"M.E. McMillan gives us a new and challenging perspective on the long story of Islamic history and shows how the political ideas of the Prophet and his successors were subverted by the dynastic imperative. In doing so, in this lively and interesting book, she positions the 'Arab Spring' in the light of a long tradition of tension between openness and authoritarianism in Arab society." - Hugh Kennedy, SOAS, University of London, UK, author of The Great Arab Conquests (2007)
