The Castle

Ridiculously compelling and wonderfully weird, this is a book that helps us understand why so many men seem to be unravelling, filling their lives with ill-conceived dreams and self-performance. The Castle is vintage Ronson: wise, timely and extremely funny

Louis Theroux

Every Jon Ronson book has made me see the world differently. Nobody tells an unbelievable-but-true story like him. He's done it again with The Castle: I was utterly gripped from page one. If you want a totally compelling live mystery that will make you burn for justice, READ THIS BOOK URGENTLY

Marina Hyde

Fantastic and intensely of the moment, The Castle explores the nature of male anxiety, the spiralling delusions of the internet, the destructive allure of anti-woke defiance, the obsequious flattery of AI chatbots, the impunity of the mega-rich and so many other subtle (and not so subtle) currents that are currently roiling our existence . . . one of the scarier aspects of this book is the way the ante seems always to be upping, across its various stories and characters. It's a dogged feat of investigation from one of our greatest non-fiction storytellers

Patrick Radden Keefe, author of LONDON FALLING

The Castle is an investigation into one man that broadens into an enquiry into the state of all men. Jon Ronson is such a companiable narrator, and this book is by turns horrifying, hilarious, bizarre and gripping

Ed Caesar, author of THE MOTH AND THE MOUNTAIN

Jon Ronson is an essential guide in these disorienting times. I love everything that Ronson writes but The Castle is a particular gem, a story of his own making in the collapsing world of twenty-first century masculinity. Wonderfully breathless and weird and open, it feels hallucinatory and all too real at the same time

Sam Knight, author of THE PREMONITIONS BUREAU

Addictively readable, I loved The Castle. This is a much-needed book – an anti-sensationalist yet utterly compelling investigation into the masculinity crisis

Dolly Alderton, author of GOOD MATERIAL

Ronson delivers a by turns amusing and harrowing report on the desultory state of contemporary men . . . brilliant . . . Ronson’s intuitive but still rigorous approach makes this a blockbuster portrait of men gone mad

Publishers Weekly, starred review

Ronson provides exacting details and insider perspectives . . . A mesmerizing work of gonzo journalism at its most intriguing

Kirkus Reviews, starred review 

The Castle is compellingly nuanced in its social analysis as Ronson arrives at outcomes that are both concerning and empathetic

Booklist, starred review

The Castle is by turns funny and frightening, dark and disarming

Thane Tierney, BookPage, starred review

An excellent piece of investigative journalism that will keep readers riveted

Library Journal

Entertainingly leftfield . . . Moving and full of the witty asides that make Jon Ronson one of the most entertaining writers in journalism . . . The Castle feels like a spiritual sequel to Ronson’s 2015 book So You’ve Been Publicly Shamed

William Moore, Evening Standard

Riveting . . . insightful, candid and moving . . . an unmissable piece of work . . . Ronson’s nose for squirreling out a strange, compelling fellow is unparalleled, but his careful consideration of them is an even bigger gift. Rare indeed to find a real reporter who is also a real thinker. And the bastard’s funny, too

Megan Nolan, Observer

Ronson has had an unstinting attraction to the weird and sometimes dangerous . . . The Castle continues that obsession through a series of encounters with men who exemplify the bizarre turn the 21st century has taken

Sarah Ditum, The Times

Jon Ronson visits a millionaire's bizarre castle - and finds a world of male rage and narcissism . . . hair-raising . . . many men have taken a sod-it-then approach and chosen to "man up" in the most disinhibited ways

James Walton, Daily Telegraph

Chilling . . . Ronson is less interested in the men who lead the way than in those who have blundered into extremes . . . Absolutely terrifying — and winningly described by Ronson with his wry style and magpie eye for the outrageous detail. The Castle is a supremely entertaining portrait of a terrible future, and we’re all going there together

John Self, Financial Times

Jon Ronson insightfully explores masculinity, and how perceptions of it are being shaped by the modern world . . . As good a read as any of his previous big hits . . . This book will open new insights for you . . . He painstakingly knits together the various explorations and analyses that his work entails into a compelling story for us to read . . . Honestly, this book will make me a better male ally

Sinéad Gibney, Irish Times

A sensitive, insightful investigation into how "ordinary" men are struggling to find purpose in a changing world, too - not least the author himself

Ed Grenby, Radio Times

Starting with Chris Mark and fanning out to various YouTube influencers and culture warriors, Ronson is interested in fellows who’ve gone off the rails in some way, "unmoored" by the erosion of office and factory life . . . darkly hilarious . . . Ronson has a fantastic dry wit and tiptoe-through-the-tulips style

Alexandra Jacobs, New York Times