general counsel, and Jacob Goldstein, his deputy, spent countless
hours vetting my reporting and batting back the legal threats made by
Theranos’s lawyers. I also owe a big debt of gratitude to my
investigative team colleague Christopher Weaver, who helped me
cover the regulatory inquiries and other fallout for more than a year,
including during a stretch when I was on book leave.
One of the dividends of working at the Journal has been the
friendships I’ve made there over the years. One of those friends,
Christopher Stewart, has written several nonfiction books and
generously shared with me both his publishing industry expertise and
his contacts. It’s through Chris that I met my agent, Eric Lupfer of
Fletcher & Company, who immediately saw the potential of this
project and pushed me to pursue it despite various obstacles that
sprang up along the way. Eric’s perpetual optimism was contagious
and the perfect antidote for my moments of doubt.
I am very lucky that this book landed at Knopf and in the deft hands
of Andrew Miller. Andrew’s enthusiasm and his unshakable faith in
me gave me the confidence I needed to bring it to fruition. I’m also
humbled to have had the support of Andrew’s boss, Knopf Doubleday
Publishing Group chairman Sonny Mehta. From the moment I entered
the Random House Tower, Andrew, Sonny, and their colleagues
welcomed me and made me feel at home. I hope I have lived up to
their expectations.
This saga has consumed the last three and a half years of my life.
Through it all, I have been fortunate to be able to rely on the advice,
support, and warmth of friends and family. Ianthe Dugan, Paulo
Prada, Philip Shishkin, and Matthew Kaminski—to name but a few—
provided frequent encouragement and much-needed comic relief. My
parents, Jane and Gérard, and my sister, Alexandra, cheered me on to
the finish line. But by far my greatest source of strength and
inspiration came from the four people with whom I share my life: my
wife, Molly, and my three children, Sebastian, Jack, and Francesca.
This book is dedicated to them.