By Illinois Review
Former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s new memoir, Framed, F*cked, and Freed: A Governor’s Odyssey, has reached No. 1 on Amazon’s New Releases chart and No. 1 on its bestseller chart in the United States Local Government category, just one day after its November 10 release.
The book is also ranked as the No. 1 bestseller in Amazon’s United States Local Government category, marking an early milestone for the former governor’s account of his political downfall, imprisonment and eventual return to freedom.
Published by Skyhorse Publishing, the memoir takes readers behind the scenes of Blagojevich’s eight years in federal prison, offering stories about prison life, political betrayal, faith, family and his fight to regain his freedom.
President Donald Trump, who commuted Blagojevich’s 14-year prison sentence on February 18, 2020, and later granted him a full and unconditional pardon in February 2025, is featured prominently in the book.
“It was a terrible injustice…This shouldn’t have happened to him,” Trump said of Blagojevich’s prosecution and imprisonment.
Among the memoir’s most significant political revelations is Blagojevich’s allegation that Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker personally called Trump twice in August 2019 to block his anticipated release from federal prison.
Pritzker “called the President twice and urged him not to release me,” Blagojevich writes, describing the alleged intervention as something that “felt like a betrayal.”
According to Blagojevich, Pritzker’s intervention successfully derailed the original commutation, delaying his freedom by another six months.
The memoir also highlights the critical role Illinois Review Editor-in-Chief Mark Vargas played in working alongside Blagojevich’s wife, Patti, to secure the former governor’s release from federal prison.
Blagojevich recounts how Vargas was waiting outside the Colorado prison in August 2019, prepared to bring him home before the anticipated commutation was abruptly halted.
On Tuesday, Vargas joined Blagojevich for his book media tour, accompanying the former governor as he promoted the newly released memoir and discussed his years behind bars and eventual return to freedom.
Illinois Review reported the allegations involving Pritzker ahead of the book’s release.
With No. 1 placements on Amazon’s New Releases and bestseller charts in the United States Local Government category, Blagojevich’s memoir has reached two major sales-ranking milestones within 24 hours of publication.
Framed, F*cked, and Freed: A Governor’s Odyssey is available now in hardcover.
