Embedded Files
NEW NOVEL OUT OCTOBER 27: THE POPE'S HITMAN
J.M. Berger is an internationally respected expert on extremism and the author of five acclaimed books, including three nonfiction works and two novels.
Berger's book Extremism (MIT Press 2018), available in six languages, is the definitive text on the subject for both academics and lay readers. His research encompasses extremist and terrorist ideologies and propaganda, including novel methods for analyzing extremist narratives and use of language, as well as their use of social media and other emerging technologies.
His other books include ISIS: The State of Terror with Jessica Stern (2015) and Jihad Joe: Americans Who Go to War in the Name of Islam (2011), two deeply researched and widely cited resources on terrorism. 2024 doctoral dissertation, The Social Construction of Extremism, is an ambitious exploration of the root causes of extremism that pushes back on the conventional wisdom of the field in surprising and groundbreaking ways.
Berger is also the author of two novels. Optimal (2018) is a tense and prescient dystopia that follows current social and technological trends to a future that is as disturbing as it is richly imagined. His highly anticipated new thriller, The Pope's Hitman, will be published in October 2026. John Wick meets Conclave in this propulsive international thriller about a priest with a deadly secret who must stop a plot to kill the Pope on Christmas Eve.
Berger's other recent work includes three major papers on the concept of lawful extremism, including Lawful Extremism: Extremist Ideology and the Dred Scott Decision (CTEC, 2023) and, with Beth Daviess, Lawful Extremism: The Chinese Exclusion Act (CTEC, 2024) and Lawful Extremism: Florida's Anti-Trans Laws (CTEC, 2024).
Berger is a Senior Research Fellow for the Center on Terrorism, Extremism, and Counterterrorism (CTEC) at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies, a member of the editorial board of Terrorism and Political Violence, and a Research Fellow with the VOX-Pol Network of Excellence. As an experienced consultant for social media companies and government agencies, Berger is available to advise on policy development and conduct research and training on issues and policies related to homegrown terrorism, online extremism, and countering violent extremism (CVE).
Berger's second novel is The Pope's Hitman, an action thriller described as John Wick meets Conclave, scheduled to debut fall 2026 from Crooked Lane Books. Berger's first novel, inspired by his extensive research on the dystopian literature genre, was Optimal (2020), a dystopian tale about a world run by algorithms and social media. Reviewers praised it as "gripping," "absorbing" and "great storytelling."
Page updated
Google Sites
Report abuse