The Jackal: The Rise and Fall of Carlos, the World's First Super-Terrorist

by Joby Warrick

The spectacular rise and dramatic fall of super-assassin Carlos the Jackal—one of history’s most infamous terrorist masterminds—told with new revelations from the Jackal himself, by the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Black Flags.

A black-bereted, gun-slinging avatar of one of the most turbulent eras in global politics, Carlos the Jackal burst onto the world stage in 1975 as the first true celebrity terrorist and the TV-ready face of a violent Palestinian resistance movement that was then just beginning to gain traction. In a bloody career that would ultimately span three decades, Carlos innovated a new kind of spectacular terrorism, one that embraced hijackings, hostage crises, airport bombings, and international assassinations. And he personally masterminded one of the most shocking operations of the the kidnapping of an entire conference of world oil ministers for ransom in Vienna. The polar opposite of today’s most infamous terrorists, Carlos was a hard-drinking libertine and self-styled romantic who entranced dozens of beautiful women and murdered his victims with callous disregard, often with his own hand.

But Carlos was not all that he seemed to be.

Through newly declassified archives, secret witness accounts, and a rare interview with the Jackal himself, acclaimed journalist Joby Warrick reveals a previously hidden side of the man born Ilich Ramírez Sánchez—an ideologically driven figure whose myth was as carefully constructed as his attacks were deadly.

As he did in his Pulitzer Prize–winning Black Flags, Warrick delivers a powerful and highly cinematic tale that explains and illuminates the root causes, and founding personalities, behind one of the great conflicts of our time.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Biography, True Crime, Crime, Terrorism, Audiobook

384 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 18, 2026

About the author

Joby Warrick (born August 4, 1960) is an American journalist who has won multiple Pulitzer Prizes. He began working for The Washington Post in 1996, writing about the Middle East, diplomacy and national security. He has also covered the intelligence community, Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) proliferation and the environment, and served as a member of the Post’s investigative unit.

Reviews

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Jackal is a very well-done book that traces the life of international terrorist that stalked Europe and the Middle East from the 70s through the 90s. Illich Ramierez Sanchez, better known as Carlos the Jackal is a well-known assassin with ties to dictatorial governments in the Middle East and Eastern Europe as well as former Nazis.

It is clear to see when one reads this book that the assassin was a typical self-absorbed hypocrite of his times. He claimed to be a diehard Marxist in support of the leftist Palestinian PFLP. Instead, he was, as the book portrays him, a self absorbed, hedonistic playboy wastrel with the mentality of a serial killer. From the way he used others and women in particular he was similar to Charles Manson and Andreas Baader. The main difference is he had a much longer career quite possibly due to his desire for self-preservation and fame and his ability to network with other terrorists.

Today, the Jackal is 72 years old and sits in a French prison. He conveniently 'forgets' some of the killings he is most famous for. He will likely remain in prison until he dies. It is a good place for him.

If you want to read a good book about the early history of the Middle Eastern quagmire and how it played into the Cold War battles between East and West, this is a good book to read. I found it particularly interesting in how France and Germany were involved. The rivalries between the Arab nations were also interesting. I highly recommend this book.

[Joseph Meyer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Modern terrorism reached its apex in the 1970s as plane hijackings, bombings, high-profile assassinations, and hostage situtations dominated the headlines from the United States to Ireland to the Middle East.

Though many probably remember the more heinous actions, such as the 1972 Munich Olympics Massacre, the individuals that carried out these acts are shrouded. That is the case except for one name, Carlos "the Jackal", the most famous terrorist of the era.

Born Illich (named for Vladimir Illich Lenin by his Marxist father) Ramirez Sanchez, the Venezuelan earned a reputation in the 70s for being a ruthless killer. He first joined up with the Palestinian cause, but later (after being exiled from the group) starting his own "terrorist-for-hire" organization. His legacy includes bombing a French department store and holding the OPEC conference hostage in Vienna, among others. His lifestyle was lavish, living in luxury across Europe & the Middle East. Personally gracious to many, with his romantic life quite busy. Captured in the 1990s, Carlos still lives in French prison.

