the tables and launch an inquiry aimed at you. As the lone-wolf assassin Omar put it in The Wire: “You come at the king, you best not miss.”

That’s the crucible for any Special Counsel. For decades, the Department of Justice has appointed outside prosecutors to handle our highest-stakes cases. But do these independent investigations lead to just results?

In When You Come at the King, CNN senior legal analyst Elie Honig delivers a fast-paced, insider’s account of the most important Justice Department investigations of the past fifty years, based on dozens of on-record interviews with firsthand participants. A Watergate prosecutor reveals she hid copies of key documents at home to guard against potential destruction of evidence by the president’s allies. A member of the Iran–Contra prosecution team explains why they made a shocking election-eve revelation. A defense lawyer for Donald Trump details his private meeting with Jack Smith just days before Trump was indicted.

From Ken Starr’s investigation of Bill Clinton to modern cases involving Patrick Fitzgerald, Robert Mueller, Jack Smith, and more, Honig charts how the Special Counsel system developed and evolved over time. We know the maxim that a nation can be measured by how it treats its weakest members. This book explores an inverse corollary: A nation reveals much about itself by how it holds accountable its most powerful leaders when they’ve done wrong.

Now, with the future of Special Counsels in doubt, When You Come at the King addresses the most important question of all: Can the system evolve to better serve the call for justice?

Presidential Power vs. The Prosecutor: Go inside the crucible where investigators must take on their own boss—the most powerful person on the planet—knowing their one shot cannot miss.
From Nixon to Trump: A gripping legal history of the most explosive cases of the last fifty years, from the Watergate prosecutors who secretly copied evidence to Jack Smith’s showdowns with a former president.
An Insider’s Account: Written by a former federal prosecutor, this book is built on dozens of firsthand interviews, offering an unprecedented look at how these historic cases unfold behind the scenes.
Obstruction of Justice: Analyze the patterns of cover-ups that define these landmark cases and explore the central question: can any system truly hold the powerful to account?