Imelda Marcos - famous for her 1,060 pairs of shoes was also one of the most powerful and controversial figures in world history. She was extraordinarily beautiful, charismatic, determined and savage.

Imelda: Steel Butterfly of the Philippines, a uniquely unauthorized biography by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Katherine Ellison, describes the Philippine first lady's rise from near-poverty to unimaginable riches, her surprisingly tenacious attempt to take over as dictator, and her fatal grudge match with her chief political rival, Benigno Ninoy Aquino.

After helping reveal Ferdinand and Imelda Marcos multi-billion-dollar corruption in a Pulitzer-prize-winning newspaper series, Ellison returned to the Philippines, New York City, and Washington, D.C. to interview scores of Imelda's relatives, friends, bodyguards, Blue Ladies, political rivals and allies, as well as every U.S. Ambassador to serve in Manila during the Marcos 1965-1986 regime.

Acclaimed by The Washington Post for its exceptional research and compelling writing, Ellison's book chronicles Imelda's journey from her modest upbringing on the island of Leyte to her powerful role beside her husband, who called her his secret weapon.

Imelda, now in her 90s, and at the helm of a political dynasty with her son, President Ferdinand BongBong Marcos Jr., appears to have triumphed over her critics, even inspiring a cheerful recent Broadway musical.

Get Imelda: Steel Butterfly of the Philippines to learn the much more fascinating truth.

Katherine Ellison is a former foreign correspondent and author and co-author of a dozen books, including the family ADHD memoir, Buzz: A Year of Paying Attention.