Joby Warrick met with the imprisoned Carlos in 2025, and from those conversations (and tons of research) comes this book, a biography of the terrorist. The book is very well-written, with many scenes that feel straight from a novel in their suspense. The information, garnered through the aforementioned interview with Carlos and those who knew him, as well as new archival data uncovered, paints the picture of how Carlos rose to fame (despite most of his schemes failing) and how it call came crashing down. The book also arcs the era of left-wing terror from its inception in 1970 to the gradual end by the 1980s.

Warrick shares no sympathy with Carlos. His distaste for the killer is shown throughout the book. Yet, the book is still balanced. So while Carlos' actions are heinous to everyone, Warrick still comes at it through the lens of seeking to understand how and why someone is driven to commit acts of violence in the name of a cause. In this, I feel Warrick succeeds. You come away from the book not agreeing what Carlos and his world does, but how it would come about. And that's why I feel this book is important as the world continues to deal with the threat of terrorism, and those inspired by causes to commit violence, today.

[MM Suarez · Rating 5 out of 5]

"He was not the first, but he was indisputably, the most famous of the international terrorists who took up arms in the 1970's. He was the outsider who became the unlikely face of Palestinian militancy in those early days."

A fascinating look into the life and crimes of Illich Ramirez Sanchez, known to the world as Carlos The Jackal, the Venezuelan born international terrorist and assassin, who for three decades orchestrated hijackings, assassinations, airport bombings, and most famous of his misdeeds, the 1975 kidnapping of OPEC oil ministers in Vienna, becoming the world's first "celebrity" terrorist. The author uses newly declassified CIA and police files, as well as eyewitness accounts , and even prison interviews with The Jackal himself.

At the end of the day, we learn that like a lot of men like him, Carlos The Jackal has no real deep convictions about much of anything, only a desire for fame and wealth and his own well being. A fascinating book, I highly recommend it to history and non fiction readers.

[David Jonescu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating look into an infamous terrorist. Joby Warrick provides a deep and insightful look at Carlos the Jackal and his rise and actions. Overall such an interesting story of a character in history without demonizing or praising him. Provides background, reasons for attacks and outcomes so the reader can focus on Carlos as the main focus. Overall great read!

I received a free advanced copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Chad Manske · Rating 4 out of 5]

Before terrorism became a franchise, Carlos the Jackal made it a brand. In “The Jackal,” Joby Warrick explores the unnerving distance between a revolutionary’s advertised convictions and the appetites that actually drive him. The result is a gripping portrait of a man who wanted to change the world, provided the revolution came with luxury accommodations. Born Ilich Ramírez Sánchez in Venezuela, Carlos pursued Marxist militancy through the Palestinian cause before becoming a terrorist for hire. Warrick follows that transformation through assassinations, bombings, and hostage crises, exposing the vanity beneath the ideological costume. Here is a supposed enemy of capitalist decadence who finds its pleasures remarkably difficult to resist. The book’s dramatic centerpiece is the 1975 seizure of OPEC ministers in Vienna. Carlos understood that hostages were more than bargaining chips: they were an audience, and the international press supplied a larger stage. Warrick’s account makes the episode revealing as well as suspenseful, showing how political violence could become a vehicle for personal celebrity. Yet this is not simply another collection of a notorious outlaw’s exploits. Drawing on declassified intelligence, police records, and an interview with Carlos himself, Warrick examines the machinery that sustained the legend. State sponsors and accommodating regimes complicate the familiar image of the solitary mastermind; the terrorist’s freedom depended on others finding his violence useful. The central tension is also the book’s potential limitation. Carlos is so flamboyant that his personality threatens to monopolize attention. Readers seeking a systematic history of terrorism may find the biographical focus narrower than the subtitle promises. Still, that intimacy serves an important purpose: it punctures grandeur rather than confirming it. What emerges is less a revolutionary titan than a murderous narcissist whose principles became negotiable when patrons paid. His eventual capture in 1994 supplies an ending, but not reassurance. Warrick’s unsettling achievement is to make Carlos compelling without making him admirable. The lasting question is not why this man craved notoriety, but why so many powerful institutions helped him acquire it.

