The introduction of the substantial book opens with Mrs Clinton's eyes glued to a screen, watching frame by frame as terrorists attack the American compound in Peshawar, the gateway to the tribal region of Pakistan the authors say has become the world's most notorious haven for terrorists.
Two and a-half years later, ambassador Chris Stevens would be killed at the US special mission compound in Benghazi, providing the pivotal point of the tenure as secretary of state for the woman many believe will be the next president of the United States.
For Mrs Clinton to even achieve the Democratic nomination will require political manoeuvring not common in countries such as New Zealand.
In a page-turner of a book, readers will learn how the Clinton team of former president Bill and his wife Hillary use their incredible reach into the American political landscape to call in favours.
If people cross the Clintons, they usually learn to regret it. The pair have a list, rating Democrats from one to 10. If you provide finance, and continue to support through thick and thin, you have no fear of retribution.
But Bill Clinton will campaign tirelessly, often against party interests, to promote the interests of a Clinton supporter over the interests of someone who may have wronged him or his wife earlier.
This really is a fascinating book, with the only bits to jar being the use of first names for the Clintons and the use of surnames only for everyone else, including US President Barack Obama.
To give her due respect, when Mrs Clinton was passed over as the Democrat nominee in 2008 for Mr Obama, she took time out to bemoan the choice of the party before throwing herself fully into the campaign to ensure the first African-American president of the US was elected.
The power Mr Clinton still holds over American politics becomes clear as Mr Obama at first holds the Clintons at arm's length before fully embracing ''Hillaryland'', as the empire is called.
As Mrs Clinton left the State Department, moves were already under way by her closest staff and advisers to ensure the money machine rolled on, gathering funds for her run to secure the Democrat presidential nomination. And no-one should bet against her, at this stage, of becoming the first female president of the US. Interestingly, a side-bar to the story could be the promotion of daughter Chelsea Clinton to an important role in the Clinton Foundation, a move some see as positioning her for a later political career. People talk about the Kennedy legacy in American politics. There could soon be a legacy of Clintons.
If rumours prove correct and Jeb Bush, the brother of former president George W. and son of George Bush sen, decides to run for the Republican nomination, a further contest of some of the most influential families in American politics will again ensue.
- Dene Mackenzie is ODT business and political editor.
