Reviews with content warning for Addiction - Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty

The origins of the opioid crisis told through 3 generations of a single family. How the founders of the family pioneered a new way of drug advertising and how their children would carry on the legacy ten fold. If you’ve ever heard the name Sackler before, this is a must read. The author did an amazing job researching this book and outlining this story in a way that, while long, feels concise into the point. Highly recommend.

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dannythestreet's review against another edition

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challenging dark slow-paced

4.25

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ksuazo94's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional informative tense medium-paced

3.75

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waybeyondblue's review against another edition

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challenging dark informative tense slow-paced

5.0

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yilliun's review against another edition

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dark informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

Such an amazing and informative book about the family who (allegedly) fueled the opioid crisis both in the US and now abroad. The author does a great job with outlining each of these people and their motives. He certainly proves that people don’t become billionaires without exploiting others along the way.

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matildak28's review against another edition

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challenging informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

this is an incredible piece of non fiction writing — Patrick Redden Keefe is sharp and reflective, presents the facts through a deeply engaging narrative and I literally couldn’t stop listening - I listened to this non stop over the course of 3 days. This may be one of the most precise, excellent non fiction books I’ve ever read. I’ve watched a lot of documentaries about the opioid crisis in America (I’m from the UK and have no personal connection), and all of them have very limited details about the family — I feel like I have learned a lot despite already knowing a fair deal.

Quite simply, this is incredible and this writer is nothing short of brilliant. I will be seeking out his other works immediately.

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fdallachy's review against another edition

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informative medium-paced

4.0

I found this really interesting, knowing next to nothing about the history of the Sackler family or, indeed, about OxyContin. The tone is very journalistic, which means it's easy to read but, at times, feels slightly gossipy especially when trying to give an impression of the personalities of its protagonists. Nonetheless, there are pretty thorough end notes which helps support the veracity of even these comments (although then you have to wonder to what extent the author has selected those which fit the picture they're painting etc etc) The upside of this, though, is that it helps you remember all the names as you whizz through years of dubious business practices and stony refusal to egage with the consequences of those decisions.

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