[Billy · Rating 4.75 out of 5]

Warrick's biography of the 20th Century's most famous terrorist, thought by many to be a legendary mastermind, presents a balanced picture of the man known as Carlos the Jackal that does not glorify his actions, but successfully illuminates the man, the times that created him, and the world he inhabited. Warrick achieves this through the kind of compelling journalism and thorough research that has earned him two Pulitzer Prizes, working through archives and people around the world who knew Carlos, whether in passing or intimately, and successfully securing an interview with the man himself in the French prison he will surely die in. What readers find is a man who was not a true believer in any cause but himself, contradicting his own stated aims as easily as his upper class airs allowed him to blend in with crowds when he first started out as a member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine. As the high profile acts of terrorism that shocked the world in the 1970s created friction between the extremist and moderate Palestinian Liberation activists gave way to the new world of counterterrorism directives and shifting global power in the 80s, Carlos finds himself on the outside and forges a new path as a terrorist-for-hire, selling his services to whichever autocrat has the money to pay and a grudge they want to settle with expendable proxies. His early terrorism and later one-man war with France over the arrest of his girlfriend (later first wife) creates lasting enmity with French security and intelligence services, who ultimately bring him to justice in 1994 after the CIA discovers him laying as low as his self-styled playboy persona will allow in war-torn Sudan. While Carlos' era has faded, his influence can still be seen today through the acts of modern terrorist organizations that sprang up in his wake and copied his playbook of high-profile acts designed for the media to devour, making this study of the most prolific terrorist of the 20th Century important reading. Highly recommend.

[Min · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you to Scribner and the author for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I came to this story a little late, and recognize the book has already hit the market. It also took me a while to get through this one; it’s dense.

Despite its density, and volumes of people and names to remember as well as places, Warrick does an amazing job with holding the narrative thread. Carlos Ramirez was a horrible, but deeply interesting person to read about. The author’s intention was to dive into the experiences and atmosphere which created Carlos, the Jackal. And I feel like that was accomplished, insofar as it’s even possible. Personally, I don’t see how even when younger, this man could have been lead down a less destructive and murderous path. He exhibited all the hallmarks of a violent narcissist from what seems to be a very early age. But again, that is of course, a perspective provided by Warrick’s deeply researched work.

Warrick also spends a significant time with the men and women who worked to take Carlos down and put him behind bars. And I found this component just as interesting, though still dense. This book is at once a kind of thriller, written like a Jack Ryan book or similar, and yet also sincerely researched and framed in the political events and times. If you like history, politics, and thrillers, this book will definitely be for you! There are times when real situations draw you in as if they must be fiction.

I will say, if you’re only looking for a kind of terror/spy thriller this book has a lot of history and political explanations on its pages, so I wouldn’t say this is for the casual thriller reader.

But if you’re like me, and enjoy that depth and nuance, you’ll find this an absolutely fascinating (albeit difficult in many places) read.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like a recent book I read about the attempted assassination of Pope John Paul II, the seventies-eighties is both so far and so close. What a wildly different world that Carlos moved through, literally blending fact and fiction, as he cold-bloodily attempts (and often fails) in his attempts to drive the revolution forward. But he built a narrative.

[H Wesselius · Rating 4 out of 5]

I neither expected nor demanded too much from this book. A biography that also serves as a good description of terrorism in the 70s-80s. One could quibble that there was detail missing here and there, but the book delivers an easy to read narrative of Carlos and the western terrorism of that era. The author neither glorifies or condemns he simply outlines the events of the day.

[Miguel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Even though it was one character out of many, Burke's 'The Revolutionists' from 2025 covered Ramirez better in a shorter period of time. Warrick's version while quite readable / listenable simply was too much of a hagiography for a guy who was best described as a sociopath and mostly quite bumbling as The Revolutionists demonstrated and nothing like this or Assayas' gussied-up treatment. It almost read as if he was only granted access to him in incarceration in exchange for some type of editorial control.

(EPUB only, could not post eBook notes.)

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Jackal by Joby Warrick is a wild ride. Delving into the story of infamous terrorist, Carlos the Jackal, Warrick reveals details of the man and his life. Well researched, the narrative is hard to put down. He neither excuses nor vilifies the Jackal, leaving the reader to make their own judgement. It’s a fascinating dive into what ultimately drives a non-religious zealot terrorist. Thanks to #netgalley and #scribner for the opportunity to preview this book.

[Richard Jaffe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you NetGalley and Scribner for this advance ARC in return for an honest review.

The Jackal is about Ilich Ramírez Sánchez, who was later known as Carlos the Jackal, the international terrorist. Author, Joby Warrick, who was granted an interview with "Carlos" last year, describes the young disillusioned Venezuelan who looks to find himself by volunteering with Palestinian Terrorists in the early 70's due to their shared hatred of Israel.

