Rating: 
Summary: A Really Good Look At The Business
Review: This is a very well writen book. I wish it was a little longer. It starts off a little slow, giving you a look at the history of pro wrestling. Towards the middle of the book it really picks it pace with the Steroid Trials, and the Monday Night Wars. It takes a look at some of Bishof's mistakes, and how Vince McMahon overcomes them. I was a little disapointed that it briefly mentioned ECW, I would have liked to seen a little more coverage on it. The last few chapters are also a little dry. After reading the exert of the book I bought it. The Owen Hart Death was a really big selling point. The events of his death were pretty astonishing. It also devotes about half a chapter to the Bret Hart screwjob. It also tells why Austin became so famous. This is a really good book, I would recemend it to anyone who is intristed in pro wrestling.
Rating:
Summary: Shows How Wrestling Has Changed
Review: I loved it when they talked about how they used to tape 3 weeks worth of wrestling in 1 day at the allentown fairgrounds.I remember those days when I used to watch wrestling every Saturday afternoon on my local uhf station.Those were the good old days.That's when wrestling was wrestling.Remember Bob Backlund,Ken Patera,Ivan Putski,Larry Zbyszko,Hulk Hogan (pre hulkamania days). Now wrestling is just a circus...
Rating: 
Summary: A GRIPPING Read
Review: This is a gripping and highly entertaining tale of
the lucrative and cut throat business world behind the
rise of professional wrestling in America.
Shaun Assael is an exemplary journalist whose lean,
economical prose style pulls you in like a spellbinding
novel -- and pins you to the mat.
A must read for wrestling fans and their perplexed
spouses and friends.
Rating: 
Summary: Good history can be tarnished by author's agenda
Review: When I bought this book I was excited. Finally a book that will show how Vince McMahon operates. Instead from the very first chapter I was bombarded by what I saw as the auther blaiming Vince for the death of Owen Hart. He didn't flat out say that Vince Killed Owen but he hinted at it. Also when explaining the death of Owen Hart he takes us into the head of Owen Hart. My only question is this, was the author there when Owen died?This book offers tons of "facts" on wrestling that most hardcore wrestling fans already know. However I would not recommend this book to newer wrestling fans because although the facts may be valid there is a lot of person bias against McMahon. And hinting that Vince was personally responsible for Owens death and that he forced Owen to do it goes against everything that has been published about Owen's death from the Rock, Mick Foley, and others who knew him. Save you money on this one.
Rating:
Summary: Using McMahon's name to sell books
Review: This book was a pretty good read, however, not because it did justice to the topic it was suppossed to deliver in the title. The book would have been more appropriately title WWF(E) v.s. WCW (the battle to control the wrestling universe). The book delivered on the promise of an eye-opening look at the world that Vince McMahon had created, yet it didn't deliver as a tell all or in depth look at them man. It went right up to edge of exposing him as a sleazebag, "Wizard of Oz"-like character, but then would pull back and show great sympathy for the man. At times, while I read this book, I almost for got I was reading a biography of McMahon and instead thought I picked up a book on the downfall of WCW. Don't get me wrong, much of what I read was fascinating and insightful, but if someone bought this book thinking they were going to get an exhaustive look at the McMahon empire and possible insight on what made the guy tick, quite possible they would be disappointed and lose interest in how the two main rival wrestling leagues fought it out to a "last man stading" match. With such detail of the steriod trial, Assael completely overlooked the Sable lawsuits, WWF trademark infringments with the World Wildlife Foundation, and gleaned over the acquisition of his last bit of competition, the WCW. I'm sure Assael didn't want this book to turn into a court tv book with nothing but lawsuit coverage, but seemingly every angle and storyline McMahon creates, eventually ends up in the courtroom. Surely there must be some backstory behind all this. I would recommend this book to any wrestling fan, hardcore or casual. I really enjoyed Assael's other recent book on NASCAR (Wide Open) and passed that on to friends and family. This book was entertaining and enlightening about a time period in wrestling, that I as a fan, had recently comeback to after a 10 year hiatus. However, so much more depth about the subject could have been covered. I know why it wasn't, because wrestling fans don't have the attention span or the ability to stay with a book of that consequence (but yet at least a dozen of the coporate executive mentioned in the book, grew up watching the sport and yet they had elevated themselves enough to run television channels and coroporations). Just because we fans know the sport we enjoy has it's outcomes scripted, doesn't mean we like all of our entertainment given to in a way that will shatter our illusions.
