[1] This book draws upon five years of "deep diving" in which House called upon all her diplomatic connections to obtain access to a diverse range of Saudi people.

[1] She has talked with terrorists, millionaire playboys, destitute widows, muftis, engineers,[7] university professors, housewives, dissatisfied youth and former princes.

The first section addresses what House describes as "the fragility of the kingdom whose traditional sources of stability have been religion and the royal family" and how "both are losing credibility and control.

"[6] Second, she examines the lines that divide "a sullen society in which Saudis are increasingly discontented with poor education; a stultified economy; widespread youth unemployment; repression of women; poverty; corruption; and a government that is not efficient, transparent, or accountable.

"[4] She anticipates a kind of explosion and overthrow in the Saudi kingdom, and suggests that two groups - women and youth - are increasingly furious and likely to act on their concerns.

[5] Meanwhile, the poorest class of society are widowed or divorced women without men, who are left searching for work as they attempt to support their children.

[5] She mentions that WikiLeaks quoted then-Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton in 2010 as saying that Saudis "constitute the most significant source of funding to Sunni terrorist groups worldwide.