Although he was trained by the P.F.L.P. they never really trusted him with their biggest terrorist attacks involving multiple hi jackings. Despite his disillusionment he remained and was tasked with murdering a Jewish British business man who owned Marks and Spencer and famously was very generous with Israeli charities. Despite his brazen assassination attempt all that he accomplished was breaking some of the target's teeth.

He was then leading a team that was to take down a flight leaving Orly Airport in Paris, only to misjudge the distance with two RPGs. A second attempt failed miserably as well. Undeterred he then took it upon himself to drop a hand grenade into a crowded Parisian market killing several innocent civilians and injuring dozens.

As a result of one of his comrades turning informant he was tracked down and Ilich ultimately murdered 3 people in cold blood while trying to escape from a party to celebrate his then girlfriend. In the apartment where these brutal murders took place was a copy of the Frederick Forsyth novel, Day of the Jackal, and from that day forward, Sanchez became known as Carlos the Jackal.

Despite his incompetence as a terrorist, Ilich revels in his new identity and in many ways his reputation far outweighs his actual deeds. The new moniker also makes "Carlos" conceited and live his life with new found fame and swagger.

As he had a fall out with the Palestinians he begins to seek other benefactors and as a result his most "famous" plot involved infiltrating the OPEC meeting in Vienna close to the end of 1975 and kidnapping the entire gathering. Bankrolled by Gaddafi his mission was to assassinate the Saudi and Iranian Oil ministers and then demand transportation, free passage and broadcast their manifesto as they tour the Middle East. What was supposed to be a clean entry, turned bloody and then all hell broke lose. Eventually they do get taken to the airport through the snowy streets of Vienna but rather than being welcomed like heroes, Carlos and Co. are denied access to Libya, rumor being that Gaddafi never expected Carlos to succeed. Although there were several deaths in Vienna, the targets were never harmed and the hostages eventually freed. Allegedly "Carlos" as paid $50 million to let all the hostages go.

This attack on OPEC made Carlos the most sought after international terrorist and he seems to spend the rest of his "active" days looking for the next big pay day, while living like a playboy.

Both the French intelligence services and eventually the CIA are allegedly looking for Carlos, but due to benefactors in Eastern Europe initially, like Hungary, and various Middle Eastern despots he remained at large, and for a time lived like a rock star. Despite his former Nazi benefactor in Switzerland, the jobs disappear and the money dries up such that he flees to Khartoum where he is eventually apprehended.

Warrick's biography is fascinating if not illuminating. Frankly "Carlos" never seemed to live up to his reputation as the most feared international terrorist and for most of his life as a free man lived off the reputation rather than his actual deeds. Still a very good read for those who remember the crazy times we lived through in the 70's and 80's when "Carlos" was most active.

#NetGalley #TheJackal

[Joseph Stieb · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this! I didn't know much about Carlos the Jackal, the nom de guerre of Illich Ramirez Sanchez, one of the most notorious international terrorists of the 70s and 80s. Carlos started as an ideological convert to the Palestinian cause, working for the PFLP splinter group under Wadi Haddad. He carried out a number of attacks, some of them seemingly random, others more intentional, such as the kidnapping of the OPEC ministers in Vienna in in 1975. This revealed an interesting aspect of a lot of Palestinian terrorism in the 70s and 80s: it wasn't always against Israel but often against Arab states (like Egypt and Saudi ARabia) that were willing to make peace with Israel or unwilling to make Palestine their sole priority. In the Vienna attack, for instance, Carlos released the OPEC ministers from "rejectionist" countries that opposed any reconciliation with Israel. A lot of Palestinian terrorism from groups like the PFLP and Abu Nidal was about this kind of disruption of diplomacy and normalization (and that hasn't changed much!).

After the PFLP collapsed in the late 70s, Carlos became a sort of terrorist for hire, much less ideological and more about self-promotion and enrichment. He worked for governments like Libya and Syria and hid out in Eastern Bloc states that tolerated criminals like him as long as they didn't attack these sanctuaries. He also carried out terrorist attacks in France, killing several dozen people, simply to force the French gov't to release his girlfriend and several other members of his organization. You get a good sense from this book of how terrorists hopped from safe haven to safe haven in this period and took advantage of many EUropean countries' desire to not have terrorist ops pointed at them.

