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Fentanyl Nation: Toxic Politics and America's Failed War on Drugs
A passionate call to abandon ineffective drug-war policies, reframe addiction as a public health issue, and end the Fentanyl crisis.The American overdose crisis has reached record-breaking heights; preventable overdoses are now responsible for more annual deaths than traffic accidents, suicide, or gun violence. Fentanyl—a potent, inexpensive, and easy-to-manufacture synthetic opioid—has thoroughly contaminated the drug supply, and while it frequently makes front page news across the country, it remains poorly understood by policymakers and the public. Why, despite all of our efforts to raise awareness and billions of dollars of investments, does this emergency keep getting worse?In Fentanyl Nation, recovery advocate Ryan Hampton separates the facts from the fiction surrounding Fentanyl, and shows how overdose deaths are ultimately policy failures. Instead of investing in education, harm reduction, effective treatment, and recovery, we have doubled down on more police, more incarceration, and harsher penalties for those caught in the grip of addiction. Yet history has shown time and time again that it is impossible to arrest our way out of a public health crisis; the government used the same strategy to fight the crack-cocaine epidemic of the 80s and 90s, and it only resulted in racially disparate policing and the destruction of marginalized communities.This urgent and informative manifesto reveals how prejudice, discrimination, and stigma have been codified into our drug laws, and calls for a compassionate and evidence-based approach that would address the core causes of addiction and save countless lives. We can end this crisis, but only if we get out of our own way.
304 pages, Hardcover
First published September 24, 2024
39 people are currently reading
464 people want to read
About the author
Ryan Hampton
4 books42 followersRyan Hampton is a national addiction recovery advocate, author, media commentator, and person in long-term recovery. He has worked with multiple non-profits nationwide to end overdose and served in leadership capacities for various community organizing initiatives. Hampton is in recovery from a decade of active opioid use and is a leading voice in America's rising recovery movement. He is the author of Unsettled and American Fix—and lives in Nevada with his husband, Sean, and their boxer dog, Quincy.
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
June 22, 2025
I wish I had never heard of this drug. It was bad enough in its medicinal form - through the transdermal 25/50/75/100 mcg patches. The nation has vilified Purdue Pharmaceuticals, OxyContin, and the Sackler family. Rightly so, as they obviously played an undeniably horrible role in facilitating the opioid epidemic (and clearly have no regrets whatsoever, as we've all seen from Richard Sackler's court deposition). But OxyContin isn't the problem - at least not anymore. And even when it was, usually when there was a lethal overdose, it was in combination with some other drug - alcohol, benzodiazepines, cocaine. Fentanyl kills people all by itself. No other drugs present in the toxicology reports.
As Hampton mentions very early on in this book, however, that at least he'd "just dodged the fentanyl bullet.". The love of my life of 21 years and I had been fortunate enough to miss the synthesizing of fentanyl by street dealers - the only kind we had been acquainted with were the patches and lollipops, the capital "F" Fentanyl. And although we used quite a bit of Oxycontin (it seemed like everyone did back in the mid 2000s) - there were never any "close calls" or non-fatal ODs. Yet trying the Duragesic Fentanyl patches no more than maybe 5-10x over several years scared me the most. It was the only time out of all our crazy college experimentation in which I thought he had overdosed.
It turns out that wouldn't be until 2024; after only three and a half months of him using (I wasn't using, contrary to what some ignorant and deranged individuals who often barely knew him claimed later - the detectives on the scene that horrific day told me they'd verify the truth of my story to anyone - that I'd really only been trying to help, wasn't high when they arrived, nor did they find any drugs in my bag, on my side of the bed, or any mention of drug use/getting drugs in my texts. No contact info in my phone for the dealer, either).
Thanks to this awful drug now made easily by street chemists without even a community college course in chemistry to add to their experience, and selfish ones at that, all of my dreams and plans for the future turned into "if only" and "what ifs" instead, in what was a mere flash of maybe twenty seconds. It's been almost exactly fourteen months and I still just can't process it.
