A review by bibliomich
Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty by Patrick Radden Keefe

dark informative medium-paced

5.0

Patrick Radden Keefe is an author who has been on my radar for a long time, and I'm glad that I finally decided to listen to Empire of Pain.

First of all, I want to note that Keefe narrates his own audiobook, and he is an excellent narrator, so I highly recommend the audiobook, should you enjoy/prefer listening to your books.

The core thesis of this book is that the decisions of several generations of one single family shaped the pharmaceutical industry of today, as well as significantly contributed to the current opioid crisis. Keefe's research is thorough, substantial, and tremendously convincing. The story is compelling, devastating, and infuriating.

I highly recommend Empire of Pain and personally intend to read Keefe's other books soon.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, and Drug use

Moderate: Death, Mental illness, Suicide, and Medical content

Minor: Cancer and Antisemitism

Patrick Radden Keefe is an author who has been on my radar for a long time, and I'm glad that I finally decided to listen to Empire of Pain. First of all, I want to note that Keefe narrates his own audiobook, and he is an excellent narrator, so I highly recommend the audiobook, should you enjoy/prefer listening to your books. The core thesis of this book is that the decisions of several generations of one single family shaped the pharmaceutical industry of today, as well as significantly contributed to the current opioid crisis. Keefe's research is thorough, substantial, and tremendously convincing. The story is compelling, devastating, and infuriating. I highly recommend Empire of Pain and personally intend to read Keefe's other books soon.