'From secret hotels to broken phones, missed meetings and flying popcorn, Mandy gives us something rare here. Each page peels away the political veil as we get an all-access pass to the unheard events that led to the formation of the GNU in 2024.' – CLEMENT MANYATHELA

“I wrote this book because I believe that we, the South African public, have a right to know what goes on behind the political curtain. And I also believe that a journalist should write the first draft of history.”
— Mandy Wiener 

In the aftermath of South Africa’s seismic 2024 elections, the ruling ANC found itself without a majority for the first time in three decades. The country stood at a crossroads: would the ANC join forces with the EFF and Patriotic Alliance in a so-called doomsday coalition, or strike a centrist alliance with its historic rival, the DA?

With just fourteen days to elect a president, the fate of the nation hung in the balance.

The Deal: Inside the Talks that Shaped South Africa’s Future takes readers behind the closed doors, clandestine meetings and frantic back-channel dealings that gave birth to the Government of National Unity (GNU).

Drawing on exclusive interviews with key political players, award-winning investigative journalist Mandy Wiener delivers a gripping account of the high-stakes drama, personality clashes and deft political manoeuvring that ultimately reshaped the country’s political landscape.

'The Deal: Inside the Talks that Shaped South Africa’s Future' is published by Pan Macmillan South Africa