I'm going to leave it at that for my personal story. I don't think it needs to be published at length, for the remainder of time, on the Internet. I've probably talked about it in other places, like Reddit, if only because I didn't have any other outlets for my grief, or anyone to grieve with.
I can understand why Hampton doesn’t constantly want it referred to as a poisoning, because has the potential to cause polarization on an issue which should unite people. But for some teenagers (who seem to be the majority of the poisoning victims), if they took a pill filled with fentanyl believing it to be a Xanax, Adderall, anything else - then what else would you call it? A lot of people that young aren't looking to try something as strong as fentanyl - unless they were already using opiates to a parent's knowledge, it's likely the case that they didn't know what they were taking, if it was in pill form.
While I understand where he's coming from, it's not anyone else's place to tell someone else what to do with their grief. Just let grieving parents, spouses, families, friends - refer to it as they see fit. No one owes anyone else any explanation for the grief of their loved one.
As far as not arresting sellers, I agree - to an extent. If it's really the case that two people were friends, both parties were adults, expressed the desire to use, and one just picked it up? That's two lives you're ruining by putting their friend in prison, since as everyone knows who has loved and lost someone knows - the only thing you can do to make this right is the one thing that can't be done, and that's to bring them back. So why even bother going after people who merely paid for it or sold it to a friend to pay for their own addiction?
It's a completely different case when you're talking about the people who either traffic in it, or sell it to make a major profit off it. I don't care if they're victims of addiction, either. Their addiction isn't what's killing people, it's their greed for money in selling so much of it. Huge difference between people only selling a minimum amount needed to fund their own habit, vs. those who don't even need a full-time job because of how much they're selling to people. For those people, yes, put them in prison. If you value money over someone's life, that's where you deserve to be.
I really preferred Ben Westhoff’s Fentanyl, Inc., but both are incredibly important in their own respect. This was just so personal and I suppose I don’t really feel like I need (or want) to read all of these devastating stories. I already know firsthand. Westhoff included personal stories too, but they weren’t as frequent, and it got more into detail about how the chemicals were made, which was what I wanted to know.
It’s also good that Hampton admitted to struggling with addiction. It's important we acknowledge it's not just "trailer trash" out there taking this stuff. I don't say that to be offensive, obviously, but for lack of a better term. It's simply impossible to deny how most people who have never used hard substances see drug users - mostly as the aforementioned term. It's far more associated with people from the lower socioeconomic classes with rough home lives and not much going for them in terms of happiness, love, career, comfort.
This is where people make such a horribly mistaken assumption. Those are just the most visible users, since they're the ones most often arrested, most often forced into doing jail or prison time - unlike those who either have more money, or come from a family with money, who can pay for a good attorney that will get them a plea deal out of jail time. It's obvious that even some of the most (self-proclaimed) "open-minded" people still believe drug use is the user's fault. That's an entirely contradictory position to take if you're also stating that drug addiction is more akin to physical and mental illnesses which need treatment and care, not policing and punishment.
It's important to acknowledge there's people out there who take drugs that you'd be shocked to learn. It helps to destigmatize popular assumptions of the "kinds of people" who take it, and we need all of the compassion we can get. Doctors, nurses, professors, journalists… plenty of professionals use drugs. They're just able to hide it well enough to never be noticed by the public at large.
There was an anesthesiologist in Florida - he opened up about his experience, told the community - he was hooked on Sufentanil, which according to Hampton's book is twice as potent as Duragesic's Fentanyl. That's incorrect. I knew it to be 10x as potent from what I remembered the surgeon saying, but just after Googling it, it says anywhere from 5-10x.