Rating: 
Summary: Superior Mental Acumen
Review: The real story of Vince McMahon.....yea "real". Fascinating collection of stories related to the man credited with revolutionizing the world of sports entertainment. If, however, the "Real World Is Faker Than Wrestling," as Mick Foley would say, what does that make this supposed factual account of McMahon's life? Granted, authors Shaun Assael and Mike Mooneyham reveal a good amount of previously unreported happenings in the world of professional wrestling, but one must question the accuracy of events reported, events which transpired between sometimes as few as two individuals. Who was the "fly on the wall" so-to-speak, recording and transcribing conversations taking place over the last half century? In a business traditionally built around rumor and lies (as the title graciously points out), where would one ever get the true story without "spin"? Factual questions aside, I would not recommend this book for the "casual" wrestling fan. 'Sex, Lies and Headlocks' is hardly an easy read, especially so for those who haven't followed the business over the past two decades. Many "characters" are introduced with minimal exposition, which can make for confusing paragraphs involving several last names with little subtext. Who did what to whom? Who was that guy? This, added to the Readers Digest-style devliery, can make for an reading experience never quite complete. In an era of tabloid journalism and trash-talking, true-to-life television, 'Sex, Lies and Headlocks' delivers the punch, but as an effort in modern-day storytelling, the book stumbles and falls to the canvas, ready to be pinned in defeat.
Rating: 
Summary: OK book, but...
Review: The book was ok in telling about the WWF(and also some about WCW, NWA, the Crocketts, Bill Watts, etc), however I did not get a lot of new information out of this book. Still, for those who are not familiar with the "Monday Night Wrestling" wars of the 1990's, the book is worth reading to get more background info.
Rating:
Summary: A Good Book...for a new fan...
Review: This book sounded like it would be an interseting read, about Vince McMahon and the WWF. However, the book rarely touches on either subject in depth and without bias. There was no topic metioned that a fan of a few years would not be familiar with. All stories in the book have already been covered online, in magazines, and other books. The biggest dissapointment overall was the fact that book focused most of its energy on federations other than the WWF. It gives a decent account of the other wrestling organizations without the negitive slant the WWF is veiwed in by the author. The book in no way lives up to its title.
Rating:
Summary: Vastly disappointing
Review: I picked up this book based on early reviews, hoping for a clear unbiased review of WWF's (now WWE's) history over the past twenty years. Instead, the book really doesn't have much to say. Anyone who has been a fan for even a couple of years will have heard all of the stories told within, while anyone who is not a fan will have no clue as to who the people are or why they should care. Events are overlooked or only briefly touched upon, leaving readers with the need to fill in the blanks themselves; while research seems to be based 90% on what the writers found in old issues of Wrestling Observer and people who worked for the WCW or were fired form the WWF (no wonder McMahon doesn't come off well). It tries to cover too much in the short number of pages contained within. I had hope to read a book about McMahon's rise to power and his overtaking the other promotions to end up on top. Maybe a book like that will come out someday. Save your money unless you like to read brief recaps of the past few years in wrestling.
Rating:
Summary: This is a REAL story?
Review: This book definitely didn't live up to it's title. Most of the 200+ pages are just the same old stories that can be found on any wrestling web site. Also, much of the book isn't even devoted to Vince McMahon and the WWF. It's clear that Assael put Vince McMahon in the title for name recognition alone. It is comprable to the movie Beyond the Mat putting the Rock on their poster. This book is pure propaganda as Assael jumps on the anti-Vince bandwagon.
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