Left of Boom: How a Young CIA Case Officer Penetrated the Taliban and Al-Qaeda

Douglas Laux · Ralph Pezzullo

Apr 2016 · Sold by St. Martin's Press

About this ebook

Left of Boom is the explosive New York Times bestselling memoir by a young CIA operative on the front lines in Afghanistan.

On September 11, 2001, Douglas Laux was a freshman in college, on the path to becoming a doctor. But with the fall of the Twin Towers came a turning point in his life. After graduating he joined the Central Intelligence Agency, determined to get himself to Afghanistan and into the center of the action. Through persistence and hard work he was fast-tracked to a clandestine operations position overseas. Dropped into a remote region of Afghanistan, he received his baptism by fire. Frustrated by bureaucratic red tape, a widespread lack of knowledge of the local customs and culture and an attitude of complacency that hindered his ability to combat the local Taliban, Doug confounded his peers by dressing like a native and mastering the local dialect, making contact and building sources within several deadly terrorist networks. His new approach resulted in unprecedented successes, including uncovering the largest IED network in the world, responsible for killing hundreds of US soldiers.

Meanwhile, Doug had to keep up false pretenses with his family, girlfriend and friends--nobody could know what he did for a living--and deal with the emotional turbulence of constantly living a lie. His double life was building to an explosive resolution, with repercussions that would have far reaching consequences.

Ratings and reviews

After seeing Douglas Laux's AMA on Reddit I decided to pick up his book and I'm glad I did. It's a very good read and at 300 pages it goes by pretty quickly.

Left Of Boom is an amazing book that gives you an amazing look at what modern CIA Case Officers do for the U.S. There are few books about CIA Officers but a ton of SEAL books. Read this to get another perspective on what our men and women do for our country. The life of a CO was easy to glorify until I read what it can cost you. Thank you Doug for your sacrifices, service, and passion for protecting us.

More than half the book is blacked out!

About the author

DOUGLAS LAUX is a former CIA operations officer who served multiple tours throughout the Middle East. He was in Afghanistan for the 2010 Afghan Surge, and in Kandahar during Operation Neptune Spear, which resulted in the death of Usama bin Ladin. His final assignment was with the top secret task force involved with instigating the Syrian civil war. He lives in Washington, DC.

RALPH PEZZULLO is the bestselling author of Jawbreaker, Inside SEAL Team Six and others.