Of course, he was able to maintain this addiction because he was one of the few people in the hospital with access to it. He'd miss weekends and off-days with his wife and child by claiming he had to work, when instead, he'd only go in to steal the Sufentantil, then get high on it somewhere people wouldn't see. Eventually the hospital found out. If they didn't fire him (sometimes they'll give just one extra chance, providing the doctor or nurse isn't treating a patient under the influence) - then he willingly quit and took up addiction medicine, knowing he wouldn't be able to stay away from it when it was right in front of him.
It's not likely I’ll read anymore books on this subject. I already knew mostly everything in this book, but it is an important read for people who are lucky enough to not know much of anything about this subject. I changed the rating back to three stars since that's more consistent with my personal feelings - it will be a more appealing book, however, for those who don't know much about fentanyl and would like to know more about why this is happening by means of personal stories.
As Hampton mentions very early on in this book, however, that at least he'd "just dodged the fentanyl bullet.". The love of my life of 21 years and I had been fortunate enough to miss the synthesizing of fentanyl by street dealers - the only kind we had been acquainted with were the patches and lollipops, the capital "F" Fentanyl. And although we used quite a bit of Oxycontin (it seemed like everyone did back in the mid 2000s) - there were never any "close calls" or non-fatal ODs. Yet trying the Duragesic Fentanyl patches no more than maybe 5-10x over several years scared me the most. It was the only time out of all our crazy college experimentation in which I thought he had overdosed.
It turns out that wouldn't be until 2024; after only three and a half months of him using (I wasn't using, contrary to what some ignorant and deranged individuals who often barely knew him claimed later - the detectives on the scene that horrific day told me they'd verify the truth of my story to anyone - that I'd really only been trying to help, wasn't high when they arrived, nor did they find any drugs in my bag, on my side of the bed, or any mention of drug use/getting drugs in my texts. No contact info in my phone for the dealer, either).
Thanks to this awful drug now made easily by street chemists without even a community college course in chemistry to add to their experience, and selfish ones at that, all of my dreams and plans for the future turned into "if only" and "what ifs" instead, in what was a mere flash of maybe twenty seconds. It's been almost exactly fourteen months and I still just can't process it.
I'm going to leave it at that for my personal story. I don't think it needs to be published at length, for the remainder of time, on the Internet. I've probably talked about it in other places, like Reddit, if only because I didn't have any other outlets for my grief, or anyone to grieve with.
I can understand why Hampton doesn’t constantly want it referred to as a poisoning, because has the potential to cause polarization on an issue which should unite people. But for some teenagers (who seem to be the majority of the poisoning victims), if they took a pill filled with fentanyl believing it to be a Xanax, Adderall, anything else - then what else would you call it? A lot of people that young aren't looking to try something as strong as fentanyl - unless they were already using opiates to a parent's knowledge, it's likely the case that they didn't know what they were taking, if it was in pill form.
While I understand where he's coming from, it's not anyone else's place to tell someone else what to do with their grief. Just let grieving parents, spouses, families, friends - refer to it as they see fit. No one owes anyone else any explanation for the grief of their loved one.
As far as not arresting sellers, I agree - to an extent. If it's really the case that two people were friends, both parties were adults, expressed the desire to use, and one just picked it up? That's two lives you're ruining by putting their friend in prison, since as everyone knows who has loved and lost someone knows - the only thing you can do to make this right is the one thing that can't be done, and that's to bring them back. So why even bother going after people who merely paid for it or sold it to a friend to pay for their own addiction?
It's a completely different case when you're talking about the people who either traffic in it, or sell it to make a major profit off it. I don't care if they're victims of addiction, either. Their addiction isn't what's killing people, it's their greed for money in selling so much of it. Huge difference between people only selling a minimum amount needed to fund their own habit, vs. those who don't even need a full-time job because of how much they're selling to people. For those people, yes, put them in prison. If you value money over someone's life, that's where you deserve to be.
I really preferred Ben Westhoff’s Fentanyl, Inc., but both are incredibly important in their own respect. This was just so personal and I suppose I don’t really feel like I need (or want) to read all of these devastating stories. I already know firsthand. Westhoff included personal stories too, but they weren’t as frequent, and it got more into detail about how the chemicals were made, which was what I wanted to know.