Eventually, Carlos was captured in Sudan and imprisoned in France for life. In sum, he was a narcissistic and brutal person, seemingly without a conscience and probably driven more by the desire for notoriety and action than by ideology. This is a great book if you want to know more about the world of terrorists, spies, intelligence operatives, and so on in the 70s and 80s because it it extremely well-paced, engagingly written, and clearly explained.

[Mlhoganjr · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ilich Ramirez Sanchez dressed his horrible crimes up as part of some vague revolution. He continues to do so even now that he's been in prison for over 30 years. At first, he claimed to be a committed Marxist. Then he claimed to support the Palestinian cause, becoming a hitman and professional terrorist for the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine. The description and pointlessness of his 1974 grenade attack on civilians in the Publicis Drugstore in Paris was especially horrible. Then, after being kicked out of the PFLP, he simply became a violent monster for whomever would pay him. Like a lot of terrorists operating around the world during the 1970s (Baader-Meinhof, Revolutionary Cells, different offshoots of the IRA, the Weathermen in the USA), whatever underlying principles he started with turned to mush as outlaws were tracked down, forced into exile after exile, and cease to act for any motivation beyond greed and base survival. Eventually, many of the political groups just merged into a Frankenstein's monster of criminal survival, like a bunch of hunted animals who claim to love Marx, Islam, hate imperialism, or whatever.

I couldn't put this book down. It reads like a great spy novel, except in fiction you would expect some resolution, natural storytelling propriety would make you expect some kind of moral at the end of the story. With Carlos' life, it all seemed so insanely meaningless. No ideology, no fanaticism, he mostly took his payments for murdering and maiming people and blew through millions eating, whoring, and drinking. By the end, he was living on the edges of civilization, much more humbly and in constant paranoia. He wasn't even an especially good terrorist, despite the press painting him to be some sort of Bond villain. He often screwed up his own plans over and over, so much so that it was the defining driver of his life.

If spy novels, espionage, political extremists, Europe in the 1970-80s, and/or crime writing appeal to you at all, do yourself a favor and read this one.

[ManOfLaBook.com · Rating 5 out of 5]

For more reviews and bookish posts, as well as the Margin Notes about "The Double-Edged Sword of the Alias" visit: https://www.ManOfLaBook.com

The Jackal: The Rise and Fall of Carlos, the World's First Super-Terrorist by Joby Warrick is an excellent biography, following Carlos through the ages. Mr. Warrick is a national security report, and a two-time Pulitzer Prize winning author.

This is the type of narrative nonfiction that I really enjoy. A well-researched, well-written, exciting biography that reads like an espionage thriller.

The Jackal by Joby Warrick combines excellent reporting and a narrative that made me want to turn the pages as quick as I can. This tale of international state-sponsored terrorism by a delusional ideologist is one that would sound absurd it it wasn't a biography.

I have to admit I didn't know much about Ilich Ramírez Sánchez, the Venezuelan who called himself Carlos the Jackal, a great PR name based on a best-selling book. In fact, I thought the book was about Carlos, but I learned it's the other way around.

The author uses recently declassified documents, secret police file and even interviewed Carlos himself in a French prison. The story mainly takes place over three decades and offers an interesting, informative perspective with hindsight and depth.

The book portrays not just as a criminal, narcist, dapper and charismatic guy, but a pioneer of borderless terrorism which is aimed at a global audience who can follow the drama in real-time. While Carlos wasn't a genius strategist, he had the gumption and cruelty to stage these operations opening a new era of modern terrorism.

Along with the biographical aspects, the book also looks at how performative terrorism began. Carlos' legacy of cold-blooded assassinations, violence and a complete lack of empathy for human lives, is told through the lens of geopolitics and international relations.

[Andy Barca · Rating 3 out of 5]

Joby Warrick’s biography of the notorious, now-incarcerated terrorist Ilich Sanchez-Ramirez, better known as Carlos or The Jackal, chronicles a rather colourful life. Though he attached himself to communist and Palestinian causes in his youth, he always seemed far more devoted to his own ego and creature comforts. Warrick illustrates this consistently. Whether plotting or on the run, Carlos always made time for fine dining, five-star hotels, first-class flights, and an endless rotation of attractive women.

