{"title":"Books by Douglas Brunt","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"9781982169916","title":"The Mysterious Case of Rudolf Diesel","description":"\u003cb\u003eThis instant \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling “dynamic detective story” (\u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e) reveals the \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003ehidden history Rudolf Diesel, one of the world’s greatest inventors, and his mysterious disappearance on the eve of World War I.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSeptember 29, 1913: the steamship \u003ci\u003eDresden\u003c\/i\u003e is halfway between Belgium and England. On board is one of the most famous men in the world, Rudolf Diesel, whose new internal combustion engine is on the verge of revolutionizing global industry forever. But Diesel never arrives at his destination. He vanishes during the night and headlines around the world wonder if it was an accident, suicide, or murder.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003eAfter rising from an impoverished European childhood, Diesel had become a multi-millionaire with his powerful engine that does not require expensive petroleum-based fuel. In doing so, he became not only an international celebrity but also the enemy of two extremely powerful men: Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany and John D. Rockefeller, the founder of Standard Oil and the richest man in the world.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003eThe Kaiser wanted the engine to power a fleet of submarines that would finally allow him to challenge Great Britain’s Royal Navy. But Diesel had intended for his engine to be used for the betterment of the world.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003eNow, \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author Douglas Brunt reopens the case and provides an “absolutely riveting” (Chris Bohjalian, #1 \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author) new conclusion about Diesel’s fate. Brunt’s book is “equal parts Walter Isaacson and Sherlock Holmes, [and] yanks back the curtain on the greatest caper of the 20th century in this riveting history” (Jay Winik, \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author).","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56309900804469,"sku":"9781982169916","price":10.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781982169916_4d426e2f-d8ac-4d2e-9e0f-c2b8923caaaa.jpg?v=1786031558"},{"product_id":"the-lost-empire-of-emanuel-nobel","title":"The Lost Empire of Emanuel Nobel","description":"From the author of the New York Times bestselling The Mysterious Case of Rudolf Diesel comes the enthralling hidden history of one of the world’s most successful business titans, a rival to the Rockefellers and the Rothschilds, whose legacy was erased in the aftermath of the Russian Revolution. With the exception of the tsar, Emanuel Nobel was likely the wealthiest man in early twentieth-century Russia, and one of the wealthiest in the world. Over three generations, he and his family grew the Russian petroleum industry into a behemoth that surpassed even John D. Rockefeller’s Standard Oil. The Nobels imported the best practices from America and improved on them, transforming every aspect of the industry. Though Emanuel’s uncle Alfred would become world famous thanks to his creation of the Nobel Prize, the even more successful Nobels in Russia have been largely forgotten. The reason why is one of history’s most gripping untold stories.    Working in the oil fields of southern Russia at the same time as Emanuel was a troubled young man from a peasant family in Georgia. Though educated to be a priest, he took a different path when he discovered the revolutionary ideas of Karl Marx. In and out of prison in Siberia, charismatic and committed, always at the center of a fight, this young man would become known to the world as Joseph Stalin, a leader of the Bolshevik Revolution and eventually one of the most brutal dictators in history. Directly in Stalin’s crosshairs was Emanuel Nobel, who represented everything Stalin despised about capitalism. As the world turned upside down, Emanuel began to plan a life-or-death escape from Russia. But would he make it out in time? And what would be the fate of the immense empire he and his family had built? Sweeping across more than a hundred years of history, from the dawn of the Victorian Age to World War I to the Russian Revolution and beyond, this captivating book chronicles one of the most influential men in history, a man whose name has been stricken from memory, and returns him thrillingly to life.","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Hardback","offer_id":57487949267317,"sku":"9781668074749","price":22.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":57682639061365,"sku":"9781668270820","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781668074749.jpg?v=1792511569"},{"product_id":"the-lost-empire-of-emanuel-nobel-2","title":"The Lost Empire of Emanuel Nobel","description":"Instant New York Times Bestseller!   Why did one of the world’s most successful business titans, an oil magnate who rivaled the Rockefellers and the Rothschilds, disappear from history? The author of the acclaimed bestseller The Mysterious Case of Rudolf Diesel has the enthralling answer. With the exception of the tsar, Emanuel Nobel was likely the wealthiest man in early 20th-century Russia, and one of the wealthiest in the world. Over three generations, he and his family grew the Russian petroleum industry into a behemoth that surpassed even John D. Rockefeller’s Standard Oil. The Nobels imported the best practices from America and improved on them, transforming every aspect of the industry. Though Emanuel’s uncle Alfred would become world famous thanks to his creation of the Nobel Prize, the even more successful Nobels in Russia have been largely forgotten. The reason why is one of history’s most gripping untold stories.     Working in the oil fields of southern Russia at the same time as Emanuel was a troubled young man from a peasant family in Georgia. Though educated to be a priest, he took a different path when he discovered the revolutionary ideas of Karl Marx. In and out of prison in Siberia, charismatic and committed, always at the center of a fight, this young man would become known to the world as Joseph Stalin, a leader of the Bolshevik Revolution and eventually one of the most brutal dictators in history. Directly in Stalin’s crosshairs was Emanuel Nobel, who represented everything Stalin despised about capitalism. As the world turned upside down, Emanuel began to plan a life-or-death escape from Russia. But would he make it out in time? And what would be the fate of the immense empire he and his family had built?  Sweeping across more than a hundred years of history, from the dawn of the Victorian Age to World War I to the Russian Revolution and beyond, this captivating book chronicles one of the most influential men in history, a man whose name has been stricken from memory, and returns him thrillingly to life.","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57695268405621,"sku":"9781668074756","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781668074756.jpg?v=1793032673"}],"url":"https:\/\/backstory.london\/collections\/author-douglas-brunt.oembed","provider":"Backstory","version":"1.0","type":"link"}