It’s also good that Hampton admitted to struggling with addiction. It's important we acknowledge it's not just "trailer trash" out there taking this stuff. I don't say that to be offensive, obviously, but for lack of a better term. It's simply impossible to deny how most people who have never used hard substances see drug users - mostly as the aforementioned term. It's far more associated with people from the lower socioeconomic classes with rough home lives and not much going for them in terms of happiness, love, career, comfort.
This is where people make such a horribly mistaken assumption. Those are just the most visible users, since they're the ones most often arrested, most often forced into doing jail or prison time - unlike those who either have more money, or come from a family with money, who can pay for a good attorney that will get them a plea deal out of jail time. It's obvious that even some of the most (self-proclaimed) "open-minded" people still believe drug use is the user's fault. That's an entirely contradictory position to take if you're also stating that drug addiction is more akin to physical and mental illnesses which need treatment and care, not policing and punishment.
It's important to acknowledge there's people out there who take drugs that you'd be shocked to learn. It helps to destigmatize popular assumptions of the "kinds of people" who take it, and we need all of the compassion we can get. Doctors, nurses, professors, journalists… plenty of professionals use drugs. They're just able to hide it well enough to never be noticed by the public at large.
There was an anesthesiologist in Florida - he opened up about his experience, told the community - he was hooked on Sufentanil, which according to Hampton's book is twice as potent as Duragesic's Fentanyl. That's incorrect. I knew it to be 10x as potent from what I remembered the surgeon saying, but just after Googling it, it says anywhere from 5-10x.
Of course, he was able to maintain this addiction because he was one of the few people in the hospital with access to it. He'd miss weekends and off-days with his wife and child by claiming he had to work, when instead, he'd only go in to steal the Sufentantil, then get high on it somewhere people wouldn't see. Eventually the hospital found out. If they didn't fire him (sometimes they'll give just one extra chance, providing the doctor or nurse isn't treating a patient under the influence) - then he willingly quit and took up addiction medicine, knowing he wouldn't be able to stay away from it when it was right in front of him.
It's not likely I’ll read anymore books on this subject. I already knew mostly everything in this book, but it is an important read for people who are lucky enough to not know much of anything about this subject. I changed the rating back to three stars since that's more consistent with my personal feelings - it will be a more appealing book, however, for those who don't know much about fentanyl and would like to know more about why this is happening by means of personal stories.
March 11, 2025
3.5/5. You will like this if you are interested in the opioid endemic, drug trafficking, harm reduction, and rehabilitation techniques.
October 17, 2024
I appreciated Ryan's perspective and information. He and I don't see eye to eye on all points, me being a grieving mom who calls her son's fentanyl death a poisoning. My son was not planning on ingesting fentanyl in the one M30 he took; similarly, when Tylenol was spiked with cyanide, people did not die from "Tylenol overdoses." but cyanide poisoning.
That being said, I gave it four stars instead of five because there were a few places where the copy editors seem to have checked out for a few pages, with whole sections repeated. Hoping most else was factual and accurate, but that was not a good sign.
Very, very grateful for Ryan's support of Ed and Mary Ternan from Song For Charlie, the organization I most closely align with in my own advocacy. I agree whole heartedly with Ryan that factual prevention information is needed to our young adults, and that is where I focus my outreach.
Grateful for this up to date fentanyl information. Started the day it arrived from my pre-order! Can't get much more current than that!
That being said, I gave it four stars instead of five because there were a few places where the copy editors seem to have checked out for a few pages, with whole sections repeated. Hoping most else was factual and accurate, but that was not a good sign.
Very, very grateful for Ryan's support of Ed and Mary Ternan from Song For Charlie, the organization I most closely align with in my own advocacy. I agree whole heartedly with Ryan that factual prevention information is needed to our young adults, and that is where I focus my outreach.
