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nmupp1324's review against another edition
5.0
This book has singlehandedly changed my opinion of our justice system, our pharmaceutical companies, and the role of companies in America.
First of all. The Sacklers deserve to rot in jail for the egregious amount of pain they caused. I cannot believe the extent to which the Sackler family went, to ensnare hundreds of victims into their opioid chokehold. They had so many chances, SO MANY, to do the right thing. The company could have marketed oxy with the proper warnings, the company could have researched the addictiveness of oxy before marketing. Instead, the Sacklers made up false claims about the safety of oxycontin and duped doctors into believing that the drug is "non-addictive".
Purdue Pharma is not a company. It's a drug cartel wearing a costume. Thousands of people are DYING because of this company's lies. They NEVER admitted or apologized for what they did. Worst of all! Our government, the people who are supposed to protect us, were bribed by Purdue and the Sacklers hundreds of times! HUNDREDS OF TIMES!!! The FDA fluctuated between utterly incompetent and willingly neglectful.
The people who work at Purdue, the lawyers who defended them, the Sacklers, our own government, judges and attorneys, all have blood on their hands.
There is still no justice! Why? Because of money. The Sacklers will never pay for the people they have killed. They are murderers, con artists, thieves, and money launderers. I’m astounded by the lack of justice, the lack of morals.
That said, Keefe is an excellent author. I'm excited to read more of his work.
lhenric22's review against another edition
5.0
I loved Keefe's previous book, Say Nothing, and so had a high bar going into this. Easily met if not exceeded. In Say Nothing, Keefe uses the kidnapping and murder of Jean McConville not as the subject (as the book's blurb suggests) but more as a frame narrative to outline the Irish Troubles as a whole and its major players. Although more focused than Say Nothing, Empire of Pain follows a similar structure, taking the rise of the Sackler brothers and Purdue Pharma as a frame narrative, to not only tell the Sackler's story but also show how the individuals and institutions around them intertwine and depend on each other. Couldn't recommend any higher.
laura_corsi's review against another edition
5.0
Patrick Radden Keefe is a journalist who does very excellent research but also knows how to tell a story. I loved this narrative about The Sackler Family. Keefe makes you cry with them and laugh with them even as you seethe at them for their many misdeeds. A masterwork of nonfiction!