Yet the narrative suffers from glaring temporal and explanatory gaps. What exactly did he do for years on end? He ostensibly extracted millions, perhaps tens of millions, from the 1970s Vienna OPEC delegation abduction. Adjusted for inflation, that was an astronomical sum. A few years later, however, he supposedly needed to find gainful employment as a terrorist and an assassin. Where did the money vanish to, given that even a lavish lifestyle could not burn through such wealth so quickly?

The text briefly mentions local low-life operatives running mundane criminal enterprises to fund him, but the author omits the details. I wonder if these exploits were unknown, too unglamorous to sustain the terrorist mystique, or simply overlooked. Consequently, the biography feels oddly unbalanced, remaining thick on certain anecdotes while frustratingly thin on others.

Ultimately, the book is passable but far from perfect. It leaves me questioning whether superior biographies of this figure exist, or indeed if he warrants the biographical effort at all. He emerges not as a formidable mastermind, but as a somewhat dim, self-absorbed narcissist, a trait he has apparently maintained even throughout three decades in prison.

[Scott Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

When you mention major terrorists who scared the world and achieve notoriety today, you might immediately jump to someone like Osama Bin Laden. However, in the late 20th century, before 9/11 and the counterterrorism wars, you might have come up with a different name: Carlos the Jackal. Actually, Carlos was not a part of his given name, but as Ilich Ramirez Sanchez grew in stature as a leftist-leaning terrorist, he came to embrace the name and fame that came with that decision. While many now may not remember or know about Carlos the Jackal, Warrick brings his exploits back to the forefront in this readable, informative and relatively concise work. A Venezuelan reactionary who learned early the trade of crime, Ramirez would eventually hook up with noted Middle Eastern terrorist organizations with ties to Palestinian liberation. It is hard to believe that I hadn't heard about the OPEC hostage situation in Vienna until I read this book, but it must go down as one of the most brazen and shocking acts of terror of any age, but especially the 1970s. The Jackal moniker came from the famous "Day of the Jackal" book published in the early 1970s. Carlos was adept at evading the authorities, but eventually, he was caught and still survives in a French prison, never to be released in his lifetime.

Overall, an informative book and one that resurrects one of the more notorious villains of recent history. Granted, his fame did not quite match the reality of the man, but you can see how his exploits and how they were publicized did much to make him a legendary villain. For those that first were exposed to Jason Bourne in the books, you'll know that the main target/villain was none other than the legend of Carlos the Jackal. Still, worth the library checkout.

[Brendan (History Nerds United) · Rating 5 out of 5]

When you think of Carlos the Jackal, you probably picture a suave, cold-blooded hitman roaming the capitals of the world. He has every action planned to the most minute detail. He can think on his feet. He is James Bond without a moral core.

That's a cool visual and all, but the real Carlos the Jackal was actually pretty terrible at being a terrorist. Quite frankly, it's a way more interesting story than I expected. Also, it probably makes sense that your life would suck when you're a terrible person on everyone's radar.

Joby Warrick tells the true story of Carlos in the aptly titled The Jackal. Warrick is a multiple Pulitzer Prize winner and that is totally clear from page one. He masterfully tackles the action, the intrigue, and, most importantly, separates the fact from fiction. This is so vital because Carlos is a well-known liar in every aspect of life. Multiple wives, murdered friends, and stolen money are just the tip of the iceberg.

I was most impressed by how Warrick cuts through all the unnecessary details and keeps the story focused on Carlos and those directly involved with him. It is the type of book that can quickly spiral out of control if the author doesn't have a clear vision of the narrative. There is no extraneous material, and it feels like a 200-page book even though it's well over 300. This is exactly the book you want it to be when you read the title. So enjoy!

(This book was provided as an advanced reader copy by NetGalley and Scribner.)

[Books Data · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Jackal: The Rise and Fall of Carlos, the World’s First Super-Terrorist by Joby Warrick tells the gripping true story of Ilich Ramírez Sánchez, better known as Carlos the Jackal, one of the most notorious terrorists of the twentieth century. Born in Venezuela, Carlos became involved with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and soon built a reputation for violence, ambition, and an extraordinary talent for creating his own legend. During the 1970s and 1980s, he was connected to hijackings, bombings, assassinations, hostage-taking, and other international attacks, most famously the 1975 seizure of the OPEC headquarters in Vienna. Warrick shows that Carlos was not simply a committed revolutionary. He was also deeply driven by money, fame, luxury, and an enormous sense of self-importance. He turned terrorism into a kind of international profession, working for governments and political groups that were willing to pay him. Drawing on declassified records, eyewitness accounts, secret files, and a rare interview with Carlos himself, Warrick explores both the man and the myth surrounding him. As international support disappeared and his network collapsed, Carlos gradually lost his power and influence. His eventual capture in Sudan in 1994 brought an end to decades of evasion. The book ultimately presents Carlos as a dangerous but deeply flawed man whose carefully constructed image proved far greater than his lasting achievements.

