A blistering crime novel of the opioid epidemic–and its cops, villains, and victims–written by a twenty-five-year veteran of the DEA.Angel, Kentucky: Just another one of America’s forgotten places, where opportunities vanished long ago, and the opioid crisis has reached a fever pitch. When this small town is rocked by the vicious killing of an entire infamous local crime family, the bloody … family, the bloody aftermath brings together three people already struggling with Angel’s drug epidemic: Trey, a young medic-in-training with secrets to hide; Special Agent Casey Alexander, a DEA agent who won’t let the local law or small-town way of doing things stand in her way; and Paul Mayfield, a former police chief who’s had to watch his own young wife succumb to addiction.
Over the course of twenty-four hours, loyalties are tested, the corrupt are exposed, and the horrible truth of the largest drug operation in the region is revealed. And though Angel will never be the same again, a lucky few may still find hope.
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“Lost River” is the story of life in Angel, Kentucky, a place where almost everyone is tied together by blood, marriage, or bad luck. Angel is a city with vacant shops and deserted streets heavy with shadows. Rural Kentucky moved beyond moonshining a long time ago, and replaced that with a more systemic problem, one that transcends poverty, social status, and financial assets — pervasive drug use.
Scott tells the story from the point of view of various participants. Readers observe how they see the world, and how they continuously struggle with substance abuse on every level. The characters are complex and troubled, weighed down by a hundred invisible anchors, seeking lifelines they are never going to take. The vocabulary, syntax, and cadence reflect the poverty and isolation of their way of life, simple yet complex, traditional yet mired in modern events.
There is a bad batch of heroin spreading around the county and people are dropping like flies. A tiny dancing skeleton and letters DOA are stamped on the bags as a warning, the sort of secret that everyone knows. Every person is in danger; even the loose powder in the air is deadly to police and other first responders. The situation is complex with competing, even conflicting interests, the DEA, the County Sheriff’s Office, the Kentucky State Police, and The FBI, because someone always calls the FBI.
Angel’s lost souls are the real story, those for whom nothing will ever be enough, for whom there will never be a right time. Scott crafted a compelling and gut-wrenching story drawn from events and issues surrounding the very real opioid crisis. According to the CDC (Center for Disease Control), ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-EIGHT people die every day from an opioid overdose. I received a review copy of “Lost River” from J. Todd Scott, G.P. Putnam’s Sons, and Penguin Publishing Group. It is starkly realistic, gripping, and disturbing.
This is a grim novel about the opioid crisis, a family drug cartel in Appalachia, and corrupt law enforcement. It’s about the people affected by addiction, those the drugs are slowly destroying and the family members who are destroyed by their helplessness. It’s also about the people who fight against the evil and darkness, the agents of the DEA and first responders. The book starts with a massacre and ends with a funeral, but also hope. Everything in between is fast paced and attention grabbing. The characters are complex and even the worst of them are written with an eye to how circumstances led them to their fates. You won’t be able to put this one down.
The author is a DEA agent, so you know that in all likelihood he’s seen the situations described in the book. That makes them all the more real and all the more terrifying. It makes just thanking him for his service seem inconsequential. I hope his life is filled with joy and few nightmares.
I spotted Lost River by J. Todd Scott at my favorite crime bookstore in Minnesota but decided to be good and check it out from the library since I haven’t read this author before. I don’t usually read books that touch on current issues, but this sounded so good that I had to give it a shot and I am very glad I did! I had no idea this came out in 2020, but that doesn’t matter since it is still very applicable today, and I can’t believe I didn’t even know it existed. Scott works for the DEA and it really came through in his writing, everything is very well thought out and it was very clear to me that he knows what he is talking about when it comes to the opioid epidemic. The plot felt scarily realistic, and I had to keep reminding myself it is a fictional story. There are a few different viewpoints as well as different time periods which got confusing to me at times, but overall it wasn’t too hard to follow along with what was happening. There is plenty of action in this novel and I could see it making an incredible movie.
The setting of Angel, Kentucky was very interesting, and it was obvious that we were in the deep south. I listened to the audiobook which is narrated by T. Ryder Smith who I have never heard narrate before. When the action hit his narration would get very fast and frantic, and it really upped the suspense and anxiety in those situations. I thought his voice seemed perfect for all of the characters which are mainly men, and although I had to slow the audiobook down so I heard everything he was saying, this was not an issue and I really enjoyed listening to him. Our only female viewpoint came from Special Agent Casey Alexander, and I loved her character. I think Scott could easily center a series around her and would definitely listen to/read it if he did. This is a very “manly” novel, and I think any guy or gal that loves reading and action movies would love Lost River. I enjoy a good action movie myself and if this ever actually does come out as a movie, I will totally watch it! It shocked me in some great ways, and my mouth dropped open at a couple of reveals, so I am glad I took a chance and picked this up.
Scott is one of the very best. His books are smart, gritty, action-packed, and tough. Don’t miss this one!
J. Todd Scott stands out in a crowded field of mystery and suspense writers. His stories are always compelling and spot on. Scott shows us the underside of the world in which we live. Though not pretty, it is an environment that calls for attention and hopefully redemption. If that is not the case, we will continue down the opioid infested road that he so aptly describes.
While I have not visited the region where this wonderful book plays out, it could be anywhere in the world. Each character tells a story replete with drugs, violence, and all that these bring to a small town in the United States. The characters tell their own stories as they see them and we are privy to distinct and unique points of view as to how the story affects their lives and the people closest to them.
J. Todd Scott is an author to be savored and praised. Reading Lost River is a privilege and an awakening to a world that is rarely explored or experienced with the expertise and deftness that is seen in Lost River.