"An amount of fentanyl equal to only about two grains of salt can be fatal. In recent years, fentanyl and other deadly synthetic opioids have become common in the United States. While drug use has not changed a lot, drug overdose deaths have increased considerably. The main cause of this dramatic increase is widely believed to be fentanyl and other synthetic opioids" --

Amos Decker and his FBI colleague Alex Jamison are in Baronville, Pennsylvania, visiting Alex's sister and her family. It's a bleak place: a former mill and mining town with a crumbling economy and rampant opioid addiction. Decker has only been there a few hours when he stumbles on a horrific double murder scene. Then the next killing hits sickeningly close to home. With the lives of people he cares about suddenly hanging in the balance, Decker realizes...

In her gripping, necessary, and deeply humane follow-up to the New York Times bestseller Dopesick, journalist Beth Macy brings us to the next frontier of the opioid crisis, telling the story of the everyday heroes fighting to stem the tide of drug overdose in communities that are too often left to fend for themselves, and of the activists and relatives of the dead who are still struggling for accountability in America's courts. Nearly a decade into...

"Many opioids are pain relievers, some of which are often prescribed by doctors. Prescribed opioids may be safe when taken for a short time. However, they can be dangerous because, in addition to relieving pain, they can also give the user an enjoyable high. People who use opioids can become dependent and addicted, and they may even overdose or die. In this book, readers will learn about the effects of opioid use and the damage they can cause. Manageable...

"prescription painkilling drugs known as opioids, including counterfeit versions of them, are killing more people than any other drugs that exist. This has created a full-blown health crisis in the United States-one that has led U.S. health officials to declare a public health emergency"--

Examines the toll of opioid addiction in the U.S. on individuals, families, and communities through personal stories, including a couple who lost their son to prescription painkillers, and expert commentary.