Addict, The

The Addict opens a window on the very private world of prescription drug addiction, revealing the harrowing story of a young woman whose life has been taken over by a need she can't extinguish.

Lucy's first appointment with Dr. Michael Stein on a sunny April day began a yearlong series of encounters that took her back to the origins of her addiction and unraveled a life driven by compulsion and the constant pursuit of the next pill. The Addict follows Lucy from the start of her treatment, through relapse, to her eventual long-term recovery, including her breakup with a destructive boyfriend whose own drug addiction surpassed hers. It is an unforgettable tale of a young woman living on the edge but determined to take control of her life—and a deeply personal account of a doctor on the front lines of an epidemic.

Michael Stein is the author of the award-winning The Lonely Patient as well as five novels. He has been treating addiction for more than twenty years and is a professor of medicine and community health at Brown University.