[Harmandeep Sandhar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Before round-the-clock news cycles and social media, Ilich Ramírez Sánchez, better known as “Carlos the Jackal,” was already a celebrity terrorist. Joby Warrick brilliantly peels back the layers of myth and melodrama that have calcified around him to expose the petulant narcissist at the core.

Warrick’s experience as an investigative reporter really shines in this book:

The chapter on the 1975 OPEC siege in Vienna reads like a classic spy novel, full of intrigue and larger-than-life characters

the book provides crucial context for understanding not just Carlos but also international affairs during the Cold War, as exemplified by the decades’ long game of cat and mouse between Carlos and the various intelligence agencies trying to take him down

and

finally, it exposes the carefully constructed myth of the charismatic international terrorist for what it is – the story of a washed-up mercenary trying to live out his last years in Sudan, drinking heavily and waiting for his final opportunity to strike.

As with Warrick’s previous book Black Flags , the prose is sharp and rarely falters, though one might occasionally get lost in the cast of characters as the narrative veers toward telenovela melodrama. This is a truly engrossing page-turner of a book, full of exciting action scenes and sober geopolitical analysis. A must-read for anyone interested in international affairs or true crime. Easy 4 stars.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

As someone who is 1. French 2. Obsessed with terrorism for some reason, I didn’t learn that much, but it was a good refresher as we keep hearing the guy complaining about how hard prison is. Interesting to see how activists (and terrorists let’s not pretend some weren’t) were getting obsessed with Palestinian liberation (it was the 70s so many causes they could be interested in), and also how much things are still the same in that region. A good reminder also that Carlos (and the people working with him) were very very antisemitic like they were vocal about it, I somehow forgot how much. He was also obsessed with money and was more interested in getting richer than actually achieving any cause he pretended to care about. Honestly trying to remember if the book mentionned redeeming qualities 😂 He was good at languages I guess. A good read as we may picture him as an old and pretty innocent guy now, he was young once and wow he was a really bad person. A bit long (but there is a lot to cover) but super easy to read. Also if you’re into that (like I am) the author explains intelligence in France and all the changes it went through during that time.

[Reader Ray · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Jackal: The Rise and Fall of Carlos, the World’s First Super-Terrorist
Joby Warrick
Publication Date: August 18, 2026

ARC courtesy of Scribner and NetGalley.

The international assassin/terrorist, Carlos, has always been shrouded in mystique, enjoying a near-mythical, glamorous persona. In The Jackal: The Rise and Fall of Carlos, the World’s First Super-Terrorist , Joby Warrick gives us a very well-researched accounting of Carlos, the man, with his character flaws and even, at times, ineptitude.

Opening with the 1975 OPEC hostage crisis in Vienna, Warrick’s writing is enthralling, reading like a thriller, packed with true-to-life events and characters. He takes us from Carlos’ beginnings as a terrorist, with the Palestinian Liberation militia, through the Cold War era, giving an accounting of the history of modern terrorism itself. Joby Warrick is a brilliant storyteller; I will be adding Black Flags to my reading list.

[Jack Reidy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Carlos the Jackal is famous. In this work of non-fiction you do learn a lot about him, various terrorist movements, intelligence services and politics (especially Middle East politics). You may be surprised to learn that he was not really named Carlos and how the Jackal part came about.

The book is "THE JACKAL: The Rise and Fall of Carlos, the World’s First Super-Terrorist" by Joby Warrick. It is an authoritative and well-written account by the national security correspondent for The Washington Post.

I thank Netgalley (https://www.netgalley.com ) for the chance to read this before publication.

This is a rather short review but for those who prefer something longer, a wonderful and more detailed review (https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/10/bo...) appeared in the New York Times about a week ago.

