Those who fail to read this forsake their chance to know the truth - Roberto Saviano

An outstanding book packed with history, humour, and adventure. America's struggle to thwart them Winn is the perfect guide to these highland outlaws and their incredible, defiant narcostate. This is the best reportage to come out of Southeast Asia in years. - Graeme Wood, author of The Way of Strangers

A riveting portrait of a little-known and often vilified people; a harrowing tale of Asia's epic, multibillion-dollar drugs trade. - Thant Myint-U, author The Hidden History of Burma

Winn has made a riveting read out of the largely overlooked- but critically important- Wa State .... The history behind it, the masterminds pulling the strings, and the many CIA operations against them. It's a fascinating and incredibly well-researched dive into Asia's underworld and some of the greatest narcotics traffickers in the region. And above all, it's beautifully crafted storytelling. - Isobel Yeung

Unputdownable .... An authentic page-turner revealing why the global drug problem remains unsolved. - Khuensai Jaiyen, former secretary to drug lord Khun Sa

Part gangster saga, part espionage thriller, and part liberation epic, Winn's narrative alternates between rollicking adventure and harrowing violence conveyed in vivid, muscular prose. - Publishers Weekly

At times, Narcotopia reads like a satire from the mind of Joseph Heller ... Winn tells this complex story with admirable clarity and a healthy dose of humour, and has drawn on a huge range of CIA and DEA documents, 'some declassified, others acquired by creative means'. - The Daily Telegraph

Patrick Winn is an investigative journalist who covers rebellion and black markets in South-East Asia. He has received a National Press Club award and is also a three-time winner of Amnesty International's Human Rights Press Awards. He is currently Public Radio International's Asia correspondent, and is the author of Hello, Shadowlands (Icon, 2018)