Every year, fifteen Yale juniors receive a tap on the shoulder—an invitation to join one of America's most exclusive and secretive organizations. What happens next shapes American history.
Skull & Bones has counted among its members presidents, supreme court justices, CIA directors, and titans of industry. Its rituals are shrouded in mystery. Its influence is denied by those who wield it. And its story reveals uncomfortable truths about how power really works in America.
Nick Razer's investigation traces the Order from its founding in 1832 to its present-day influence, examining the documented facts, the credible allegations, and the wilder conspiracy theories that have attached themselves to the society's skull-and-crossbones symbol.
What makes Skull & Bones significant isn't its rituals—it's what happens after graduation. Razer examines the network of Bonesmen across government, finance, intelligence, and media, asking how a college club became a pipeline to American power and what that reveals about meritocracy's limits.