American Kingpin
Awe-inspiring
Layered
Intense

American Kingpin The Epic Hunt for the Criminal Mastermind Behind the Silk Road

Nick Bilton2017
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER. The unbelievable true story of the man who built a billion-dollar online drug empire from his bedroom—and almost got away with it In 2011, a twenty-six-year-old libertarian programmer named Ross Ulbricht launched the ultimate free market: the Silk Road, a clandestine Web site hosted on the Dark Web where anyone could trade anything—drugs, hacking software, forged passports, counterfeit cash, poisons—free of the government’s watchful eye. It wasn’t long before the media got wind of the new Web site where anyone—not just teenagers and weed dealers but terrorists and black hat hackers—could buy and sell contraband detection-free. Spurred by a public outcry, the federal government launched an epic two-year manhunt for the site’s elusive proprietor, with no leads, no witnesses, and no clear jurisdiction. All the investigators knew was that whoever was running the site called himself the Dread Pirate Roberts. The Silk Road quickly ballooned into $1.2 billion enterprise, and Ross embraced his new role as kingpin. He enlisted a loyal crew of allies in high and low places, all as addicted to the danger and thrill of running an illegal marketplace as their customers were to the heroin they sold. Through his network he got wind of the target on his back and took drastic steps to protect himself—including ordering a hit on a former employee. As Ross made plans to disappear forever, the Feds raced against the clock to catch a man they weren’t sure even existed, searching for a needle in the haystack of the global Internet. Drawing on exclusive access to key players and two billion digital words and images Ross left behind, Vanity Fair correspondent and New York Times bestselling author Nick Bilton offers a tale filled with twists and turns, lucky breaks and unbelievable close calls. It’s a story of the boy next door’s ambition gone criminal, spurred on by the clash between the new world of libertarian-leaning, anonymous, decentralized Web advocates and the old world of government control, order, and the rule of law. Filled with unforgettable characters and capped by an astonishing climax, American Kingpin might be dismissed as too outrageous for fiction. But it’s all too real.
Sign up to use

Reviews

Photo of siegs
siegs@siegs
5 stars
Apr 4, 2024

Incredibly well researched and documented. The writing itself is not exceptional but this is a really gripping non-fictional story that happened in the last decade and impacted the trajectory of technology as much as any unicorn startup.

Photo of Aamna
Aamna@aamnakhan
4 stars
Dec 20, 2023

Would have finished this in one sitting if I could. A well-written glimpse into the mind of an unlikely 'drug lord' & what it takes to run an online drug empire. Surprisingly nuanced. Unputdownable.

Photo of Maria Tapia
Maria Tapia@rtapatio
3.5 stars
Dec 8, 2023

It was really in depth and interesting but dis not deliver on the EPIC manhunt. The ruminations about Ross Ulbrichts motivations and life add layers to the story. The tie ins to the real life videos and pictures are also interesting. I wish there had been more information on the others involved in the silk road as well.

+1
Photo of Anthony
Anthony@amorriscode
4 stars
Mar 25, 2023

I think the book was definitely very entertaining. I've read about Ross before, and watched Deep Web which is also about him. It's such a curious story. I think Ross would be an interesting character to have crossed paths withs, and I really do think he did it. That being said, some of the detail in this book seems like it's too fine grained to even be accurate. Nick clearly wanted to weave an entertaining story, and I think he did just that, but I imagine a lot of how he describes Ross, his actions, and emotions throughout, are probably fabricated. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in crime chases, the Deep Web, cybercrime, or Ross Ulbricht.

Photo of Róbert Istók
Róbert Istók@robertistok
5 stars
Mar 19, 2023

A fascinating read, I love books with a good story, but also a real-life events behind.

Photo of Bouke van der Bijl
Bouke van der Bijl@bouk
4 stars
Mar 1, 2023

Really enjoyed this book, very detailed description of the story of Ross Ulbricht aka the Dread Pirate Roberts. Ross got in way over his head running the Silk Road, and had to pay for it with his freedom in the end. One thing I didn’t really like is that the author took a lot of liberties with filling in the motivations and moods of the various characters, although it did improve it as a story, it made it less close to reality.

Photo of Jakub Kopys
Jakub Kopys@jakubkopys
5 stars
Jan 27, 2023

I have never read a book this fast. It really kept me engaged and interested like no other book before.

Photo of alali moe
alali moe@xmoe
4 stars
Aug 13, 2022

Brilliant

Photo of Mitul Shah
Mitul Shah@ms
3 stars
Aug 4, 2022

This book started super strong and was captivating. In the middle it gets really stale and boring, just waiting for something more interesting to happen. And then suddenly, it picks up a bit and ends.


There’s too much excessive details at some parts (her avatar was spiderman eating a taco). It almost felt like the author was just writing for the sake of it, then realized he’s running out of space and just finished up.


Besides that, it was a good story. I visited Silk Road when I was a kid, but little did I know about the history behind it.

+2
Photo of Erin Peace
Erin Peace@erinpeace
4.5 stars
Mar 24, 2022

Great journalism, great writing. A behind-the-scenes look at how the Silk Road was created and how its creator was caught. Reads like a novel.

+4
Photo of Alexander Venturas
Alexander Venturas@xandventuras
5 stars
Jan 20, 2022

The most gripping non-fiction book I’ve ever read. Highly recommend.

Photo of Luca Conti
Luca Conti@lucaconti
5 stars
Sep 10, 2021

Very very entertaining. I knew the story but this is much much more. You'll love it.

Photo of James Thorburn
James Thorburn@colabeard
4.5 stars
Mar 28, 2025
Photo of Vlad Kyshkan
Vlad Kyshkan@vladkyshkan
5 stars
Mar 13, 2025
+4
Photo of Matt Stein
Matt Stein@mattstein
5 stars
Dec 11, 2023
Photo of Sarah Christine Gill
Sarah Christine Gill@Gilly
4 stars
Dec 22, 2022
Photo of Neil Rostance
Neil Rostance@neilrostance
5 stars
Oct 25, 2022
Photo of Sven Schmidt
Sven Schmidt@sven
4.5 stars
Apr 11, 2022
+3
Photo of Tanmay Naik
Tanmay Naik@tsnaik
5 stars
Oct 18, 2021
+2
Photo of Helen Bright
Helen Bright@lemonista
3 stars
Jul 4, 2024
Photo of Vivian Lin
Vivian Lin@vivianlin
5 stars
Jun 4, 2024
Photo of Bailey Jennings
Bailey Jennings@baileyjennings
5 stars
Apr 30, 2024
Photo of John Manoogian III
John Manoogian III@jm3
5 stars
Apr 4, 2024
Photo of Pierre
Pierre@pst
4 stars
Apr 4, 2024

This book appears on the shelf Read in 2021

Blacktop Wasteland
Blacktop Wasteland by S. A. Cosby
Shadow and Bone
Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
A Darker Shade of Magic
A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab
The Guest List
The Guest List by Lucy Foley
Siege and Storm
Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo
Ruin and Rising
Ruin and Rising by Leigh Bardugo

This book appears on the shelf to-buy

Exhalation
Exhalation by Ted Chiang
Ulysses
Ulysses by James Joyce
Fahrenheit 451
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
The Circle
The Circle by Dave Eggers
American Dirt
American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins
Riot Baby
Riot Baby by Tochi Onyebuchi

This book appears on the shelf stand-alone

Exhalation
Exhalation by Ted Chiang
Ulysses
Ulysses by James Joyce
Crime and Punishment
Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky
Fahrenheit 451
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
The Circle
The Circle by Dave Eggers
American Dirt
American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins