“Breaking Rockefeller emulates the best oil literature, in which geology and geopolitics go hand in hand.” (The Wall Street Journal)

“[Marcus Samuel and Henri Deterding’s] story, though not new, is grippingly retold in Breaking Rockefeller.... The guts, greed and gusto of this cast of characters are what give the book its vigor.... The book is timely in an era when America’s shale revolution has upset the OPEC cartel’s efforts to control the world’s oil markets, and Eastern Europe struggles to free its gas markets from dependence on Russia’s Gazprom. It is a vivid reminder of the dangers of monopolies, and of the merits of no-holds barred competition and technological upheaval.” (The Economist) 

“It is the author’s love affair (it can be called nothing less) with oil itself that most effectively entices the reader to make her way through these pages.... When Doran talks about [oil], it is with a sensuality of language comparable to that of the most decadent of gourmets.... Peter Doran’s writing style is lively, accessible and sometimes slightly breathless. Each one of his chapters ends with a dramatic, almost apocalyptic-sounding statement that leads neatly to the next one. It works. Even the most ardent of fossil fuel haters will find Breaking Rockefeller hard to resist.” (The Post and Courier)