[Charles Mccarthy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Both the French intelligence services and eventually the CIA are allegedly looking for Carlos, but due to benefactors in Eastern Europe initially, like Hungary, and various Middle Eastern despots he remained at large, and for a time lived like a rock star. Despite his former Nazi benefactor in Switzerland, the jobs disappear and the money dries up such that he flees to Khartoum where he is eventually apprehended.

Warrick's biography is fascinating if not illuminating. Frankly "Carlos" never seemed to live up to his reputation as the most feared international terrorist and for most of his life as a free man lived off the reputation rather than his actual deeds. Still a very good read for those who remember the crazy times we lived through in the 70's and 80's when "Carlos" was most active.

[Todd · Rating 4 out of 5]

A profile of a sociopath who killed first for a cause but eventually shifted from ideology to being a gun for hire.

The security at airports around the world were inspired by the work of Carlos and others and hijacking planes for ransom has mostly come to an end. It seems that the United States and Soviet Union were the primary drivers of destabilizing the middle east countries. Oil, arms, money and vulnerable governments have made for conflicts my entire life, and there's no end in sight.

When populations are frightened by violence, they tend to react in ways they wouldn't in peace time. Colonialism and meddling have backfired, and without a commitment to world peace the cycle keeps feeding itself. The term terrorist looks too much like the reflection in our national mirror, and it is our job to fix it or fall on our sword.

[kallixto ── .✦]

I went into this book completely randomly as I was looking for something new and not on my comfort zone to read. And then, this one popped on the new releases list, so I gave it a sot.

As precise and meaningful as I can be, especially as someone who is reading this genre of book no that often, The Jackal: The Rise and Fall of Carlos, the World's First Super-Terrorist by Joby Warrick was surprisingly very interesting and easy to dive into. I didn't have any further information or even knowledge about this story and who was Ilich Ramírez Sánchez before reading it.

This author write this story in a way where you can easily have a lot of information without getting lost or not figured out what is happening. A point that I really appreciated.

Overall, whether you know or you don't know anything about the The Jackal, it is definitely a novel I recommend!

[Dale Dewitt · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the movie "The Wild One" Marlon Brando's character is asked "What are you rebelling against?" He replies "Whadda you got?" I feel that this best encapsulates the story of Carlos the Jackal as told by Mr Warrick. Deeply researched, with a fast paced that keeps you enthralled, the author paints a picture of a man who seemed much to prefer being a terrorist for the money than an ideologue. Carlos basks in the fear, fame and money that his name brings but when it comes to being a martyr for a cause the only cause that Carlos truly cares about is himself. An amazingly well told portrait of the rise, high points and fall of a man who was the first "brand name terrorist". A great read!

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley for my honest review.

[Alecia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I listened to this book, ably researched, written and narrated. I did live through this early terrorist era, and I remember all the plane hijackings and bombings, way before airport security was established.

Carlos (a name given to him mostly by the press) is still living. At the time this book was released, he was 75 years old in a French prison. It is interesting how any vague ideology he may have had was replaced by just killing for money. He was also quite a womanizer and bon vivant, loving luxury and well aware of his reputation. His nickname of "The Jackal" came from a photo taken with the book by Frederick Forsyth nearby. It is not even known if he ever read the book. But he was conflated with the totally fictional character after that.

[Lisa · Rating 3.5 out of 5]

Interesting biography of the Venezuelan terrorist who came to be known as Carlos the Jackal. The myth created by the media was much larger than the man. He was given his name by the press because a novel about a terrorist, The Day of the Jackal, was published right around the time of Carlo's most famous act of terror, kidnapping OPEC oil ministers. Born to an upper middle class Venezuelan family, Carlos liked to dress up like Che Guevara, but was more interested in partying, womanizing and drinking than revolution. After the revolution quit paying, he sold his services to the likes of Muammar Gaddafi, Saddam Hussein and Nicholas Ceausescu.

[Alex · Rating 2 out of 5]

Honestly kind of a snooze. A lot of the info is dubious-at-best reports from Israeli intelligence services, most of Carlo's career was organizational so the pacing plods and there is an incredibly bizarre insistence on calling him fat. The guy was a terrorist who killed people in cold blood! No matter your opinions on his political motivations it's just crass and juvenile to talk about a man known for political violence in a string of "fat Carlos the fat terrorist fatly fatted around" asides.
It's a true crime narrative airport book with scant real analysis of global politics. Pass.