Grateful for this up to date fentanyl information. Started the day it arrived from my pre-order! Can't get much more current than that!
June 30, 2024
Thank you for this arc! I was so excited to read this and it didn’t disappoint. I loved the factual nature of the information he provided, but also how he intertwined his personal experience with addiction. It gave a good perspective on how poor those with addiction and SUD are treated in the U.S. compared to other countries who have a healthcare model. I think this is definitely one everyone needs to read.
February 1, 2025
Ryan Hampton clearly has the passion and expertise to speak on drug policies and the human impact of the fentanyl crisis. Unfortunately, while I didn't fundamentally disagree with the points made here, I did feel that the writing was poor and relied too heavily on pathos and anger to be explicitly persuasive--I'm on the author's side in this and he mostly annoyed me.
November 13, 2024
GREAT.GOOGLY. MOOGLY.
I am not really sure what I was expecting from this book; perhaps just a history and some pat solutions - yeah, I was very wrong.
This is a deep-dive into both the opioid AND the fentanyl crisis how we in the US are handling it [or NOT handling it as it turns out], how other countries handle it, and some really harrowing stories from recovery addicts, from people working with the addicts and against some of the so-called "help" and "advocacy" programs [some of these will make your skin caw], and from the parents who have lost children to the drug epidemic [be prepared - these are absolutely heart-wrenching stories] and what they are doing now in regards to advocacy and fighting against those who are dehumanizing and demonizing those who are still struggling with drugs [the parts of the book that dive into this world are almost as harrowing as the parents talking about the death of their children and I felt completely bereft when this book was done].
Mr. Hampton is himself in long-term recovery and is both brutally honest about his own experience AND what he sees as real answers to end the war on drugs. His writing is straightforward and unflinchingly honest nd taught me so much about a topic I have heard about, but truly know very little about.
Thank you to NetGalley, Ryan Hampton, and St. Martin's Press for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I am not really sure what I was expecting from this book; perhaps just a history and some pat solutions - yeah, I was very wrong.
This is a deep-dive into both the opioid AND the fentanyl crisis how we in the US are handling it [or NOT handling it as it turns out], how other countries handle it, and some really harrowing stories from recovery addicts, from people working with the addicts and against some of the so-called "help" and "advocacy" programs [some of these will make your skin caw], and from the parents who have lost children to the drug epidemic [be prepared - these are absolutely heart-wrenching stories] and what they are doing now in regards to advocacy and fighting against those who are dehumanizing and demonizing those who are still struggling with drugs [the parts of the book that dive into this world are almost as harrowing as the parents talking about the death of their children and I felt completely bereft when this book was done].
Mr. Hampton is himself in long-term recovery and is both brutally honest about his own experience AND what he sees as real answers to end the war on drugs. His writing is straightforward and unflinchingly honest nd taught me so much about a topic I have heard about, but truly know very little about.
Thank you to NetGalley, Ryan Hampton, and St. Martin's Press for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
May 2, 2025
The author’s thesis hits well and hard on so many fronts, yet at times feels more emotionally than practically thought out.
October 16, 2024
Originally posted on my blog Nonstop Reader.
Fentanyl Nation is a sobering, well written and researched condemnation of the politics and machinations of the fentanyl crisis in the USA by politician and addiction recovery advocate Ryan Hampton. Released 24th Sept. 2024 by Macmillan on their St. Martin's Press imprint, it's 304 pages and is available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout.
Accessible to all readers and written in a plain straightforward style, the author has nevertheless written an unflinching and compelling narrative around the politics of drug abuse in America and how decades of stigmatization and marginalization of people addicted to illicit drugs (with the complicity or outright active participation of the pharmaceutical companies) has only worsened the problem.
It's very well annotated, and the chapter notes and bibliography will provide many additional hours of learning for interested readers. The ebook format contains active hyperlinks to relevant references and is recommended.
