Few figures in modern British history have loomed as large – or fallen as far – as Robert Maxwell. Military man, politician, press baron, and posthumously exposed fraudster, Maxwell undoubtedly lived a life that, at times, defied comprehension. In Fall: The Mystery of Robert Maxwell, journalist John Preston turns his sharp focus to one of Britain’s most mystifying figures. The result is an electrifying biography that reads like a thriller, casting new light on a towering personality driven by a combination of ambition, insecurity, and deceit.
Born Jan Hoch in 1923 in Czechoslovakia, Maxwell emerged from the horrors of the Holocaust with an air of unconquerable self-belief – determined to win at all costs. And it showed. He became a British citizen, changed his name, and climbed every social and financial ladder with hulk-like ferocity, making his name and fortune in the publishing industry, distributing German scientific journals. His journey from a Jewish refugee to a press baron is an undeniably extraordinary one – it’s as if Maxwell is the ultimate embodiment of the self-made man, but lies and manipulation taint this impression.
Preston depicts Maxwell as a man steeped in contradictions: brilliant yet dark, generous yet cruel, an entrepreneur with a zeal for information, and a tyrant in every boardroom he had access to. He intimidated employees, tormented his children, and threw his weight – both literally and metaphorically – around every room he entered.
A total monster? Not necessarily. Upon closer inspection, Preston does his utmost to mitigate the totality of Maxwell’s behaviour. Whilst undeniably narcissistic and unpredictable, Maxwell almost comes across as a man deserving of sympathy – a man so driven by insecurity and obsession that it ultimately consumes him. Maxwell, according to Preston, wasn’t only corrupt – he was also highly delusional. And the consequences would soon prove to be catastrophic.
At the heart of the mystery is the death of its protagonist in 1991. Maxwell is reported missing from his yacht, The Lady Ghislaine (named after his youngest daughter, Ghislaine Maxwell), and is soon found lifeless in the waters of the Atlantic. Speculation surrounding the circumstances of his fate dominated headlines around the world. Did he accidentally fall to his death? Did he have a heart attack and drown? Was he pushed to his death as part of an assassination plot?
In investigating this angle, Preston ponders these hypotheses with a measured hand. Instead of going down a rabbit hole of speculation, he stays on the context: Maxwell’s empire was about to meet its endgame, and his secrets (including the plundering and general financial malfeasance of the pension funds) were about to be exposed in their entirety for all the world to see.
Maxwell’s death will remain shrouded in mystery, but Preston makes the case that the real story is what ultimately led up to Maxwell’s posthumously abrupt and ignominious end: the decades of bullying and bluffing that created a veneer so unstable it could only ever end in collapse.
A journalist by training and a novelist by instinct, John Preston knows how to structure real life into compelling storytelling. The pacing is tight, and the chapters are short, but undeniably vivid. Preston never loses sight of the human cost – how Maxwell’s decisions not only impacted members of his staff, but also his own family. This is documented in personalized, moving accounts from those within his orbit, who were admittedly mesmerized by Maxwell’s machinations, yet too powerless to stop him, emboldening him to raise the stakes even higher, ensuring the enactment of the horror show that would ultimately taint his legacy.
Preston doesn’t ignore the shadow that this scandal still casts today on the House of Maxwell – particularly through his daughter Ghislaine Maxwell, whose own notoriety would emerge decades later in the Jeffrey Epstein saga. Thankfully, however, Preston remains focused on its patriarch, whose story is already steeped in drama and complexity.
In the end, Fall is more than just another biography. It’s a story about unchecked power and the disastrous consequences that it can entail, often wreaking havoc on its wielder and those within their path.
Fall is a thoroughly enjoyable read. It ultimately delivers on the promise of its title, documenting not just the collapse of one man, but the inevitable disintegration of the lies he built his life upon. John Preston has carefully crafted a cautionary tale for a modern audience – one that reads like a thriller, but hits with the weight of truth.
If you’re fascinated by power, scandal, and the thin line between genius and delusion, this book is simply unmissable.
Words by Andrew Fogarty
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