Five stars. Sad, poignant, important, and surprisingly non-political/neutral. It would make an excellent choice for public library acquisition, therapy/recovery professionals, and non-fiction readers.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
Fentanyl Nation is a sobering, well written and researched condemnation of the politics and machinations of the fentanyl crisis in the USA by politician and addiction recovery advocate Ryan Hampton. Released 24th Sept. 2024 by Macmillan on their St. Martin's Press imprint, it's 304 pages and is available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout.
Accessible to all readers and written in a plain straightforward style, the author has nevertheless written an unflinching and compelling narrative around the politics of drug abuse in America and how decades of stigmatization and marginalization of people addicted to illicit drugs (with the complicity or outright active participation of the pharmaceutical companies) has only worsened the problem.
It's very well annotated, and the chapter notes and bibliography will provide many additional hours of learning for interested readers. The ebook format contains active hyperlinks to relevant references and is recommended.
Five stars. Sad, poignant, important, and surprisingly non-political/neutral. It would make an excellent choice for public library acquisition, therapy/recovery professionals, and non-fiction readers.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
September 25, 2025
Ryan Hampton lays it all out on the table in Fentanyl Nation. I think it’s safe to say the prevailing narrative about the opioid epidemic in America is “Purdue Pharma screwed everyone over but to fix things we have to crack down on drug users, dealers, and the supple chain from beyond our borders.” Hampton takes this, breaks down what is accurate and not, and builds on this base belief. He tells personal stories, presents insights and data from scientists, doctors, and the government, and presents solutions he believes will help save lives in the fentanyl-ridden reality we face. I think a lot of the solutions he highlights from the rest of the world and the ideas he presents for America could help alleviate the crisis we face. I especially like that his focus is first and foremost saving lives. Not punishing people or putting them out of sight, but giving people tools to live productive lives even in addiction.
The only reason I took off one star is that I feel the tone of the book leans in one political direction, even when calling out polarization. I think due to the topic this is somewhat unavoidable, but I also think it hinders the ability for these ideas to reach the audiences that really need to hear them. Those who still push for police intervention and jail as a solution to addiction. I believe these stories and ideas can minds, but I also think a lot of people are unwilling to listen to anyone who seems to come from “the other side.”
The only reason I took off one star is that I feel the tone of the book leans in one political direction, even when calling out polarization. I think due to the topic this is somewhat unavoidable, but I also think it hinders the ability for these ideas to reach the audiences that really need to hear them. Those who still push for police intervention and jail as a solution to addiction. I believe these stories and ideas can minds, but I also think a lot of people are unwilling to listen to anyone who seems to come from “the other side.”
January 18, 2026
Fentanyl Nation is the first book I've read that really digs into the fentanyl crisis specifically. If your understanding of fentanyl is limited to "that thing that's killing people" and vague news headlines, Hampton will fill in the blanks. By the end, you'll understand exactly how we got here and why it's so much worse than the opioid crisis that came before it.
Hampton writes from a unique position - he's a recovering addict himself and a policy advocate, so he's got both the personal experience and the big-picture perspective. This is powerful when it works, giving the book an authenticity and urgency that pure journalism sometimes lacks. He knows what he's talking about because he's lived it, and that comes through on every page. The book casts a pretty wide net, which is both a strength and a weakness. Yes, it's called Fentanyl Nation, but Hampton takes you on a tour of the entire American drug industry - the pharmaceutical companies, the Sacklers, the DEA's failures, harm reduction debates, the criminalization of addiction, the whole mess.
There are stretches where you're reading about prescription pill mills or the broader opioid epidemic, and you start wondering "okay, but when are we getting back to the fentanyl part?" The connections are there, but sometimes it feels like Hampton couldn't resist including everything he knows about the drug crisis writ large. Which, fair - it's all related. But the book occasionally loses focus.
Hampton writes from a unique position - he's a recovering addict himself and a policy advocate, so he's got both the personal experience and the big-picture perspective. This is powerful when it works, giving the book an authenticity and urgency that pure journalism sometimes lacks. He knows what he's talking about because he's lived it, and that comes through on every page. The book casts a pretty wide net, which is both a strength and a weakness. Yes, it's called Fentanyl Nation, but Hampton takes you on a tour of the entire American drug industry - the pharmaceutical companies, the Sacklers, the DEA's failures, harm reduction debates, the criminalization of addiction, the whole mess.
There are stretches where you're reading about prescription pill mills or the broader opioid epidemic, and you start wondering "okay, but when are we getting back to the fentanyl part?" The connections are there, but sometimes it feels like Hampton couldn't resist including everything he knows about the drug crisis writ large. Which, fair - it's all related. But the book occasionally loses focus.
October 16, 2024
As a former law enforcement officer, I saw first hand how the criminal justice system did NOT help those struggling with addiction.
Everything about the stigma of drugs, drug users, and people who care about drug users are portrayed pretty accurately in the book. I loved the authors point about spending so much money on the "war on drugs" but hardly any money is spent on helping the people who are using drugs.
The author spoke to many parents who children had died. THe fight with the DEA, how the DEA operates, and more on the war on drugs.
I wish that the author had spent more time exploring how fentanyl exploded in America and the differences between rural/urban. Are there American chemists cooking up fentanyl?
This is a great heartfelt book about the personal side of addiction, but it is not a lot of fact/research, which I would have appreciated.
Overall, a good book to highlight the current policy's failing to drug users.
Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for this ARC in exchange for this honest review.
Everything about the stigma of drugs, drug users, and people who care about drug users are portrayed pretty accurately in the book. I loved the authors point about spending so much money on the "war on drugs" but hardly any money is spent on helping the people who are using drugs.
The author spoke to many parents who children had died. THe fight with the DEA, how the DEA operates, and more on the war on drugs.
I wish that the author had spent more time exploring how fentanyl exploded in America and the differences between rural/urban. Are there American chemists cooking up fentanyl?
This is a great heartfelt book about the personal side of addiction, but it is not a lot of fact/research, which I would have appreciated.
Overall, a good book to highlight the current policy's failing to drug users.
Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for this ARC in exchange for this honest review.
September 23, 2024
This is the second book that I have read by this author and you can tell that the writing and reporting have both improved. Like most communities, Fentanyl is a problem in my home town. Hampton, himself in recovery from addiction, demonstrates compassion for those that he is profiling. This book really highlights the immensity of the issue and how even countries with progressive drug policies, such as Portugal, struggle with the long term commitment of time and resources required to treat Fentanyl addiction. It is a level of patience that the United States does not have. Fentanyl is a terrifying drug with devastating impacts with no real end in sight. I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley.
February 7, 2025
I picked up this book from my local library Monday night. I cannot recommend it enough for anyone who has worked, or dealt with the current drug crisis we face as a nation.
The author takes his time to go through the history of the war on drugs in the United States and how repeated policy failures have led us to today. We have almost 3x as many overdose deaths as the next country. He compares our models with what other countries have done and gives critiques of each system.
The author challenges widely held stances about addiction and why they may or may not be true and may actually be causing more harm than good. Very informative if you are looking to learn more about one of the biggest issues facing our country today.
The author takes his time to go through the history of the war on drugs in the United States and how repeated policy failures have led us to today. We have almost 3x as many overdose deaths as the next country. He compares our models with what other countries have done and gives critiques of each system.
The author challenges widely held stances about addiction and why they may or may not be true and may actually be causing more harm than good. Very informative if you are looking to learn more about one of the biggest issues facing our country today.
March 13, 2025
I’m one of those fortunate people who isn’t aware of any family or friends who have been addicted to opioids. I decided to get myself more knowledgeable about this drug endemic plaguing our nation.
The book covered a wide range of issues, including recovery, drug-war policies, incarceration, and how other countries have handled the endemic. Ryan Hampton did a brilliant job of explaining things so a layman could understand. As a former addict, he had a unique perspective.
I listened to the audiobook. The narration was great.
As the saying goes, the more you know, the more you realize you don't know…
The book covered a wide range of issues, including recovery, drug-war policies, incarceration, and how other countries have handled the endemic. Ryan Hampton did a brilliant job of explaining things so a layman could understand. As a former addict, he had a unique perspective.
I listened to the audiobook. The narration was great.
As the saying goes, the more you know, the more you realize you don't know…
October 14, 2024
So freaking good
This is the single best book I've read on, not only the fentanyl crisis, but America's historically inept and ludicrous war on drugs. Hampton is scathing, and rightly so, in describing just how dangerous and lethal our country's response to drugs has been. His honesty and depth of knowledge is astounding and very much needed these days. His is a voice that needs to be amplified in these polarized times. An instant masterpiece.
This is the single best book I've read on, not only the fentanyl crisis, but America's historically inept and ludicrous war on drugs. Hampton is scathing, and rightly so, in describing just how dangerous and lethal our country's response to drugs has been. His honesty and depth of knowledge is astounding and very much needed these days. His is a voice that needs to be amplified in these polarized times. An instant masterpiece.
February 12, 2025
Above all the message from the book was very articulate and well thought out. The author was able to explain the road to recovery and redemption from first hand knowledge which I as a reader appreciated. The author described his message with facts and he provided solutions that made sense. I did not agree with the solutions the author provided however I understood the authors reasoning so I respect his point of view. Very very interesting read.
July 15, 2024
This is an excellent book that really goes in depth into the fentanyl problem and the reasons it is so severe and endemic. I had no idea how much misinformation I had been fed. Hampton weaves facts, history and many stories to really show the scope of the problem and why current deterrents fail so miserably. Very well done.
I read a digital copy of this book for review.
I read a digital copy of this book for review.
December 1, 2025
2.5ish
Work book club read-I think this book would be better for someone who isn't super familiar with the status of the opioid crisis in the US. Having worked in harm reduction for years and being adjacent to addiction for decades-it wasn't really the most riveting read and I didn't really learn anything new.
Work book club read-I think this book would be better for someone who isn't super familiar with the status of the opioid crisis in the US. Having worked in harm reduction for years and being adjacent to addiction for decades-it wasn't really the most riveting read and I didn't really learn anything new.
October 12, 2024
Highly recommend!
December 3, 2024
Very easy to listen to and extremely enlightening.
January 14, 2025
A must read for any American in order to understand fentanyl and the problems America consistently faces and fails to fix.
February 17, 2025
This should be required reading.
April 29, 2025
Excellent look at fentanyl, the impact it has had on our country, and why it's so hard to eradicate - and why it's so dangerous. Painful, important, honest, brutal, sad, enraging.
May 28, 2025
Used an Audible credit for this. Listened to it while driving to and from the trail and some while hiking. I thought it was fine.
September 5, 2025
The author has a firm grasp of the issue and great case stuffies to back their logic. Very educational and eye opening
January 12, 2026
Must read!
August 29, 2024
I highly recommend “Fentanyl Nation” by Ryan Hampton for anyone who wants to learn about Fentanyl and the United States 100 plus year lost war against drugs. Hampton dispels some of the myths, misinformation, and propaganda around fentanyl and why it is so severe and different than other drugs. Hampton provides several personal stories, statistics, and policies of the United States and other nations. He lays out some policy changes that would actually be helpful and might actually save lives.
July 2, 2024
This book dives into the modern complexities of drug abuse in America, highlighting how our system is failing to protect its citizens. The author presents a chilling and eye-opening narrative about the rise of synthetic fentanyl as a significant narcotic, the socio-political impacts of the drug war in America, and the increase of overdose deaths due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Through a thoughtful discussion, the author advocates for focusing on human rights rather than criminalizing addiction, proposing comprehensive policy reforms that emphasize treatment and support over punishment.
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